Holy Spirit, come!

Read: Acts 20: 7-12

Now, you might not think there’s much to the passage you’ve read just now, but keep in mind that Theophilus was the one reading this. Right off the bat, the moment he read about Eutychus raised from the dead, he thought about Acts 9:40 where Peter, by the power of the Holy Spirit, raised Tabitha from the dead! In fact, for 2,000 years in Christian history there have been legends and records of miracles that have happened. This should be encouraging to all of us because the same Holy Spirit that raised Tabitha and Eutychus from the dead is the same Holy Spirit that empowers all Christians, even today, to do extraordinary things! And the better news is that He works through all people, from the youngest of VBS kids to the 100+ year old seniors!

One of my favorite Christian legends is the story of St. Eulalia. During the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian, the largest societal-level persecution against Christianity began, stretching from as far east as Jerusalem to as far west as Barcelona, where St. Eulalia was from. At a tender 13 years old (generally 7th grade) she was caught worshipping God. When pressed to deny her faith, she steadfastly refused! The Romans then subjected her to 13 tortures, each one for her age, until she denied. Her tortures included putting her into a barrel with knives and glass shards and rolling the barrel down a steep road; crucifixion on a X-shaped cross, stripping her naked in front of the public (for which the Lord caused an unusual snowstorm to blow, covering her nakedness, to the fury of the Roman authorities). In the end, when she still refused to deny her faith after her 13 tortures, the Romans decapitated her. Indeed, the same Holy Spirit that raised Tabitha and Eutychus from the dead, gave St. Eulalia the strength to withstand torture and yet stay strong in her faith!

Within many cultures, including the Chinese culture, the older you are, the more respect you get because (in theory) the wiser you are. It is particularly true for my maternal grandmother, who is now at both my earthly father and Heavenly Father’s sides. She was a wise woman with many amazing stories of her youth. Yes, we should respect our grandparents. But that doesn’t mean we are not able to do great things for God. My mom told me once when I was young, “Now is the time to learn. You can do great things later.” To a certain extent she’s right. When we are young, we tend to be very idealist, wanting equal justice under God in every corner of the land. There’s nothing wrong with that, but we need to learn how we can be effective bringers of justice to the world.

But to the other extent, I respectfully disagree with my mom, because you can do great things even NOW. Yes, even if you’re in 6th grade or 7th grade (didn’t you just read the story of St. Eulalia just now?)! Yes! Right where you are. When you go to school you have done a great thing by simply being a good example of Christ. Maybe instead of being the usual student (i.e. arguing for every point on the exam) perhaps you can respectfully approach the teacher and ask how he/she graded and be satisfied with her explanation? Maybe you can be a witness by how you interact with friends. I confess that I’m not as good with this than many of you are. My friends, fortunately, are very forgiving and very longsuffering people, willing to put up with my weaknesses. But do you put up with your friends’ weaknesses? Do your friends want to be as good a friend as you? Or are you the kind of person people just should avoid because you’re a terrible person?

And note that you can do great things now only because the Holy Spirit is with you. Yes, the Holy Spirit, the same One that worked in the lives of St. Peter, St. Paul, and St. Eulalia, is the same One that will work in your life. No, don’t look at Jeff or Dustin and go, “Aw... I wish I could lead worship.” If you do have such a gift, the Holy Spirit will lead you appropriately in His timing. If you don’t, let Him lead you to something that He knows you will truly enjoy. It’s great that the Spirit is using people like Ben Lowe to further His kingdom in a huge and global way, but it’s just as great that the Spirit is using people like Malcolm Smillie, who is humbly teaching at an international school in Thailand, and is satisfied for what God has called him to do.

So let us be open to the Spirit! May the Holy Spirit come and work mighty wonders through you! Maybe you won’t raise people from the dead, but my prayer is that you will, by the power of the Spirit, raise others around you from spiritual or emotional death.

PRAYER CALENDAR
Wednesday: Pray for friends (inside and outside church)
Pray that God will help you be intentional in the ways you interact with others.