May 19, 2024 Daily Dose of Discernment

“And it shall be in the last days,’ God says, ‘That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind.” (Acts 2:17)

Today is the Feast of Pentecost, also referred to as the birthday of the Church. It is when the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples. It is a good thing but can be otherwise if misunderstood. And it has been. What many of us need to do is say, “I’m sorry Lord for the thing I’ve made You” because we have treated Him like a sugar daddy to make us spiritually superior. That actually makes us spiritually bankrupt.

The Holy Spirit coming upon God’s people is about Him giving His life to them so they can fulfill their mission as the Church. While His gifts are good and we should be excited about them, He is foremost about love, which is always first on the list of the fruit of the Spirit. He is also about unity and harmony, which are achieved by working with the people in the community God put us in and regarding them and others as more important, as opposed to being individualistic and self-absorbed. Let us not lose sight of why we have the Spirit of God. It is for us to demonstrate His power and nature.