Let's Go Fly a Kite
Last Friday I drove home from work with my windows down. It was one of those “feels like spring” windy, sunny days. On a whim, I stopped to buy some kites for the kids -a panda bear for the girls and dinosaurs for the boys. They had just gotten off the bus when I came in and announced, “Let’s go fly a kite”. Of course they all started singing it because I’m the kind of mom who raised them on Disney and musicals. And for the first time that I can remember, we had a perfect, tear-free kite flying experience. No kites getting stuck in a tree like Charlie Brown. Nobody struggling to get the kite in the air. It was wonderful. Once the wind started to cool, we went inside to pat ourselves on the back for our expert kite-flying skills.
Flying a kite reminds me of this spread in my book, “I Made the Earth”. When I think of the wind I always think of the holy spirit. I still remember a Sunday school teacher explaining that the holy spirit is sort of like the wind. We can feel it and see its effects, but we can’t actually see it. On a windy day, I love to stand with my face heavenward and just feel the wind. Watch it blow the clouds and wiggle the trees. I love how it cools the earth especially on a hot day. The Bible says we are like the wind if we are born of the Spirit. Check out John 3:6-8,
“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.”
Have you ever had a conversation with someone about Jesus and as you were speaking, you didn’t really know where the words were coming from? I’ve had that. There are things I’m comfortable saying as it pertains to faith, but there are times I’ve said things I didn’t expect. Bolder things. And all I can say was I was being led by the spirit. Most mornings I’ll pray for the spirit to lead me and yet I’m surprised when it happens. We may not know where we’re going when being led by the spirit. We are like the wind.
If you’ve been following my blog, you may know that kite flying is one of the challenges that will earn you points for the “Earth Day Family Challenge.” And since I know this can be a tough task (not all kite-flying attempts are tear-free) you can earn 1,000 points just for flying a kite! All families that earn 5,000 points or more will be put in a drawing for a grand prize. I’ll be announcing that grand prize next week! Stay tuned.
Click here to download a printable version of the "Earth Day Family Challenge".
I know too well that wind can be powerful, even destructive. The tornados that swept through Ohio on Wednesday are a great reminder. Wind doesn’t just blow softly to cool us and wiggle the trees. It can be much more powerful. The same is true of our God. He’s powerful. He can do mighty things. My thirteen-year-old son is reading through the Bible for the first time this year. Seeing God through his eyes is amazing. He’s taking in all the stories -not just those often covered in the kids’ rooms in church. And I think what he’s been struck by most is the power of God. He speaks the universe into existence. He sends plagues to free his people. He uses the sin of Joseph’s brothers to bring healing and life to his people. He is powerful. And He is with us.
We’re often content with a “tree-wiggling strength” God but He’s waiting for us to be willing to be used by him to do great things in His name. If you’re like me, you pray small prayers. But we are like the wind and our God is great and powerful. Pray for your neighbor to meet Jesus, yes. But don’t stop there. Pray for everyone in your neighborhood to meet him. Walk the streets of your neighborhood praying for those in each house. Pray that the Spirit will move like wind through their homes making God known to them. And be willing to be the one who makes known. Maybe you’ll have one of those conversations that you don’t know where its coming from. Maybe you’ll be like a kite coming alive in the wind.
Our God is powerful and He is with us.
Blessings,
Shannon