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May 26, 2021Thank you to everyone who participated in our Pentecost Challenge last week, in person at Mass or online. We were amazed and moved by the people who stepped out of their cars and stood when we asked for people whose lives had been changed in the past 12 months through an encounter with Jesus.
But maybe you stayed in the car. Maybe you weren’t ready to make a statement of your faith. Maybe you thought stayed in your car or your seat and thought this has been an insanely hard year and I am barely holding on to my faith by my fingernails. Maybe you walked away this year; if not physically, then emotionally. Maybe your faith life just stayed like a low hum in your life, not doing much at all, constant and unchanging? Maybe my relationship with God was just… fine, nothing to stand up about.
As you watched people posting emojis or stepping boldly out, for whatever reason, you decided that this year, it wouldn’t be you standing up in front of everyone, making any kind of declaration.
We want you to know that we see you too. Of course, our heart's desire would be to see everyone stand up because our hearts’ desire is for every person who engages with this parish to have been changed by encountering Christ. But we know it doesn’t happen like that very often. We believe in the Pentecost story, but as dramatic as that day was, we know that more often, in our experience, the Spirit moves in people’s lives one at a time.
But we also believe that the invitation to a changed life is open to every person. If it hasn’t happened for you in the past year, it can happen in the year ahead. And furthermore, if you want it to, it will happen. You can ask God to fill you with the Holy Spirit at any moment, and God will do that. If you want companions on that journey, that’s what the Church is here for.
So if you stayed in your seat this Pentecost Sunday, we invite you to make this the year that your life is so changed that you can’t help but stand up and tell everyone about it next year.
