Hello beautiful people! Now we are in the season of Easter, the season of the resurrected God-with-us. We will walk with Jesus for the next seven weeks until his ascension into heaven to be at one with the father. And then – Pentecost. Miracle of miracles. We need to get ready.

In the Circle of the Church Year, there are three great times: Christmas, when God was born; Easter, when God showed us the power of love can defeat even death; and Pentecost, when God came to dwell with us forever.

(Now, you might be thinking – wait, Pentecost? That’s up there with Christmas and Easter? Yes!! And actually, have you ever heard the term CEO Christian – Christmas and Easter only? It is my dream to convert all of those people into being CEP Christians… Christmas, Easter, Pentecost!)

At the feast of Pentecost, we will hear about how the people of God were empty and felt directionless after Jesus went back to heaven. And then… right there in that vacuum… the Holy Spirit descended, for the very first time, on each and every one of the people. Suddenly they could do things they couldn’t do before, they could see things they couldn’t see before. They had a flame inside their hearts that could not be blown out. God now dwelled in them. And they were off – off into the world, to spread the good news.

The story of Pentecost, I think, is very well summed up by Albert Camus: “In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer. And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger – something better, pushing right back.”

Yours in resurrection joy,

Pastor Taylor