Sharing
Experiences of the Holy Spirit
Every Wednesday morning at 6:30 am, I take
my place in a circle in the Parlor with 25 other women. We pray,
we eat, we share our lives and we talk about books. Right now
we are talking about spiritual experiences as we read How To Know
God by Deepak Chopra.
His basic thesis is that we are capable of a
wide range of thoughts and experiences as we encounter God as
the Holy Spirit. He organizes that richness into seven categories.
Here are examples of each category:
*God the Protector –
In the midst of danger, you feel suddenly cared for and protected.
*God the Almighty – You trust that God
answers prayer and knows what is best for you.
*God of Peace – In a moment of silence
you look within and experience a sudden calmness.
*God the Redeemer – An infant or young
child looks into your eyes and for a second you experience total
love and forgiveness.
*God the Creator – It doesn’t matter
that the task is difficult, you know that the outcome is already
a reality.
*God of Miracles – In the presence of death,
you feel the passing of wings.
*God of Pure Being "I AM" – A
stunning glimpse of beauty makes you forget for a second who you
are.
On the following pages you will be invited
into the worlds of each writer as he or she shares a moment or
a lifetime when the Holy Spirit was present. It has been an enormous
gift for me to read and treasure each meditation and then to combine
the meditations with my readings in How to Know God. Hopefully,
these experiences will be a blessing in your life too and will
help you be aware of your own sacred moments – moments when
you feel the mystery and wonder of the Holy Spirit. Don’t
be afraid to share these sacred moments with others because it
is in sharing that we deepen our connection with ourselves, each
other and the Divine.
This booklet would not have been possible without the work of
my administrative assistant, Linda McGlothlin, who did all the
typing and assembling. Thank you, Linda. Thanks go to Sarah Nevin
too for the beautiful cover design
Betty Brandt, Director of the Spiritual Life Center
The
Spiritual Discipline of Lawn Mowing
By definition, Pentecost is the time when the
Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples. I got a very visual
image of what this spirit descending looks like a few nights ago
at bedtime when I read a Bible story to my five-year-old daughter
Annie. Her illustrated Bible imparts Acts 2 in the following way:
“The day of Pentecost came. The believers all gathered in
one place. Suddenly a sound came from heaven. It was like a strong
wind. It filled the whole house where they were sitting. They
saw tongues of fire on each of them. They were filled with the
Holy Spirit. They began to speak in languages they had not known
before.” The illustration shows the disciples literally
with bolts of flames above their heads, some rejoicing, some surprised,
and others a little unsure.
I expect this is a pretty fair representation
of how the disciples must have really felt. In modern vernacular,
I can imagine hearing, “Hey, what the heck was that?”
What does the Holy Spirit feel like today? My guess would be folks
are filled with the Holy Spirit and may not recognize that is
what it is.
I found a surefire way to have the Holy Spirit
descend upon me is to mow the lawn. Hence, this means that during
the spring mowing season, I experience this marvelous phenomenon
twice a week. Most spiritual guides I have talked with counsel
silent meditation to invoke the presence of God and the Holy Spirit,
but twice a week in the spring I like to focus on Acts 2 that
says, “Suddenly a sound came from heaven. It was like a
strong wind.” When I mow the lawn I have headphones on,
listening to music, and not just any music. I listen to a live
concert performance by the band U2. The particular song that is
the “sound from heaven” is Walk on. In the concert
version of this song, Bono, the band’s lead singer, adds
in the infectious Hallelujah over and over to close the song.
During this coda the Holy Spirit descends on me like a “strong
wind.” My body tingles, I get goose bumps and tears stream
down my face. Of course I am glad that the lawnmower is producing
enough noise to drown out my sad attempt at rejoicing by belting
out Hallelujah at the top of my lungs.
Pentecost is a finite church celebration put
in parameters by a calendar. However, I think the spirit of the
Pentecost is not confined by a calendar. The power of the Holy
Spirit is always available. Goose bumps are God’s way of
poking me on the shoulder and saying, “I’m here.”
Stan Abell
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A
Gift from Amman
It was the fall of 1995. After presenting a
paper at the International Conference on Aging in Jerusalem, a
sudden change in plans caused me to join an extended tour through
Israel and Jordan.
In an Amman gift shop a handsome young Palestinian
responded eagerly to my questions about his life, until I asked
about his future plans. With an icy vehemence, he described how,
one day, he would go to Jerusalem, strap as much dynamite to his
body as possible, and kill as many Jews as he could. Aghast, I
pleaded with him, promising to pray that Allah would not let this
happen.
