"Awesome Holy God, as the wind of Your Spirit blows among us, open us to receive the gift of Your blessing, that the whole world may have new life. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen!"

I am truly honored to be here at the invitation of your pastors. I want to bring you greetings from United Theological Seminary in Trotwood, Ohio, where we have cast our lot with the work of the Holy Spirit in renewing the church of Jesus Christ for its mission in the world. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and worship with you. It's truly a blessing to be here in this Easter season celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the new life that is offered.

I am here to bring a message from the word of God to you. Why are you here? To worship and hear a message from God? To enjoy and be inspired by the great music? Because your children or your spouse or your parents dragged you here? Maybe it's just because you love it here. I can see why. I've worshipped here several times myself and it's truly a wonderful place for worship. Maybe it's because you feel the presence of God here and maybe you've seen some of the amazing work that God has done in people's lives and in the mission of the church in the world through this church. Whatever our reasons, and there might be many, I want to suggest that there's another reason why each of us is here and that is because the Spirit of God, one way or another, has called us to this place today. Not only has the Spirit of God led each of us here, but God has a purpose for your life, and for my life. The wind of the Spirit is blowing to lead us all in the direction of God's purposes for our lives, like the warm sunny days that keep coming back to chase off that cold, dark chill of winter to usher in the springtime and then finally summer. The Spirit of God keeps after us leading us to know God's warmth, God's love and God's will for our lives. In the dead of winter, and even in the early spring, sometimes it's hard to remember the new life and the beauty that God brings to the earth and to our lives. But then, we begin to see the signs: the buds, the flowers, the greening of the grass, the warm breeze against our face. When times are cold and hard and difficult, it's sometimes hard to remember or believe that all things are possible with God or that God could have a purpose for me and for you. So, I have a request. Would you turn to your neighbor and remind your neighbor "the Holy Spirit is working in your life to bless you." This, my friends, is the message from the word of God today.

Let's turn to our scripture reading to see what Jesus had to say about the work of God's Spirit in the life of a man named Nicodemus. Reading from John 3:1-10.  "Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, 'Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.' Jesus replied, 'Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born again.' 'How can anyone be born when they are old?' Nicodemus asked. 'Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother's womb to be born!' Jesus answered, 'Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 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.' 'How can this be?' Nicodemus asked. 'You are Israel's teacher,' said Jesus, 'and do you not understand these things?'"

So who was this Nicodemus and what was he up to. Nicodemus was a Pharisee, and was a religious leader in the community. Surely he knew, because everyone else did, that this man Jesus had just performed a mind-blowing miracle at a wedding just a few days before. When the hosts learned that they had run out of wine for the party, Jesus quickly changed some water into a generous supply of delightful and first-rate wine. You could imagine that made him a lot of friends and admirers as well as a reputation. On the other hand, Nicodemus also knew, because he was a leader in the community, that the very next thing that Jesus did made him a lot of enemies. For Jesus had the audacity to march into the local place of worship and throw out the vendors and currency exchangers who had set up shop in the temple in order to make money off the worshippers. The religious leaders in town, that is the Pharisees like Nicodemus, probably wondered who Jesus thought he was. He acted like he thought he was God. Not only that, they discovered that he did some things, miracles, that they themselves could not do. Jesus was beginning to look more and more like a threat to the establishment and the status quo. After all, when you think you have a secure place and it's working in your own best interest, there is something kind of nice about the status quo and the establishment. I don't know about you, but I like feeling comfortable and in control and unthreatened.

