This past week the adult education class on Sunday morning started to study the book of Acts. It is the story of what happened after Jesus ascended into Heaven and the Holy Spirit showed up in His place. It’s filled with some crazy stories. It is the story of the beginning of what we know as the church. It is filled with wild stories.
This past Sunday they started with Acts 2. If you haven’t read it lately I encourage you stop right here and read it, then come back. Am I wrong or is that wild, chaotic scene? There was a great wind, tongues of fire, preaching in all the languages of the world (by people who didn’t know those languages), and some 3,000 people were baptized. Think about for that many to be baptized there must have been friends baptizing each other, parents baptizing their kids… and that many people all in one place? This was not orderly. However, as I read it I sense and feel a great energy and enthusiasm present in that place.
Last year at this time we were wrapping up what many are calling an historic election. One of the things that carried the election was an enthusiasm that followed along with President Obama. Do you remember his mantra? (He recently brought it back in regards to health care.) He would get the crowds at his rallies chanting after him, “Fired Up! Ready to Go!” Can you imagine being in one of those stadiums with 17,000 people enthusiastically chanting that? You couldn’t help but leave there energized. It’s the kind of energy and enthusiasm that I could imagine being present on that Pentecost day in Acts 2.
What keeps us from that kind of enthusiasm when it comes to our faith? What would it take to get you/us “Fired Up! Ready to go!”? How might the world around us be different if we were so moved by the Holy Spirit that we could no longer contain ourselves?
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