Burdened by this memory, I welcomed the chance
to attend the library's series on world religions. At the conclusion
of a moving presentation by a Muslim woman, I noticed Rita Kohn,
a writer friend, standing nearby. At once, I suggested she write
a play about Sara and Hagar. She quickly agreed to write about
these women of Genesis, who are claimed by Jews, Christians, and
Muslims as early female ancestors of each faith, if I would agree
to be the producer. (Me? A geriatric counselor?)
Within a month, Rita mailed me a copy of the
play. With ability beyond my awareness, grants were written. I
planned and hosted a dramatic reading fundraiser, with invitations
sent to women from each faith perspective. A director became available,
who found actors, and suggested venues and costumes and worked
with the music written for the play by Rita’s son.
I began to realize that attendance at a Ramadan
dinner at the Muslim mosque in Plainfield a year earlier had been
a part of my preparation. Now, it was appropriate to approach
Dr. Sayyid Syeed, Secretary General of the Islamic Society in
North America, and his wife, Rafia. Together, we partnered with
the Pilgrim Lutheran Church Fine Arts Series and 'Spirit and Place,
1996' to present Rita Kohn's play, Sarah and Hagar, to more than
500 people.
What a source of joy! Being open to the Holy
Spirit – the provision of all that was needed – enabled
a moment of anguished rage in Amman, Jordan to become my passionate
desire to create an opportunity for understanding.
Barbara Furlow
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A
Sweet, Sweet Spirit in the Air
It was the summer of 1991. I had just finished
working with a group of teenagers at camp in Bloomington and was
hustling to make a flight that would take me to a music teachers’
conference in Minnesota. It was a difficult time in my life. I
was in a financial bind; I was working on a degree in Christian
Education and my grades reflected that might not be the field
for me. In addition to my work at the church I was doing work
at various part time jobs and was totally exhausted.
With only a moment to spare, I got on the plane
and made my way to my seat, which was occupied with one of the
biggest canvas bags I had ever seen. Shyly the older woman next
to the bag apologized for the inconvenience and attempted to get
up to find a place for it. It was clear that this old woman was
not going to be able to handle this bag, and I was surprised that
she even got it on the plane. So, reluctantly I picked up the
bag and began searching for a place to store this monster, and
when I finally did, could only think about taking my seat and
closing my eyes. I couldn't remember a time before or since when
I have been so physically and emotionally exhausted.
As I finally settled in my seat and closed my
eyes, I felt a touch on my left arm. When I opened my eyes, there
was the older woman who was sitting next to me, looking so deeply
into my eyes, I felt as though she was looking at my soul. Without
a word from me she spoke, saying, "Those who wait upon the
Lord shall have their strength renewed, they shall mount up on
wings with eagles, they shall run and not grow weary." (Isaiah
40:31) All I could do was cry. It was if I had sat down next to
God's advocate - the Holy Spirit, present at that moment to love
and care for me. Over the next few hours I shared with her my
concerns, my feelings and my cares. She reminded me of the great
resource of faith that God had placed deep within. I would learn
that she was a missionary/teacher in Africa and had spent her
adult life teaching and sharing the love of God.
My life was different from that moment on and
I believe it was through the power of the Holy Spirit that I heard
God call me to be a minister of God's love. I have never seen
the missionary/teacher again but I am forever grateful for the
gift she shared with me on that plane ride.
Carolyn Scanlan
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My
Spirit
I’m not sure I am qualified to write
about the Holy Spirit. I mean, the Spirit is real and is with
me, but it seems like bragging or posturing in some way to speak
of “my” Spirit.
I remember back when, back years ago when I
didn’t even pause to wonder about a Holy Spirit or the Presence
at all. It came, though, one day when living itself seemed not
enough. I don’t even ask was the Spirit there all the time
and I just didn’t know it. I don’t ask because this
is where I am now - living in the Spirit, in the Presence, with
my Comforter.
One friend reading this may be called to remember
a recent, brief conversation when I exploded that maybe the love
of God just wasn’t enough. I get that way sometimes. She
was gentle and indicated the remark was a bit extreme, but people
who have heard me pray over the years know I tend to appear rather
off-hand, casual. I think they forgive my lack of hushed tone
and oral reverence.
Right away after I’d made that crack,
though, I was as conscious of the Spirit being with me as I had
ever been. The Spirit doesn’t get miffed; it’s just
there and I know it. Having at last become aware of God all around
me and within all of us, there is no escaping, there’s no
ignoring the sense of the Son with me, not judging, not being
critical, maybe not even saying, “Good, job, girl.”
