Good News
So many times when reading the gospel account of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit descended in that Upper Room, I place myself in that scene and I long to have been there, to have witnessed tongues of fire and the rushing wind… it is all so dramatic, romantic and terrifying at the same time.
I imagine the apostles and Mary struck with awe and disbelief, followed by unparalleled joy, exuberance and even holy fear.
Our Father in heaven, out of His profound and immense love for us, sent His only son Jesus Christ to die for us, rise, and ascend to heaven. He then sent the Holy Spirit, the paraclete—which literally means consoler—to guide our hearts and minds as we journey through this life.
So while we cannot (and should not) will ourselves to have existed in a different time and space than God ordained for us, we can embrace the reality that we were born for this moment in time, and we have all that we need to live free and full and beautiful lives because we have the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
We, as Christians, by virtue of our Baptisms, do get to experience all that the first Christians did. We get to be loved by a good, good Father in heaven, and saved by His Son who loves us like no one can. And in God’s great design for us, we have the Holy Spirit always by our side—our helper, our advocate, and our guide.
He wants to work in us to reveal such goodness, truth, and wisdom. He wants to be our constant helper on our walk toward eternity as we continually run into temptation, sin, intrusive thoughts, ego, and messy emotions.
I wonder how often we miss the opportunity to lean into this grace because we fail to adopt a posture of openness to the Holy Spirit.
The Spirit at Work in Others
As I’ve grown in my vocation as a woman, wife, and mother, there have been many times that I’ve perceived God’s providence as He has placed special people in my life, whether personally, socially, or professionally.
Each of these times, the Holy Spirit is at work, gifting and gracing me with opportunities to see virtue in action in the faces and hearts of these souls.
I’ve encountered this in holy friendships, in ministry relationships, and even in blessed conversations with strangers on airplanes.
One of these very special people is my children’s dentist. She is both an excellent practitioner and wonderful human being, one of those people who you spend time around and just find yourself smiling and in a good mood.
One of my favorite sayings of hers is, “Well, I have news and good news!”
It’s never bad news with Dr. Katelyn. This approach has truly helped me over the years to shift my perspective around the cost, inconvenience, and associated pain for my children that inevitably arises from time to time.
I believe she has chosen to adopt this mindset and vocabulary to encourage and calm her patients and their parents. So instead of worrying and fussing about it, we just deal with it, and always with a dose of positivity and purpose.
Dr. Katelyn inspires me to embrace this one beautiful life with more joy and gratitude. Interestingly, I find that this opens up another level of virtue that is so key to the Christian life: humility.
The Key Virtue
When we look at Scripture, we see that biblical heroes like John the Baptist, Mary, and Jesus himself were filled with the Holy Spirit, and the absolute key to the Holy Spirit’s access to them was the virtue of humility.
John 3:30 — He must increase, I must decrease.
Luke 1:46 — My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord…
Philippians 2:8 — He humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.
In each of these scriptures, we see a dying to self and a commitment to lean into the One who will truly give us life.
John and Mary knew who they were, my friends. Their humility allowed them to have profound clarity about their role in glorifying God alone.
And Jesus gave us the ultimate example of humility, for even though He could have come down off that cross at any moment leading up to His death, He did not. He humbled Himself entirely and surrendered His body, mind and soul to His Father.
My Gravel Road
Do I have the courage to imitate John, Mary and Jesus? Am I willing to accept my littleness and His greatness?
As I ponder this, I see the image of my life as a gravelly road. Sometimes I have my solid supportive sneakers on and I walk confidently and securely down that road.
And sometimes, because of my foolish pride, I choose to wear four-inch stilettos because I think they look pretty and they are the perfect addition to my cute outfit and I am stubborn, and I trip and sprain my ankle on that gravel.
But I am never left in that condition, prideful and broken. My Consoler, the Holy Spirit, is always there to counsel, guide and be an ever-present source of hope.
He reminds me that the battle has already been won, and that my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has won that victory.
And so, I wrestle with my pride, and I acknowledge that it exists as part of my inherited brokenness as a daughter of Eve.
And more importantly, I persevere in the fight to claim my identity as a beloved daughter of God, because that is who I am.
That is who each of you are.
And that, my friends, is very good news, indeed.