Kind of like me when I was in college. I have a fourteen-year old now who also feels that way. But, I was in college and I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. I had worked so hard to get my teaching degree so that I could fulfill my established dreams for my life. I knew what was coming. I was coming down the homestretch of my course work. I had some great prospects for jobs. I was really, really, really excited about finally getting finished with school. My career as a teacher was about to begin and everyone I knew was happy for me. It was great. So what was this unsettled feeling that I began to have every Sunday when I went to church, that last semester of my college years? Why did all the sermons feel like they were speaking to me and challenging me about what it means to follow Jesus? So, I talked with my pastor. He said, "Well, it's the Holy Spirit working in your life." I was terrified. Why was God messing with me? I was happy with my life the way it was. I thought God was supposed to work among - you know, religious people, churchy people. I was just me; I just went to church. I was a regular person and I really thought that God should leave me alone. But God did not leave me alone. And I finally figured out over a period of several months that God was calling me to give up my plan for my life that I had worked so hard to follow, and follow a different path that God laid out before me. It was a path into full-time ministry.

Do you think for a moment I would have chosen that? Where did that come from? When my senior year started, my plan for my life was set and I didn't care and didn't even know what a seminary was. I had never heard of one, nor had it ever occurred to me that God would call a woman, especially a senior in college into seminary and into ministry. I was one of seven kids in a working-class family and my mom was a stay-at-home mom. I had worked very hard to put myself through four years of college, working in the college kitchen making salads and taking on student loan after student loan. Did you think that I needed more debt, God? I had no idea how I would pay for more school. Even my family tried to dissuade me out of their love for me. My own parents told me that it was wrong and un-biblical for a woman to be a minister. Furthermore, they had been burned by bad religion and they were afraid that their little girl was in over her head. The nearby preacher came to see me when he heard the news of what I was going to do. He came to my house, sought me out and threatened me with damnation if I would go off to seminary, especially a liberal one like Colgate Rochester that supported women in ministry. In the fall of that same year, I enrolled in seminary. That's what I had to do - even though I didn't know how it would all work out. I can't believe it, but that was twenty-six years ago. And because God is faithful and knows what he is doing, even though I didn't know what I was doing, I have never had a reason to look back with a single regret. It has not always been easy. I've had to do things that I never dreamed of doing. My first assignment in seminary was to write a fifteen-page paper on the doctrine of God. Have you ever wanted to write something like that? Well, I didn't either; I had no clue what to write or where to begin. I was certain I would fail. Well, that would settle it, wouldn't it? I didn't fail.

On my graduation day from seminary, I had to perform my first funeral. I asked God, "Isn't this supposed to be a day of celebration? Where do I begin?" But God has always been present to bless, to correct and to lead me forward and to help me with the things that I thought were impossible or at least very challenging, like preaching. I was bashful. I was terrified of public speaking. Who here loves public speaking? That excuse didn't work with God either. I had to balance ministry with parenthood and multiple re-locations that I would never have chosen for myself. I never dreamed I'd come to Ohio, and here I am. And remember that seminary thing that I didn't know what it was when I began to discover God's plan for my life? Well, not only did God send me to one, but then most recently, God made me the president of one and that was never in my plan. Okay, God, very funny, you got me. But even more importantly, I finally know that God is with me and that God is worthy of my trust. No matter what! Even when I mess up, there's nothing better than the presence of God's Spirit in my life - and in your life. Thank you, God! How about you? Do you have your life all figured out? Is it your plan or is it God's plan?

When Nicodemus went to visit Jesus in the night, he thought he had his life, his role and even Jesus figured out. After all, he had status as a religious leader with authority in the community. So Nicodemus wanted to let Jesus know that he understood, that he got it. So he said to Jesus, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God. Other people may be bothered by these miracles and prophetic acts that you're doing, but I'm pretty sure I've got it figured out. You've got God with you. You're really cool. But in case you didn't notice that I came here by the dark of night, please don't tell anyone I've been here or what I've said. It's not that I'm afraid of what others might think. I'd just rather they not know. You okay with that, Jesus?"

