Get Out of the Doldrums!
The United Methodist Men held our monthly gathering on Saturday March 8, and we were inspired by our guest speaker, Rev. Don Polk. Rev. Polk is the senior pastor at the Aldine United Methodist Church. He was our associate pastor in the early 1990’s, and it was a treat to see him again in our church.
The theme of his message was based on 2 Timothy 1:16….
May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. NIV
Many of us are stuck in an emotional rut and can identify with the cliche “I owe, I owe, so off to work I go.” We need some refreshment. We’re caught in the doldrums. The doldrums refers to an area around the equator where the north winds meet the south winds. The result is that there is no wind in this zone. For a sailor to be “caught in the doldrums” meant that he was “dead in the water.” It meant that he had no power and was going nowhere.
The Holy Spirit- God’s Creative Breath…
The Holy Spirit is not a ghost. The Hebrew and Greek words which were translated as “Spirit” have no connection to Casper the friendly ghost! The original language referred to the Breath or power of God. The Hebrew word Ru-Wach (Old testament) and the Greek word (Pneuma) both mean “a blast of breeze”,”violent exhalation”, or “breath.”
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness.
NIV
The Hebrew word translated as “Spirit of God” is Ruwach; the breath of God hovered over the waters. When God spoke the world into existence, it was with His “Breath”. That Power, the Holy Spirit, is available to those who have trusted in Jesus Christ.
We can’t Create Our Own Breeze!
Even Sinbad can’t power his boat by blowing on his own sail.
We don’t have the ability to climb out of the doldrums under our own power. It’s like sitting in a sailboat blowing at your own sail; you won’t get anywhere other than exhausted. But how many times do we do just that? How many times do we worry about things instead of praying about them? How many times do we try to fix something only to see our efforts fall apart? The way out of the doldrums begins with the Breath of God.
- UNSEEN– you can only see the effects of the “breeze”; God doesn’t expect our limited minds to understand all His ways. Instead, we need to “witness” with each other; share our experiences of how we’ve felt the touch of God.
- UNPREDICTABLE– Jesus said in John 3:8 that “the wind blows where it will”. If God were predictable, we’d probably worship the Pattern instead of the Presence.
- POWERFUL– Rev. Polk showed a picture from last year’s tornadoes in Oklahoma; the wind jammed a splinter from a tree completely through the width of an exposed section of concrete curbing. The Spirit created the world; it can re-create us.
Tap into the Power of the Holy Spirit!
United Methodist Men (during gathering on 3/8/14)
In Acts 1:5-9, Jesus tells the disciples that the Holy Spirit- the same Breath of God Power that created the world, is going to be within us! But the disciples respond to this awesome news by asking about the future government of Israel. Really?!?
How many times do we miss out on the power that God is offering to us because we’re worried about lawns, flat tires, and leaky faucets? To receive the Breath of God we need to begin by celebrating the work of the Holy Spirit. Let go of our fears and misconceptions. Then we need to do all we can to deepen our relationship with God. In 2 Corinthians 13:14, Paul writes a benediction asking that “the fellowship of the Holy Spirit” be with you all.
We can’t blow on our own sails, but in order to be receptive to the Holy Spirit’s leading and power in our lives, we need to be in Christian fellowship; celebrating the Work of the Spirit and witnessing to it.
The years pass, but Rev.Polk continues to be a faithful servant of God and witness to His grace. (L- 1990 softball game, R- 2014 UMM meeting)
