On May 19, I had the gift of witnessing as my oldest son Emerson received the Holy Spirit in the sacrament of confirmation. It was a beautiful liturgy with family visiting and, personally, it was certainly a proud moment for this dad.
As I was leafing through the program before Mass, I began reflecting on the conclusion of the Easter season, Pentecost and the Holy Spirit. Jesus has ascended into heaven and we have received the gift of the Holy Spirit. All wonderful things.
Now what?
Certainly, a question worth some reflection. It is not by mistake that the Acts of the Apostles comes directly after the Gospels and I think some of the answers to the question of “now what” can be found there.
In the first chapter of Acts, Jesus says “It is not for you to know the times or the dates that the Father has decided by His own authority, but you will receive the power of the Holy Spirit, which will come on you, and then you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem and throughout Judaea and Samaria, and indeed to earth’s remotest end.”
Whoa! That is quite a significant mission and difficult for us as humans to wrap our heads around, looking at it on the surface. If broken down, though, perhaps it isn’t as mind-boggling.
When Jesus says it is not for us to know times and dates, maybe it is not up to us to know or understand God’s plan for ourselves. Instead, perhaps it is our duty to have faith, trust and hope that He has the perfect plan for us. While we may not always understand His plan, we are not alone as we have the power of the Holy Spirit guiding us.
He talks about being witnesses in Jerusalem first, and there is logic and reason for it. Perhaps it is our duty to carry out that mission first in ourselves, and secondly in our homes with those closest to us. We need to be “right” in our own hearts and homes first before we can carry the message elsewhere.
Finally, Jesus sends us forth to “earth’s remotest end,” with the power of the Holy Spirit as our companion. I don’t think He means taking a trip to Australia, necessarily, but perhaps He means for us to reach out to those most in need physically, emotionally and spiritually. Our actions speak much louder than any word does and doing something that we may not normally do – something out of our comfort zone, if you will – can mean going to earth’s remotest end.
Step by step, “now what” becomes a little clearer.
After seeing my son receive the Holy Spirit, many questions were raised internally, but much comfort was brought to my heart. Just as we had family visiting to witness the liturgy, all of us have family visiting everyday in the Holy Spirit to help us on our mission.
What better guide as we continually seek to fulfill His plan and as we answer our own personal “now what”?
Ryan Murray is a member of St. Pius X Church in Greensboro and lives in Greensboro with his wife Janel and two sons, Emerson and Brayden. Email him with any thoughts at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..