|
Dear Friends,
As I write this much of the world is on holiday celebrating Ascension Day which this year falls on Thursday 21st May.
However, here in Britain the same importance has never really been placed on celebrating this day, we do not recognise it as a public holiday - preferring instead Whitsun or Pentecost - and as a result it is often very easy to overlook Ascension Day and its significance for us as Christians.
We do of course think about it on Ascension Sunday but as is the case this year that can often be after Ascension Day has actually been celebrated and so we can miss the opportunity to remember.
So what is it and why should we celebrate this day?
Well Ascension Day takes place forty days after Easter Sunday (there is that significant forty again!) and it is the day when we remember the final moments of Jesus' earthly ministry and the day we hear of the risen Jesus ascending into- heaven, returning to be with his Father, hidden by a cloud.
However, before Jesus leaves his disciples, he promises them the power to be his witnesses in the world.
He promises a 'helper' to be with them, so that they will be able to go to the ends of the earth witnessing in his name and he asks them to wit in Jerusalem for that 'helper' to come.
As we know that 'helper' will be the Holy Spirit and the power of which Jesus speaks will come to the disciples on the day of Pentecost - when the Holy Spirit comes and comes upon them, empowering them to 'go and make disciples of all nations.'
So Ascension is a good moment for us to start thinking about the Holy Spirit and what its coming means for all of us.
For in that moment of ascending into heaven Jesus made it possible not just for the disciples to know the Holy Spirit and its power but also for us to know the Holy Spirit and its power in our lives.
When he ascended into heaven, the Spirit came to earth to continue his work here on earth through all of us who believe in him.
This was not the last chapter of the first part of God's amazing story; rather it is the first chapter of the next instalment!
The Spirit came to touch his people with power, to breathe new life into his people and into the world and to spread new love into the world.
Jesus' presence with us was released in a new way and through the Holy Spirit we too can discover a fuller confidence in our faith and hopefully a fresh energy to serve him just as the disciples did.
So we too can receive the power of the Holy Spirit and share in that command Jesus gave to his disciples to go and witness to the ends of the earth.
So for me Ascension Day is definitely worth celebrating -what a gift we were given when Jesus ascended into heaven - in the giving of the Holy Spirit!
God's healing power can flow, good news can be shared, people can be transformed and hope can break into lives through us and by the power of the Holy Spirit!
As we enter the summer months, generally a time when we venture off to foreign lands or different parts of Britain for our holidays and a time when we are often much more relaxed about life I pray that we can all take time to slow down a little; take time to reflect on our busy lives; take time to think about how the power of the Holy Spirit is alive in us and perhaps even take time to share our good news with others as we chat in more informal ways.
May your summer be a time of great refreshment, true relaxation and much enjoyment!
Caryl
|
