May/June 2026:
"Wild Spirit"
Dear Friends,
Have you ever tried to catch the wind? This morning, watching my wind chimes dance wildly in the breeze, I was reminded that the Spirit is equally uncatchable. We can hear it, feel its effects, see the evidence of its movement – but we can never quite pin it down or predict where it will blow next.
As we approach Pentecost on May 24th, I'm struck by how often we try to tame what God intended to be wild. We like our faith orderly, predictable, manageable. We create programs, schedules, and committees (and trust me, as a United Methodist, I appreciate good organization!). But the Holy Spirit seems to have a different approach entirely.
Look at what happened on that first Pentecost in Acts 2: "Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them." There's nothing tidy about violent wind and fire. The bystanders didn't know what to make of it – some thought the disciples were drunk! The Spirit showed up in a way nobody expected and turned everything upside down.
I think about the sci-fi fans among us (myself included) who know the famous line from Jurassic Park: "Life finds a way." The Holy Spirit is a bit like that – always finding a way through our carefully constructed barriers, our comfortable routines, our neatly boxed-in expectations of how God should work.
Jesus himself told Nicodemus, "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 3:8). Even Jesus used the untamable nature of wind to describe the Spirit's work. We can't control it. We can only position ourselves to receive it.
And isn't that both terrifying and wonderful? Terrifying because we like control. Wonderful because a God who can be fully controlled by human beings isn't much of a God at all. The wild Spirit reminds us that God is always bigger than our plans, always more creative than our imaginations, always more loving than our hearts can fully grasp.
So what does it look like to open ourselves to this wild Spirit in our daily lives?
It might mean saying yes to an unexpected invitation to serve
It might mean starting a conversation you've been avoiding
It might mean letting go of your five-year plan and asking God, "What's your plan?"
It might mean sitting in silence long enough to hear the wind blow
John Wesley, our Methodist forefather, experienced this wild Spirit himself. His heart was "strangely warmed" at Aldersgate – not logically convinced, not theologically persuaded, but strangely warmed. There's that beautiful wildness again, working not through the mind alone but through the whole person.
As we move into summer, when schedules loosen and routines shift, perhaps we have a unique opportunity to let the Spirit blow a little more freely through our lives. What might happen if we loosened our grip on control just a bit? What wild and beautiful thing might God do if we stopped trying to direct the wind and simply opened our sails?
Come, Wild Spirit. Blow through our lives, our church, our community. Disrupt what needs disrupting. Ignite what needs igniting. And carry us wherever you please.
Open to the wind,
Pastor Brian
P.S. On Pentecost Sunday, May 24th, wear red and come ready for a worship experience that just might be a little "wild" by our usual standards. You won't want to miss it!
Rev. Brian Lucas, Pastor | blucas@susumc.org
Be sure to check out this article in our full newsletter from May/June 2026 - Click Here!
