"The wind blows wherever it pleases . . . so it is with everyone born of the Spirit."                                                                                                           John 3:8

Dear People of St. David's,

I pray that you are well and are as delighted as I am that the gentle winds and warmth of spring have begun to blow into our lives. Some years, the winter cold and grayness feels like it will never come to an end. Then one day spring comes and changes everything. The cold is pushed back. The gray turns to blue sky and greening grasses and plants. Life is made new again. So it is in our lives with God.

The life with God is a mysterious life, an uncontrollable life, Jesus tells the Jewish leader, Nicodemus. Like the wind that blows wherever it will, a wind we feel and hear, but have no real idea where it comes from, so is the life with God. We have no control over whether we feel God's presence or power at work in our lives. So, we follow. We pray. We come to church. We try and live good lives. We take care of the people around us and the people in need, but we don't always feel the presence of God at work in and around us.

Then, out of nowhere it seems the wind of the Spirit of God blows into our lives. In the midst of our regularly scheduled, sometimes gray lives, God enters in and we are renewed and made new. Our hearts are lightened and the future before us seems bright with hope and possibility. Our perspective can change dramatically and what was toil becomes fun. Tears of sadness can be turned to tears of joy. Laughter is a nearer possibility and we are filled with a sense of God's presence. We know a presence in our lives that can literally change everything.

It's too bad that we don't have control of the winds of the Spirit. It would be lovely to be able to tap into that power that sweeps into our lives whenever we want. Unfortunately for those of us who like some control over our lives, it doesn't work that way. We don't control God's wind, but we can be open to the possibility simply by remembering and being ready. When we remember the promise that the winds of God do in fact blow and we are open to the possibility, we are much more likely to recognize God's Spirit when it blows.

So, as we enter into the new season, let me invite you to get ready for the winds of the Spirit to blow into your life and into the life of our community. Pray for it. Be ready for it. Welcome it when it comes. There is no better moment and I pray for all of us that in this new season of the creation, God's winds will find us.

Grace and Peace,