A Rushing Mighty Wind

And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

Mark 12:30.31

I could hear the fear in my coon dog's howl. What was there to fear? It was the middle of the night. Then, suddenly, the roar of wind came rushing down into the holler and back to the top where Prince cowered under the porch. All of creation stood still at the rushing mighty wind. Three times Prince howled and three times the wind blew through the hollers as if it would sweep all away. Then the calm, the peeping streak of blue before the dawn. A lone songbird dared to welcome the day, quickly joined by the songs of others.

How did the disciples feel when the sound from heaven as a rushing mighty wind filled all the house where they were sitting? Then the appearance of cloven tongues of fire sitting on each one. I, for one, would have been very afraid. But, God was filling them with the power to go into all the world and preach the gospel. He was giving them a gift of languages to speak about the Savior who had changed their lives.

The people gathered in Jerusalem for Pentecost were from all over the known world. I live in a community and teach in a school with people from all over the world. Many of the children and their mothers do not speak English. I always try to learn at least two phrases in their language; “I love you,” and “Don’t cry.” Add a smile to those two phrases, squatting down to look them in their eyes and it doesn’t take long to calm fears and begin to build a bond of trust.

A sincere demonstration of love will show the world who Jesus really is. Will we be the lone voice that begins a new day calling out to others to join in the mission Jesus has given us? Preach the gospel to everyone.

Hey Kids:

Do you know someone who speaks another language?

Are they your age? Younger? Older?

Can they help you learn their language?

Can you help them learn English?

Do they know Jesus?

Building a bond, a trust is the first step in reaching others for Christ.

Duolingo is a free app that can help you learn languages or just use it online at www.duolingo.com

Won’t your friends be surprised when you greet them in their language!

Practicing together makes learning even faster. Auf Wiedersehen!