We moved into the house that we now occupy on the 8^th of December, eleven years ago. It was a frantic sort of Christmas but blessed with children and grandchildren. By Christmas we had met only one neighbor, the very nice man who lived next door. One day, about two days before Christmas I was getting the mail when I heard a man’s voice say, “Merry Christmas!” It was the adult son of the family living across the street, and he shouted it in such a happy tone, he could have been saying, “Welcome to the neighborhood!” His welcome struck home in me, and I returned it with great pleasure.

Few times are we as receptive as when we enter an entirely new environment , and find ourselves looking and listening for a connection, a connection that tells us that we can function in this environment, and even prosper.

As a child , Jesus sought that connection in the temple when he was only twelve years old: “Didn’t you know that I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49) As an adult He knew himself to be constantly in communication with his Father: “Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me who is doing His work.” (John 14:10-11)

The indwelling of the Spirit of God is especially clear in Jesus’ conversation with the Pharisee named Nicodemus. In this famous encounter Jesus spoke to such a one as he might have visited at the temple when a child. Nicodemus was a man faithful to the temple worship, but had never experienced the Spirit that lived in Jesus, who said to him: “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 from where it comes or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” (John 3:7)

The Bible is full of the stories of men and women who are “born of the Spirit.”Their experiences are as varied as their lives, but they have in common the assurance that the Spirit of God Himself does live within their own spirits. That Holy Spirit lights the fire that connects us to God.

The greeting of the young man across the street carried a message of welcome that made a difference in my life. The coming of the Holy Spirit changes us so that we find the connection to our Father God within ourselves.

Love in Him,

Prue