Let's get real. What do you and Nicodemus and I have in common? Are we here because of our own good choices and because of what we think we already know? What is the Holy Spirit doing in your life? Are we open to God's plan for us? Jesus responded to Nicodemus by throwing him a real curve, telling him something that, to Nicodemus made no sense at all. Jesus replied, "Unless you are born from above, unless you were born of water and Spirit, you cannot see or enter the kingdom of God. Furthermore, Mr. Nicodemus, don't be shocked by what I say, but in reality you know very little. You don't have me figured out at all. You've heard some things about me that interests you and maybe you've come by in the secrecy of the night to impress me with your knowledge. But in reality, you don't know very much at all. You have seen the power of God at work, but you don't know where it's coming from or where it's going. You have no idea what God is going to do next. The good news is, Nicodemus, this is the way it is with everyone who is letting their life be led by the Spirit. There are some things you can know and believe, but you cannot know exactly how God is going to speak to you or where God is going to lead you in your life. But it's okay, because if you knew everything, there would be no need to have a relationship of trust with God, and have God's love for you even when you mess up." To assure and instruct our friend, Nicodemus further, Jesus made his John 3:16 statement a few verses later. Hear this: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have everlasting life." Friends, everlasting life is not just for heaven, it's for the here and now as well. God does not condemn the world; he wants to save the world. Some of us choose to condemn ourselves when we turn our back from God and stay away from the very God who can save us. Others see the light of Christ and accept the gift of new life in the Spirit. How do we know if it's the Spirit leading us or if we ate a bad meal or took the wrong medications? How do I know if it's what I want or what God wants? If someone tells me that God wants me to do this thing or that thing, how do I know that this person is not trying to take advantage of me? Not everyone is called to be an ordained minister, so how do you know what God's plan is for you? Where will the wind blow? What is the Holy Spirit doing in your life and how will you know what to do? Look around you. In the community of faith, in the church, you have everything you need to figure it out. So, if you're having trouble figuring it out, talk to someone. Listen to the word of God, in worship, in study, in prayer, in open conversation. Listen for the Holy Spirit and for opportunities to follow Jesus Christ in mission to the world around you. If we can ever help you at the seminary, we will be most happy to do so. Here is a story of one of our students, Glen Gault, and how the Holy Spirit made a difference in his life. And through him the Holy Spirit is making a difference in the lives of others.

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My name is Glen Gault. My Christian story started when I was probably ten or so and it wasn't until years later that the reality actually set in. In September of 1967, when I entered into Vietnam, I got in over my head from the get-go. I ended up in a firefight thinking, "Wow! I am bound to have killed somebody." That was weighing on my spiritual heart. So during one of the firefights, I laid down my rifle and said, "God, get me out of here." A couple of weeks later, there were firefights, but this time they were different. I was going through all this difficult routine of shooting back, but this time the Holy Spirit spoke to me, "You're going to get shot, but don't worry about it." Then I heard a big bang and passed out. There was this black void with a tranquility and there is no way to describe how tranquil, peaceful, calm. I could sense something around me holding me together. A light started to get bright - the purest, whitest light I have ever seen. I was thinking, "Okay, if this is heaven the way I've always been taught, I must be dead, but why would I want to go back to earth?" I started to take a step and the light went out like you turn off a light bulb. A voice said, "It is not your time." I woke up in a M.A.S.H. hospital. A few days later, I found out that I had been shot with a grenade making my left side paralyzed. Because of this death experience, my call for myself is to be a chaplain and take a person from a hospital bed through hospice, through the funeral home and right to the gravesite and to provide spiritual support, and maybe counseling, for that family. I feel this is what God has called me to do. That little, small voice that speaks to you, you are not schizophrenic or crazy; it's the Holy Spirit speaking to you. What we need to do as Christians is learn to listen to that.

(end video)

I chose this story about Glen because it shows how the Holy Spirit works in all kinds of circumstances in people's lives to bless not only them but others as well, in ways that we can't even imagine. Friends, God is worthy, worthy of our trust and our faith as the Spirit leads us forward. I invite you to say this prayer with me. "God, help me believe You want to bless me more than I can imagine. Help me to trust You as You lead me by your Spirit into Your purpose for my life. You are a God who loves me and the whole world. Help me to enter Your kingdom by water and Spirit, so that I will be blessed and be a blessing to others. For all things are possible with You. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen."