Most of us in non-liturgical churches, do not celebrate Ascension Day; we do not mark many of the days of our liturgical family members.
The scripture
On one occasion, while he was eating with them, Jesus gave them this command: ‘Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about...you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ After He said this, He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid Him from their sight. [Acts 1:4, 8-9]
The gift
There is nothing escapist about prayer.
To pray is to engage fully with the way things are.
But when we consider the state of the world today, we can easily despair.
Watching, reading, and, doomscrolling the news is getting harder.
But the difficulty isn’t just out there.
In our own communities, in our churches, and households we experience it.
We can find ourselves supposing,
If only Jesus was here with us – doing what He did.
Yet the night before Jesus said it was ‘good’ that He was going from them.
How could that be the case?
Because only in His ascending can the gift of the Holy Spirit be sent.
The promise
The hope, the expectation in praying for the gift of the Holy Spirit can be, is, certain. In fact, every prayer we pray is only possible because of a promise.
And this prayer for the Spirit is not just uttered to one who promises to hear us, but to one who has promised to give us what we are requesting.
"How much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask." [Luke 11:13]
The difference
To be a follower of Jesus is to be a witness.
We don’t get to choose if we want to be.
We all are.
We have witnessed his love for us first-hand and witness to that love with all of our lives.
No one is up to this on their own.
The Spirit is given.
Not to...
- take us away to heaven
- meet our needs and satisfy our wants
- help us live better lives
- but to actually make us witnesses.
The prayer
The prayer, ‘Come Holy Spirit’ is prayed by those who need God to fulfil His promise once again, so we might be His witnesses.
Pray that the Spirit will make you effective as a witness right where you are.
Oh Lord, never suffer us to think that we can stand by ourselves and not need You. [John Donne]
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