I do think of Spirit much of the time. Don’t
come up to me and ask, “Are you thinking of the Spirit now?”
Of course, at that instant I shall be, but the thing is, that
quiet, indescribable knowing is always there, and the God I pray
to doesn’t mind at all if I come across as irreverent. That’s
when I’m most reverent. And the Spirit knows that.
Jo Hollis
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My Experiences with the Holy
Spirit and Jon
Early on in my friendship with one of my Pastors,
God gave me unconditional love for him. Jon shared with me that
he was HIV positive six years before he died from AIDS. When he
first told me, I was very concerned about what would happen to
Jon and to the congregation when they found out. I started praying
to God at that time and prayed continuously during the next six
years. I was afraid for my Pastor and for my church. All I could
do was turn it over to God and let God through the Holy Spirit
prepare the congregation and Jon.
One Sunday, Jon was preaching and he was having
a huge problem with diarrhea, which is common with AIDS patients.
He sought me out before the service and asked me to pray for him.
He was very weak and unsure if he was going to make it through
the service. I began praying as diligently as I could. I was praying
so intently that I did not hear one word of the sermon that Sunday.
But, once when I looked up to check on Jon, I saw two angels,
one on each side of him, holding him up so he could finish the
sermon.
The Holy Spirit was very active around Jon.
The congregation supported him and kept him on as a minister when
they found out not only that he had AIDS, but also that he was
gay. The Church Council simply stated that since we had been Jon’s
only parish and that he had been with us for ten years, that we
would take care of him. They stated that if there were parishioners
who could not handle that decision, they were free to leave and
join another church. And of course, some did. But those who stayed
and loved were blessed.
We are all God’s children. We all deserve to be loved and
cared for. When we do that we are blessed beyond our greatest
expectations. Jon is gone now to his heavenly home, but many of
us still experience his presence with us.
Glorianne Nevin
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Ed’s “Transition”
A time when I deeply felt the presence of the
Holy Spirit occurred during my dad Ed’s “transition”
from this world to the next. This was the term used by the hospice
nurses and attendants who came to visit and minister to him. Dad
had surgery to remove an aggressive brain tumor, but it had returned,
and we were told he might live 3 more weeks. One of Dad’s
caregivers was an exceptional woman who seemed to have a sense
of others in the room. Dad was in and out of consciousness at
that point, and he would often look beyond us and talk. This woman
sensed an older woman with very dark hair who was there to help
ease Dad into his transition. My Mom said that as a child, he
used to love to stay with a favorite grandmother who fit that
description.
Dad was a strong believer and had always been
very active in the church, no matter where we moved. Whether it
was teaching Sunday School, serving as an usher, teaching in a
literacy program, or helping with Church dinners, he always enjoyed
volunteering and injecting his own humor and teasing style. During
his illness, he never seemed afraid or anxious, because I believe
he know where he was going.
When a friend brought him a golden angel ornament
(since it was almost Christmas), we hung it above his bed. After
studying it for a while, his comment to my brother was, “They
don’t look like that.”
I wish I had talked to Dad about heaven that
last day that I saw him. I had to show my children how to lovingly
say goodbye, and we all prayed, holding hands around the bed.
I felt the love of God holding us all through that experience,
and I’m convinced that God sent special angels to accompany
Ed and ease him into his next life, a life with Him.
Sally Pearson
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An Answer in Time
The house had wanted to build itself through
me for over a decade; I’d even built a three dimensional
model complete with furniture. So as I sat on the rise of the
tree filled plot of land seven minutes from St. Luke’s,
I felt a deep spiritual peace come over me. Hadn’t I declared
the land must be within a 15-minute commute from church? Hadn’t
I requested a secluded, tree filled, unique setting? Perfect!
Then the old struggle reappeared: what if it
is selfish to build when others don’t have a roof or food?
For months while details of the sale were being researched, I
spent time in meditation asking, “Yes?” or “No?”
My readings supported both sides: “Listen to the passion
of your heart! It is God’s call.” And, “Do not
lay up for yourself treasures on earth; feed the hungry.”
The day before the final decision had to be
made, I felt no definitive answer. In desperation, for the first
time I threw a fleece before God. “God, I need to know NOW!
Send me a sign.” I left my meditation to collect boxes from
the attic for a class I had that day. Under the pile of boxes
my eye fell upon my 3D modeling kit from a decade before; I didn’t
remember still having it! I gasped as my body felt a surge of
kinetic energy that nearly knocked me over.
