May 20, 2018

Day of Pentecost/Pentecost Offering Photo credit: Kristen Young

Kristen Young will never forget the face of Diana. The expectant teen was scared and refused to smile when she came to the shelter in Peru where Young worked last year as a Presbyterian Young Adult Volunteer (YAV). As the days passed, Diana felt the warm embrace of the center staff and her somber countenance began to brighten. Young was especially moved when she saw the delight Diana took in her newborn son.

“It was really a transformative moment to see how she came to feel about herself and her baby,” Young said. It was a moment that gave witness to the opening words of a song frequently sung at the shelter: “The Spirit of God is in this place; the Spirit of God moves in this place.”

Today on Pentecost Sunday we celebrate the coming of the Spirit. We give thanks that the Spirit continues to move in our lives and in the lives of people like Diana and Young. After finishing her YAV service, Young followed the Spirit’s leadership back home to Hawaii, where she is involved in a ministry with Micronesian youth.

Our church’s Pentecost Offering supports the YAV program, which helps young adults experience God’s Spirit in new ways and then return home ready to serve. The offering also makes possible ministries that help at-risk children and youth to live up to their God-given potential.

Young continues to be inspired by what she learned in Peru. “God is not just in church,” she said. “Much of the time, we find God outside the church.” Indeed, the Spirit calls us to move beyond the walls of our congregations to serve a world in need. As we seek to be Christ’s agents of transformation, we encounter the Spirit anew, and we ourselves are changed. The Spirit that descended on the church two millennia ago still falls afresh on us. Thanks be to God!

Pat Cole, Communications Specialist, Presbyterian Mission Agency

Today’s Focus:  Day of Pentecost/Pentecost Offering

Let us join in prayer for:

PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff

Teresa Mader, PMA
Monica Maeyer, BOP

Let us pray:

Transforming God, we give you thanks that your Spirit is at work all around us. We celebrate that lives are changed and hope is renewed by your hand. Give us eyes to see the work of your Spirit and hearts to follow your Spirit’s call. Amen.

Revised Common Lectionary Readings for Sunday, May 20, 2018, the Day of Pentecost (Year B)

First Reading Acts 2:1-21
Or alternate First Reading Ezekiel 37:1-14
Psalm 104:24-34, 35b
Second Reading Romans 8:22-27
Or alternate Second Reading Acts 2:1-21
Gospel John 15:26-27, 16:4b-15