Zetland Park Methodist Church Pastoral Letters
Several ‘drops of water’
I read an account of a fantastic occurrence the other
day …… simply due to a fall of rain, and how
that event changed an earthly landscape into something that
folk never thought would happen, in their lifetime.
A barren stretch of earth, famous for its vast extremes of
temperature, and renowned for the fact that it did not
appear to be able to sustain any life-form, suddenly took
on a breath-taking new hue, and all due to a sudden, and it
would appear, an unexpected cloud-burst. The effect on the
so-called barren surface was to activate long dormant seeds
and plants into a profusion of colour that staggered the
mind and eye. The names of the plants listed were
fantastic; the visual effect was almost overwhelming, and
all through the intervention of several ‘drops of
water’. This ‘effect’ will last only as
long as the water remains as a source of life and energy,
and therefore, it will not be that long before the
barrenness returns, and the seeds etc. return to a dormant
state, until the next time.
Is there a parallel here with the Church and the experience
of Pentecost, and beyond?
They had been told ‘to wait’. To wait
‘for the promised gift’.
A name was given to it, but its effect and resultant
potential change was never really spelt out ---- the Holy
Spirit
The very explosive combination which was loosed on the
world on a particular day among a particular group of
people, is well documented in Scripture, but, other than
the recorded group reaction --- which itself was phenomenal
---- there are no personal stories of change and challenge
which would and could focus our own minds on the entire
process ---- but maybe, just maybe, this is deliberate, for
would it not detract from the wonderful and generous nature
of the God we seek to serve?
Now it spreads along the skies, hangs o’er all the thirsty land:
Lo, the promise of a shower drops already from above;
But the Lord will shortly pour all the Spirit of his love!’
HP 781 v. 4 Charles Wesley [1707 – 1788]
So, the cynic will ask, ‘What’s all this to
do with me, and my everyday life and living’, and
maybe a similar framed question will be uttered from the
lips of those who have closer Church connections, as each
and all try and wrestle with the complexities of seeking
the barest of understandings of the workings of God . But
the question remains, ‘What does it means for
me?’
Even a casual look at the appropriate part of Scripture in
the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, will show how
representative the affected group were. Here, assembled,
was the world in microcosm and that is the first clue. The
‘gift promised ’was not limited to a specific
group, nor the sole prerogative of a class or sect, but for
the world. This is a point that we as Christian
representatives need to grasp and assimilate time after
time ----- we are NOT the sole recipients, but part of the
much wider generosity of God. By forgetting that, we begin
to forget God’s intended purpose of sharing, through
us and all the other chosen people, signs of His love,
justice and mercy, as we are empowered by this Spirit.
The resultant ‘encounter’ with this God
phenomenon was an explosion of ‘gifts’, whereby
folk were empowered to share, some in mighty ways, talents
and traits which affected those who heard, saw and were
party to this wonderful experience. Here was not a
situation where folk were ‘jumping on a
bandwagon’ and exploiting a given situation, but
rather God working through and using those He had chosen,
to His praise and glory. The effect of all this, was
earth-shattering, and people-changing. Folk who encountered
such ‘a watering from the outpouring of the
Spirit’ were never the same again.
The ‘Festival of Pentecost’ is upon us again,
and unfortunately it never seems to get the same
‘publicity’ as Christmas or even Easter, but
yet it could be argued, that in some cases the long-term
effects were greater than some of the events celebrated
under the other headings. Does the ‘Spirit’
remain active in this day and age? I believe that it does,
and I am not saying that simply to ‘keep my
job’, but out of a genuine belief that God seeks to
work and empower His people, and distributes His Spirit
still among those whom He chooses. Yet unlike that
‘shower of rain’ which momentarily affected a
desert source, the effect of the ‘Spirit’ is
long-lasting, if not permanent. But it can bounce off us,
like the effect of rain on a waterproof jacket if we
hardened our hearts through fear of possible change to our
lives and living.
The God, who has called us, is constantly ‘on the
move’ and that for many a Christian is something that
cannot be accepted. The ‘security’ of
‘nothing changing’ never has applied to the
faith we seek to profess; if we had subscribed to that
motif, then we have deluded ourselves and all with whom we
have shared.
walk in the light’
So, the challenge I perceive the Church needs to continue
to enforce is this:
‘Are we content to stay as we are, and let the Church
die, [for that is the only outcome from that approach],
or,
be part of a dynamic that grabs hold of each and every
opportunity to share that ‘Good News’ of the
Risen Christ, and so empowered by the Holy Spirit others
will begin to enquire the source of that power’
The Church is not dead, its people are simply sleeping, but
that ‘Pentecost effect’ can and could change
all that -------- Are you willing to receive?