I claimed the answer, bought the land, and
built the house. Later I asked God. “Why have you blessed
me so?” The answer flowed through a sacred space in my being
- “Because I love you.”
Minnietta Millard
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Prodigal Son in Clermont,
IN
December 3, 1984 was a bright, cold and windless
day. I was standing at a telephone booth at a $50/week motel in
Clermont, IN. I was spiritually, physically and emotionally bankrupt.
I was a classic example of the Prodigal Son with self-will run
riot. The bridges of family support had been burned. My resources
consisted of a grocery sack of clothes and a credit card with
$40 left on its limit. I would be homeless in a day. At exactly
2:45 pm I had what 12 step programs call a moment of clarity.
My mental fog lifted and all my senses seemed to go in slow motion
with crystal clarity. I called a person for help and admitted
defeat. From that day forward God was in control and not me.
I believe now that this moment of clarity was
the Holy Spirit filling my being. St. Luke used the Greek word
PNEUMA which means breath to describe the Holy Spirit. Acts 2
states that on the day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit or breath
filled the disciples. A new phase of God’s revelation to
people began.
Paul in Romans 8:11 states: “If the Spirit
of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised
Christ from the dead will give you life (breath) to your mortal
bodies.” Later in I Corinthians Paul states that the Holy
Spirit gives gifts and produces fruit of the spirit.
God’s gift and fruit, through his grace,
was for me to go to nursing school and graduate with a BSN. His
gift allowed me to become a hospice nurse and allow people to
die pain free and with dignity.
Paul McNeely
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Families Intertwined
By the Spirit
One early spring morning 20 years ago, I had
just left the dentist’s office and was heading home on South
Street. As I neared Park Avenue, I felt an urging to turn right
and go see Mary. I had heard at church that she was suffering
from an extremely serious and painful eye infection. As I turned
onto Park, I wondered if it was appropriate for me to be stopping
in. After all, Mary was really my daughter’s friend, and
I was much older than she was. But the feeling persisted, so I
continued.
No one answered my knock at the sun porch door,
but the knob turned and I went in. At the door to the house I
again knocked but heard no answer. I turned the knob and entered,
to find Mary lying on the living room sofa with the drapes pulled
shut. Apparently relieved that I was there, she asked, would I
put drops in her eye. No, she did not need other help, but would
I go upstairs and get something for her. Once upstairs, I could
see that there was, in fact, a great deal that I could do to help.
As Mary’s condition gradually improved,
we became close friends. Frank and I were “adopted”
as grandparents to Mary and John’s dear daughters. Our families
grew very close.
One day, I got a call from Mary that Claudia,
their high school-aged younger daughter, was in the hospital,
struggling to breathe. Within a few days, she was transferred
to Riley Hospital for Children, where the specialists gave her
a 1-in-10 chance to live. Claudia, whose body had been beset with
ARDS (Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome), remained in an induced
coma for three months.
Of course, many prayed and helped. But I was
there, week after week, a mother figure and friend for Mary. Claudia
did survive, making what her doctors called a miraculous recovery.
By then, I had told a few friends that I considered the urging
felt on that spring morning to be the only direct message I had
ever received from the Holy Spirit.
On Good Friday this year, I called to tell Mary
and John that we had moved Frank to hospice, but that they need
not make the hour-long drive to come and visit. “We’re
coming,” Mary replied. They were there at my side when Frank
left his body – just a few hours later – to be with
our Lord.
Because 20 years earlier I made that right turn,
following the prompting of the Holy Spirit, our families have
become spiritually intertwined, to the blessing of all of us.
I believe that the Holy Spirit is with me always, if I but listen.
Cecelia Hamric
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The Holy
Spirit and Worms
It was a beautiful morning. I decided to go
walk the labyrinth before breakfast and my early morning meeting.
The sun was trying hard to shine after a night of rain and storms.
The birds were singing glorious songs of celebration after the
stormy night. The Spirit was alive and well through a gentle,
yet powerful breeze. Some of God’s little wiggly creatures
were trying to find their way back to the soil after having been
washed up on the concrete. Those ordinary worms seemed to take
on a different meaning that day.
As I walked, experiencing the gentle, yet powerful
breeze of the Spirit, I felt this sense of quietness and peace.
I felt enfolded in God’s arms and the message was “Do
not be afraid. Yes, there will be things in life that you are
afraid of or don’t like. It is part of the journey you are
making. I’m with you. It’s going to be okay.”
In the peacefulness of that time, I noticed that my walking was
different. I was not guarded or tense as I tried to avoid “those
worms.” I found myself gently stepping over them. I even
found myself stopping to watch them as they crawled along the
labyrinth trying to find their way on their journey.
Worms have never been my favorite (and they
don’t have to be), but now I see more clearly how important
they are in the whole scheme of life! Thank you, God, for creatures
who are my teachers and for your gentle breeze - the powerful
Spirit that is always present with us.
Sue Amyx
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Going
Where the Spirit Leads
I’ve thought about my Kodak Moments in
ministry over the years. There are many Moments that come into
focus when meditating upon my ministry. As a disciple of Jesus,
I’ve learned to go where the Spirit leads me (even if reluctantly
or unknowingly), and follow God’s surprises for my life.
The Spirit has led me where I never intended to go!
My ministry in higher education was never planned
out from the beginning. There have been many surprises –
nudges from teachers and pastors, phone calls from mentors and
guides, open doors by strangers, unexpected interruptions at work,
inviting my journey into teaching and counseling in higher education.
The journey began with my ordination in an Episcopal
cathedral in Spokane, Washington in 1965. It has continued for
thirty-seven years in ministry with “the People of God.”
Significantly, with the laying on of hands by Episcopal and Methodist
bishops, with two Jesuit priests invited to be observers, my ministry
took on an ecumenical shaping of the Spirit from the beginning.
Later, I felt the Spirit nudge me into friendship with students
at Christian Theological Seminary, and Jesuit priests at Brebeuf,
and ecumenical colleagues at the University of Indianapolis.
I’ve always found nurture and renewal
in ecumenical worship and prayer with other Christians. More recently,
I’ve been nurtured in interfaith services and friendships
with Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist leaders.
My need is still there for weekly Eucharist,
periodic retreats, daily prayer rituals and visual images of the
sacred. And my spirit is always enlarging and expanding with the
leading of God’s Spirit to places I’ve never known
before. I never know when another Kodak Moment is going to happen.
Rev. E. Max Case
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I Heard
the Divine Spirit on the Radio
Why is it that sometimes the most unseemly and
dramatic moments turn out to be the most memorable and poignantly
spirit filled ones later on in life?
I had one of those moments that would forever
change my life in the fall of 2000, soon after I was diagnosed
with cancer. Oh, I handled the diagnosis probably as well as any
other 31 year old. It was after the diagnosis that I had a meltdown
that scared even my well-seasoned husband. I practically twisted
his arm until it snapped, tearfully begging him to agree to adopt
a child should I ever live to see 32 years old and grow hair again.
(See, I told you it was a little overly dramatic.) Turns out emotional
arm-twisting was not needed, he heartily agreed.
My family and friends prayed for me; I am told
that even strangers prayed for me. My most cherished circle of
St. Luke’s book group ladies prayed for me while they also
fed me with food and love for several months. When my treatments
were complete, I was given good remission news. Divine intervention
and the Holy Spirit were undoubtedly present. I would be given
the gift of more time.
But because God works in miraculous ways, I
was also granted one more gift. It came to me on the radio of
all places. I had almost forgotten about my tearful adoption plea
several months earlier. (I am particularly skilled at selectively
erasing some of my more emotional outbursts.)
The local NPR station was advertising an adoption
information seminar to be held at a place I knew very well, St.
Luke’s. I was not a church member and did not attend services
at St. Luke’s, but I knew their parlor room very well. This
is where the book group ladies and I met every Wednesday morning
at 6:30 am. Surely, I could muster the courage to attend one meeting.
But I said to myself, “For heaven’s sake, you are
still wearing a wig…it is too early to be doing this. Do
they even let people wearing wigs adopt babies?” In the
end there was just no mistake that I was meant to hear the radio
advertisement that day. My husband agreed to attend the meeting
with me. He made up his mind before we got home that we would
indeed adopt a baby using this agency. He felt so sure this was
to be our journey that he did not even want to call other agencies
to compare services.
It is now the spring of 2003 and the holiest
of spirits has brought a delightful little girl, Ava Jing Tang,
into our lives. She is the product of many things…an adoptive
mother who’s will to live is stronger that some menacing
cancer cells, a father who was brave enough to open himself to
adoption, biological parents who loved her so much that they were
willing to set her free, and of course, the Divine Spirit that
talks through the radio - the one who makes it all as it should
be.
