I was startled in my hotel room by an unusual noise that I didn’t recognize and so I crept to the window to take a peek. Looking out of my third story window, I noticed that the flag pole was flexing like a reed in a storm, and the flag was flapping violently. I got dressed and made my way down to the hotel lobby where I met the manager helplessly watching through the front window.
The park bench in the breezeway toppled over, and the potted shrubs that lined the front of the entrance skittered here and there across the parking lot. This wind was stronger than anything that I had ever encountered, and I learned later that sudden gusts of 80 mph had been tabulated in many areas that evening. I never saw the wind that night, but I witnessed its effects as I watched the tangible evidence that it was rushing through.
Later, as I reflected on that blustery experience, I was reminded of an analogy that Jesus brought to a Pharisee named Nicodemus. This man was a genuine seeker of truth, but was having difficulty in wrapping his thoughts around heavenly things. He sought Christ in the darkness of night, and as he struggled to understand, Jesus explained the experience that one has when the Holy Spirit is at work in their life.
The Wind and the Spirit
“Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit” (John 3:6-8).
When the Holy Spirit is at work in our lives something tangible and miraculous takes place. This invisible presence visibly affects who we are, the choices that we make, and who we become if we allow it to blow through our lives. The effect can be quite startling, not only to us, but to the world that watches. Positive changes occur in our spiritual experience when the invisible Spirit wind blows.
