As the warmer winds of spring swirl through the Anchorage Bowl, I've been thinking about the Holy Spirit.
Most Lutheran churches don't say much about the Holy Spirit, or raise a suspicious eyebrow at those who would mention her movement.
Early Christians had fewer reservations. A walk through the book of Acts shows time after time how the Spirit shows up and invites early Christians into places they could not have imagined. The Spirit breaks the rules, blows down dividing walls and welcomes those deemed unwelcome-able.
Then sometime during the Enlightenment (this info courtesy of Pat Keifert, Luther Seminary) intellectuals became suspicious of the Spirit. She wasn't rational, couldn't be proven or tamed into submission. We're still in this post-Enlightenment attitude. We distrust this Spirit that we cannot understand.
Yet the Spirit keeps moving, breathing life into us, when we let her. What if we opened ourselves to the movement of the Holy Spirit? What if the Spirit has already given us all the gifts we need?
This summer at Central, we move to one worship service, 9:30 am. It's a good time -- the church is (usually) full and we move into a more relaxed worship setting. Before we worship, we'll host a Bible study of the book of Acts, starting at 8:15 am. Will you join us? I look forward to learning how the Spirit will lead you...and all of us at Central.
No comments:
Post a Comment