Perrin Slowey
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The Spirit and
Me
One line in the creed we recite on Sunday has
become a mantra for me. I personalize it by saying, “I believe
in the Holy Spirit, God present with ME for guidance, comfort
and strength.”
And the Spirit is with me; not in a rush of
angels’ wings or a mighty wind, but in a quiet way that
gets me through every difficulty.
I cry, “What do I do now? How can I handle
this?” Guidance comes via that still small voice within,
“Cool it… Stay in the Now.”
Life rubs me raw and I feel low. How comforting
to feel an imaginary arm around my shoulders and the Spirit whispering,
“I’m here, lean on me.”
If I begin to buckle under a wave of adversity,
the Spirit becomes a pillar of strength. “Hang on,”
it urges. “This will pass.”
There is even a sense of humor evident; the
Spirit makes me laugh at myself, which is the greatest help of
all.
Ruth Morrison
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Experience of the
Holy Spirit
Probably the most vivid experience of the Holy
Spirit at work that I have ever felt was when I received a call
about 8 years ago from my very good friend, Mary Katherine Schnitz.
She was calling me at work to tell me that she had just had a
conversation with Rev. Cindy Bates about something called Stephen
Ministry. She really wasn’t 100% sure what it was all about
but it concerned helping minister to people at church in a loving,
caring way when they were going through times of crisis in their
lives. Cindy was starting a new program and wondered if Mary Katherine
would volunteer to help her start it. Mary Katherine had called
me to talk this over and see what I thought about this. It would
be a major change for her (she had 2 young kids at the time and
a part-time job at home keeping her very busy).
As she told me all this, I felt a peace that
can not be described come through my body and out of my mouth
came, “Not only do I think you should do it – I want
to do it with you!” I had no idea what I was getting into
but it felt so right and so exciting that I blindly asked Mary
Katherine to find out if we could have 3 leaders instead of just
2. Well, as you know, not only did we have 3 leaders, but a 4th
wonderful person felt the call just as I did (Karen Hobson) and
within the same week of Cindy starting that initial conversation
with Mary Katherine, 4 of us had committed to going to San Antonio
to be trained as leaders.
Fast forward 8 years and we now have trained
over 10 Stephen Leaders, over 160 Stephen Ministers and have ministered
to over 350 individuals in our community who have been going through
times of stress, grief and crisis in their lives. I believe it
took the Holy Spirit to get that program going as fast as it did
with such a committed leader as Mary Katherine and I am thankful
that I have been a part of it and heard the Holy Spirit’s
call.
Mary Boyer
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The Holy Winds
“The wind blows wherever it wishes; you
heard the sound it makes, but do not know where it comes from
or where it is going. It is like with everyone who is born of
the Spirit.” (Today’s English Version)
As we think of Pentecost, we have to remember
those scared men and women locked in the upper room afraid the
Roman government would discover and kill them just as they had
done to Jesus. Even though Christ had told them he would send
them a helper who would guide and empower them, they were afraid.
Then the strong winds came filling the whole house. I’m
sure they wondered what was going on - was this something the
Romans were doing? To us when strong winds come especially with
a tornado it means danger and that we need to find shelter. But
instead of danger, the winds and fire brought the Holy Spirit
to each disciple in that room - men and women. Can the winds mean
the same to us? It did for me who was a non-churched person for
many years!
My experience with “The Holy Winds”
happened about ten years ago in the spring at Waycross Retreat
Center. I had just started my spiritual journey and was at a Five
Day Academy. As I was walking across one of the fields, strong
winds started whipping around my body. I first wondered what was
going on, the sky was blue and beautiful without any clouds. All
of sudden I felt like I was being wrapped in God’s arms
with so much unconditional love.
As we ponder the earth’s winds in the
Spring we have to think of the fresh air they bring to us and
the wonderful smells of the soil being turned over; but the winds
of God’s love bring us new life in our heart with the Holy
Spirit. At that time I accepted the Spirit who has lived in me
the last ten years, giving me internal direction of what is God’s
will. As a servant of the Lord I have discerned that God wants
me to continue to grow in love and union with God by expanding
my knowledge, love, and serving of people who do not know God.
Each day I feel the Spirit guiding, sustaining, and empowering
me to reach out to all of God’s children especially those
who have not experienced the Lord in their lives. Bobbi Beckwith
in the Indianapolis Star stated, “Being part of society
is not a spectator sport! We recycle paper and plastic, can’t
we recycle people who have lost their way?” A friend described
Mrs. Beckwith, “As the type of person God intended us to
be.” When we allow the Spirit to provide us with positive
actions to perform in our communities and for other people, we
are “the type of person God intended us to be!”
Dear Gracious and Loving God, help us listen
to what the Spirit is guiding us to do so we can be the type of
people you intended us to be! You are such an awesome and unfailing
God who gives us all unconditional love no matter what we have
encountered in our lives.
Barbara Hale
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The Brightest
Light
Clapping hands to rescue Tinkerbell was powerful
and exciting at age five. Instructions boomed from a black and
white television set: “Clap your hands, boys and girls.
All you have to do is believe.”
Suddenly, Tinkerbell’s failing light began
to get brighter and brighter. An entire audience of children had
clapped in unison to bring Tinkerbell back to life. This was a
world where wishes on stars could come true, where anything seemed
possible. How easy it was then to believe in things unseen.
Sometimes a life journey can carry us far away
from the simplicity of childhood. Believing in things unseen can
begin to feel as childish and useless as a ragged teddy bear left
on a dark and dusty closet shelf.
In 1986, I experienced the death of my father, the death of my
father-in-law, a divorce, the loss of my home, loss of a job,
serious illness, all within the year. Hope was fading much like
Tinkerbell’s light. My gradual separation from God over
the years had gone unnoticed. There was nothing else to do, but
return to prayer. This surrender was the beginning of new life.
My intention was to know God fully. I wrote
in my journal daily, prayed, meditated, read the Bible from beginning
to end, started a scripture journal, and returned to church. Years
of my life had passed by with lightning speed. Where had I been?
Miracles, both large and small, began to occur.
There was much synchronicity. There was flow. Life was finally
changing. I was no longer asking “why” in my prayers,
but instead, praying: I will to will Your will. Please show me
the way.
One afternoon while working in the garden, I
felt a presence that I could not see. In another moment, it seemed
as though the hand of God had passed over my head. Things were
never going to be the same.
The Holy Spirit has transformed my life in every
way. The experience of God is everywhere - in the sweetness of
every wonderful moment and in the darkest of hours. Spirit whispers
in the wind, speaks through the colors in butterfly wings, sends
angels to guide the way, offers peace through forgiveness, warms
through firelight, teaches through joy and sorrow, dances in moonlight,
and is always there ready to be in dialogue just for the asking.
We are here to transform our lives in ways most
pleasing to God, to live in faith, to trust, and to reach out
to others in love. The intention to live with a deep reverence
for the wisdom, comfort, guidance, and at times, the insistence
of the Holy Spirit, creates extraordinary life. It is a complete
gift, a blessing, and the brightest light.
Diane Andrews
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Come Holy
Spirit
I remember seeing pictures depicting Pentecost
in my childhood: the Apostles and other followers of Jesus gathered
in a room with tongues of fire descending on their heads. That
coming of the Holy Spirit seemed remote to my experience.
How ironic that today “Holy Spirit”
is the name of God that I invoke most often.
I can identify two things that caused this change.
First as I grew in adulthood I recognized what
feeble thoughts and words we used to image God in our minds. The
term “Holy Spirit” seemed to be the best term for
me to use for God. This term didn’t cloak God with gender
or relationship. It captured for me a God who was far beyond our
understanding. The term “Holy Spirit” seemed similar
to me to the Biblical term “Yahweh”, or “I am
who am.” I think of God more and more as the source of our
energy, existence, or “ground of our being”, as Paul
Tillich would say.
Later in my adult life as I began to meditate
as a spiritual practice, I learned the importance of breathing
to meditation. I learned that since the early Desert Fathers,
people who wanted to meditate to get closer to God were instructed
to focus on their breathing. The term for breath in Latin is “Spiritus”.
So Sanctus Spiritus, or Holy Spirit, can be understood as Holy
Breath. I now like to think of the Holy Spirit as God’s
breath, of God’s life surrounding me and flowing in me.
I think of the Holy Spirit as the spirit that unites all of us
together as children of God. And I think of the Holy Spirit reminding
me that God, while indescribable, is only a breath away.
Barbara Burke
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Meditation
Miracle
Probably the time in my life when I felt God’s
presence the strongest was five years ago. I had been practicing
Christian Meditation for quite a while and I was going to St.
Luke’s twice a day to pray and meditate.
During my prayer time, I definitely heard God
say to me to find my birth son. In 1960 I became pregnant by the
boy next door on my first sexual encounter. He refused to marry
me saying he wanted to go to medical school and marrying me would
take away that dream. I gave my son up for adoption because I
didn’t want him growing up with the stigma as the son of
an unwed mother in the 60’s.
