The Deacon’s View:
Australian Wind/Spirit Experiences

We are now into the season of Pentecost, when we focus on the Holy Spirit coming into ordinary lives, inviting and wooing us to be gradually transformed from the inside out.  The name  for the Spirit in the Old Testament is ruah, meaning wind or breath.  Jesus said, “The wind blows wherever it pleases.  You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going.” (John 3:8)
    Christians in every age have struggled with how to recognize this Spirit, and how to be informed by it, because it often speaks to us not through the intellect, but rather through sensations.  Scripture gives us a clue by likening the Spirit to wind. In Australia I began to sense some of the ways in which wind can act as a trigger for sensing the presence of the Holy Spirit.  Wherever we went, the wind was blowing.  Gradually, I began to grow more attentive to it, expectant of the Holy Spirit’s Presence.  (Obviously, the Spirit is not limited to wind.  It just happened to be the route I followed on our trip.  More important is the expectancy and making space wherever one is for the Spirit to come near.)  Below I list five of the Wind/Spirit experiences.
The Mournful Wind:
On the island of Tasmania, where the British convicts were incarcerated (often for stealing a loaf of bread or a silver spoon to sell for bread), the wind was slow, soft, sad.  It seemed to hover all around us, stirring small swirls of autumn leaves before us on the paths.  It moved almost soundlessly among the trees, present and yet unseen.  The Spirit is here.  The Holy One is with us.
The Inviting Wind:
On Kangaroo Island, the wind was soft and seductive as it moved through the groves of eucalyptus.  It drew me, compelled me to “come apart”.  The branches of the swaying trees drew in closer, emitting their scented invitation:  “come further.  Let me enfold you.”  The moving air filled me with the sense that I was known and loved.  The Spirit is here.  The Holy One is with us.
The Guard Dog Wind:
In the outback, “The Shape” is there: Uluru, the great red mound rising out of the earth.  As we hiked around the seven mile perimeter, the wind was sharp, strong, forbidding.  There was no invitation here, no “come closer”.   Instead, “STAY AWAY. You do not belong.”  No matter which direction we turned, the strong, guard dog wind hit us in the face.  Was this the Spirit-of-Jesus-wind that caused St. Paul to turn back from entering Bithynia?  The Spirit is here.  The Holy One is with us.
The Eros Wind:
In Cairns, the wind is no longer warning and cold.  It is warm, moist and tropical.  Here the wind waits...waits to embrace.  It is soft, uninhibited.  Palm fronds seem to anticipate its caress, ready to respond in a practiced dance of grace and love.  The Spirit is here.  The Holy One is with us.
The Turbulent Wind:
Sailing to the Great Barrier Reef, the wind was a powerful, turbulent force that proclaimed, “This is how it is for now.  Just hang on.  It’s part of the journey.  Know that I am here in the midst of it.”  The Spirit is here.  The Holy One is with us.
   
        ~ Gay Blundell, Deacon