Pentecost Advocate
How often we would like an Advocate, someone we know to be on our side, pleading our case. In this Sunday’s Gospel this is exactly what Jesus says the Spirit will be for us, a guide leading to the fullness of truth. “A guide?” We can question this when we feel lost and do not know what to do. But the guidance is there. The problem is that too often we have so tuned out that we don’t hear the promptings of God’s Spirit. There are a number of reasons why this may be so. Firstly, the Spirit rarely, if ever gives us the “Big Picture.” We want to know how it is all going to turn out, but God rarely gives more that enough light for the next step. If we want God’s help, we have to trust that all is working together for our good….and that we probably won’t see this until well into the future. Secondly, the Spirit will never confirm us in selfish ways. Therefore the Spirit’s guidance stretches our ideas of:
Thirdly, the Spirit’s dream of who we can be is so much greater than we can imagine, yet it is also capable of being realised in the most ordinary of lives. The Spirit’s advocacy in our lives is for growth in life and love. It will guide us but it will also lead us into the wild places of the Spirit.
Sr Kym Harris OSB |