I had always respected the rules of adoption
and had given up hope of ever seeing my son. It had been 37 years
since his birth and I thought he was living a Hallmark Card Life.
The next morning on the Today Show, I learned how to go about
finding my son. Within two weeks, the agency I listed with called
and told me they had found him.
It was an amazing reunion. He was handsome,
kind, sensitive, intelligent, all the things I could have hoped
for him. I told my two adult sons and their families, because
my husband already knew all along. They were wonderful about the
news, and were anxious to meet him.
Three weeks ago, my birth son, his wife, and
two children moved to Indianapolis. He sold the company he had
started, and decided he wanted to live in the city where his birth
parents live. I contacted the birth father, and he has embraced
our son and his family as well.
I feel very blessed that God has allowed this
miracle to take place. I feel that if I hadn’t been faithful
in my prayers and meditation, I would not have been still enough
to hear and feel God’s presence. I fell very blessed to
have spent my first Mother’s Day with all three of my sons
this year.
Nancy Spohn
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A Will
To Live
At no time have I been more aware of the presence
of the Holy Spirit in my life, than during my father’s illness.
We had great discussions about his faith and the struggles of
this world.
The last three years of his life, Dad was confined
to a hospital bed in his home. I have lost track of the number
of times that my sister called me to come home. Everyone was sure
that Dad was in his last hours on this earth. But somehow, he
would slowly gain strength. His doctor was always amazed at this
will to live.
Dad’s bed was against an outside wall
of my parent’s home. An asphalt driveway lined that side
of the house. About a year before he died, we noticed that the
asphalt was bulging up. To our amazement, a daylily pushed its
way up through 12 inches of gravel and 8 inches of asphalt. Several
attempts were made to dig out the lily. Gallons of weed killer
were poured into the hole. Even new asphalt was poured. But always
the daylily returned.
It has been nearly three years since my father’s
death. Each spring we wait for the “strong-willed”
little plant to struggle to the surface. I thank God for it perseverance.
That daylily is a reminder of my father’s love of life and
my Eternal Father’s love for me.
Mary Katherine Schnitz
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The Holy Spirit Is
My Life Style
When I consider the three aspects of the Trinity
– Father, Son, Holy Spirit – I always need to define
them in terms of how we experience our daily lives. Otherwise,
I create some type of esoteric, pie-in-the-sky, unreal picture
of vague future expectations. My spirituality, on the other hand,
depends on being present and living my life in the now, in the
present. I believe the Kingdom of God is now, not (perhaps) at
some future time.
For me, Father – God is the mysterious
power, which gives and takes away life, or provides the container
(limits) of our life and circumstances. Jesus – the Son
is the ongoing dynamic in my life, which provides possibilities
and opportunities for me to live a full and complete life. The
Holy Spirit is my life style. I embody the Holy Spirit in the
life style choices I make. My attitude and presence project basically
either a “yes” or a “no” to life. As I
choose the “yes,” I live the life style of the Holy
Spirit.
Some ordinary examples that come to me again
and again include these: watching a child at play, totally herself
and totally absorbed in the now. A relationship with a genuinely
accepting lover. A listening friend, one who listens to me to
the point of my being heard. The kindness of a stranger. The ability
to show respect to every human being we encounter.
We make these choices within the limits set
by God and the possibilities given to us for freedom and love
by Jesus. At Pentecost we celebrate the Holy Spirit being acclaimed
to all the world. Our task is to bring that light and love to
all while avoiding arrogance. Love manifest without conditions.
How this is needed in our current global crisis!
Doris Jane Conway
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God Is
In Control
On April 30, 2003, Dr. Max Case showed the movie
“Spitfire Grill” as part of the Café Cinema
series. It is about rejection, recovery, and redemption. At the
end of the movie, as Max stood and started his discussion, I felt
the Holy Spirit enter the room. The Spirit made me remember my
own baptism with water and that I was redeemed of my shortcomings.
Sometimes I forget that I am not in control of my relationships
with other people. God is in control. Since that night, I think
about the movie and Max’s discussion daily. I do not have
to be perfect nor do other people have to be perfect.
Perhaps Bill Wilson, cofounder of Alcoholics
Anonymous, describes the Holy Spirit best: “When a man or
woman has a spiritual awakening, the most important meaning of
it is that he now becomes able to do, feel, and believe that which
he could not do before on his unaided strengths and resources
alone. He has been granted a gift which amounts to a new state
of consciousness and being.”
May the Holy Spirit fill you.
Paul McNeely
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