Preparation for Pentecost
Join us for a morning of prayer, meditation and preparation for Pentecost (filling and overflowing of the Holy Spirit & God’s love).
9.00 a.m. – quiet time of personal reflection of the role of Spirit in your life.
9:30 a.m. – prayer for an out-pouring of Spirit in our Church
10:00 a.m. – short break
10:10 a.m. – songs & praise
10:20 a.m. – Forgiveness & Reconciliation
11:20 a.m. – short break
11:30 a.m. – Prayer for Spiritual Unity – one mind, one will, one feeling, one plan, one purpose, and one prayer
11:45 a.m. – Prayer for the out-pouring of Spirit on our church
On Saturday, June 3rd, we will be having a morning of prayer in preparation for Pentecost: a very special day in our Church Calendar – as we remember and celebrate the day on which the disciples received the overflowing of the Holy Spirit.
We are the Church, it’s not a building: It’s people! It is the Children of God to whom the Holy Spirit is revealed. As we become aware of being sons & daughters of the Creator, we also become aware of our many failures to live up to our calling, our selfishness, our ego, our lack of love and concern for people in our family and among our neighbors and friends, even among other members of our Church family. We begin, as always with humility and forgiveness.
There are many ways to prepare your heart for Pentecost, the main ones of which are:
- Submission – “Thy Will Be Done”. We become silent, aligning ourselves with Divine Will, praying contritely, accepting where we have offended and humbly accepting where we have tried to “do it on our own” or “set our own rules”, rather than accepting that I AM THAT I AM is God.
- Forgiveness & Reconciliation – That is the first task we have as individuals and as a community, to forgive one another, to make reconciliation happen. That can, of course, be very challenging: Forgiveness is a serious decision you make. It’s not easy and it will probably be uncomfortable or even painful. It’s hard to forgive if we’ve been hurt deeply, or something terrible has happened to us, perpetrated by another. Forgive one another, love one another. We bring love, forgiveness and reconciliation into our world: if we don’t do this, who will? What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus if we cannot forgive?
- Spiritual Union – The disciples were of one mind, one will, one feeling, one plan, one purpose, and one prayer. They lived together, enjoying each other’s fellowship and loving one another. The Holy Spirit was working in them to bring about great spiritual oneness and unity. There was no quarreling or envy. They were no longer asking the question they used to ask, “Who is the greatest?” They were no longer seeking to sit on the left or the right of Jesus.
- Prayer – Prayer is a form of waiting on the Lord, aligning yourself with Divine Will, and those who wait upon God in prayer and meditation of the Word will find their strength renewed. They prayed in faith in Christ’s promise to pour out the Holy Spirit. They prayed with expectation, passion, persistence, and perseverance. “Pour out your Spirit upon us, for without You I am nothing. Clothe us with power from on high. You promised your Spirit would teach us; we need that teaching. You promised your Spirit would guide us; we need that guidance.”
- Gratitude – be thankful. Say thank you. Count your blessings.
