Acts 2:1-4; John 20:19-23
With help from Adam Hamilton’s book, “Creed”
What’s going on in your head?
What voices do you hear over and over again?
All of us have them…
Sometimes the voices in our head are helpful, inspiring…
And sometimes they’re not.
About 20 years ago my friend Shannon was raising her daughter largely on her own.
She was taking her to dance and gymnastics;
And working two and sometimes three jobs in between.
She’d recently been divorced and moved from a large “McMansion”
To a two bedroom apartment.
One day I watched her reading a story to her daughter,
And I made what I thought was a simple comment: “You’re such a good mom!”
I wasn’t prepared for Shannon’s reaction…
She started to cry.
You see, the voices in her head were telling her something quite different.
They were telling her that she wasn’t good enough.
That she was failing her daughter.
Today we’re talking about the Holy Spirit,
And we can think of the Spirit of God as that voice from God which nudges us, comforts us, encourages, and sometimes challenges us.
The voice which says unequivocally that we are God’s children.
We belong just as we are.
What voice is going on in your head?
The Holy Spirit is tough to talk about.
It’s sometimes called the ‘neglected’ person of the Trinity.
We have a whole paragraph in the Apostles’ Creed about Jesus,
And then just one line about the Spirit:
“I believe in the Holy Spirit.”
About once a month I see a ‘spiritual director.’
Now with that title, you’d think she’d be an expert on the spirit.
That she’d be able to tell me exactly what the spirit is doing in my life.
But it doesn’t seem to work that way…
Together we try to discern the Spirit, wonder about where the spirit is leading….
But it’s never absolutely clear.
The Spirit is mentioned a lot in the Bible.
In the Old Testament the Hebrew word, “ruach” is translated as ‘spirit.’
There are about 80-90 times in the OT where the spirit is mentioned.
The Spirit of God is said to be the source of life.
‘the spirit hovered over the waters…’
The Spirit of God is said to be the source of creativity.
There’s a man named Bezalel in Exodus 31, around the time of Moses,
Who is said to have the Spirit gift of artisanry, of creativity –
And he’s asked to build the ornamentation for the tabernacle.
The Spirit of God is also said to be the source of wisdom.
Joshua is anointed as the leader of the Israelites
And he’s said to have been given the Spirit of wisdom.
The Spirit of God seems to be the source of superhuman strength…
Samson is strengthened by the Spirit to defeat the Philistines.
Throughout the OT, particular leaders are said to have received the Spirit of God
And they receive wisdom and strength to do their work.
But this changes in a significant way in the New Testament.
In the New Testament the Spirit of God is given to everyone.
Everyone is able to hear the voice of God through the Spirit.
Whose voice is playing in your head?
Is it the Spirt of God? Or is it something else?
This week the sociologist Brene Brown has a new book out.
It’s called “Braving the Wilderness.”
This is her 3rd or 4th book,
And she typically writes about being human – being vulnerable – and accepting who we are.
I’ve only read the first couple of chapters,
But I love the title – ‘braving the wilderness.’
Last week we heard how Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness was a pivotal moment for him –
He was thrust into the wilderness by the Spirit,
And came out with a mission, a ministry.
All of us have wilderness experiences,
And Brown encourages us to use that time to be brave – to take risks –
To be willing to do something different – something authentic to who we are.
(Paul Tillich called that the ‘Courage to Be.’)
She says that human beings have a need to belong –
And sometimes our belonging takes the shape of inauthenticity –
We surround ourselves with people who agree with us, who have the same religious and political beliefs and we’re afraid that if we step out and challenge those beliefs, we won’t “belong” any more.
Brown says, “brave the wilderness.’
See your value in your true self – not in the conformity to others.
Sometimes the voice of the Spirit is encouraging –
Telling us that ‘ you are a good mother’ when our inner voices are telling us otherwise.
Sometimes the voice of the Spirit challenges us to take risks;
To stand up for what we truly believe;
To brave the wilderness.
It’s interesting to hear the juxtaposition of two stories today about receiving the holy spirit.
In the version from Acts,
Jesus’ followers hear the sound like the rush of a mighty wind;
The spirit blows through them and their heads light on fire!
The Spirit is a powerful force to be reckoned with!
And those disciples who were once afraid,
Begin to preach boldly.
They learn the languages of strangers,
Braving the wilderness….
The gospel of John is different.
Here, the disciples are gathered behind a locked door
And they’re scared.
Jesus comes through the door and stands among them and says,
“Peace be with you.”
He shows them his wounded hands and side and says again,
“Peace be with you.”
And then this is how the Spirit comes….
He breathes on them.
Jesus simply exhales …. And that peace which was so elusive, falls upon them.
Sometimes the Spirit of God comes with the breath of peace.
I lived with my friend Brenda for about a year after seminary.
Every morning we’d have breakfast at her kitchen table.
It was a lovely setting – she had a set of French doors looking out to the backyard.
One day she told me why she sat in that spot every day.
She said she remembered sitting there on the day of her mother’s funeral.
And as she ate her breakfast, she looked out and saw a hummingbird.
Her mother loved hummingbirds.
She understood that hummingbird to be a sign of the Spirit – a sign of comfort – a sign of peace.
Sometimes the Spirit of God comes as the voice of encouragement –
“You are a good mother.”
Sometimes the Spirt of God comes as the voice of challenge –
“Brave the wilderness.”
And sometimes the Spirit of God comes as the voice of peace –
As a hummingbird.
What are the voices in your head?
How is the Spirit of God speaking to you?
Amen.
A Sacred Space 
Wow! …..lots to think about.