By Rev Stewart

Mesopotamia, Cappadocia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Libya, Cyrene – some of the names of the places where the people at Pentecost came from provide interesting tongue-twisters for anyone (un)lucky enough to have been put on the rota in our churches to read the Bible lesson last Sunday!

But these places are a sign that God’s Holy Spirit and faith in Christ are available to all. As St Peter says later in Acts “I now know that God does not show favouritism”. This should encourage us as Christians to break down the barriers between people, and the unjust structures of society that keep us apart . It should also encourage us to pray for the Gospel to go forward in all the world. Some of the places mentioned at Pentecost have very few Christians living in them today. Let’s intercede for these places – that people might see the Holy Spirit at work there.

Fire, wind, fruit, gifts, wisdom, peace, comfort – some of the ways to describe the Holy Spirit. 

These images are a reminder that we should also pray for God’s Spirit to be at work in us. We need the radical change  that God’s love brings as much as anyone else. The amazing thing is that the Holy Spirit works in ways that are always appropriate for what we need. Are we lacking energy for our faith? Then pray for the refining fire of the Spirit. Are we seeking guidance? Then we need his wisdom. Are we buffeted by the cares of the world? Then we need the Spirit’s peace. All of us can also pray for the fruit of the Spirit to be evident in our lives and our work. As we move into the summer months we can pray for the Holy Spirit to be at work in us, making a difference in our communities and the people we come across.

God Bless!