spring winds

Joni Eareckson Tada's perspective on wind: (Thanks, Lisa!) :)

"I love this time of year. There's nothing like it. No doubt about it, a new season is here. And it smells so wonderful . . . I especially love the freshness, the winds in spring time. The smell of the wind bearing the fragrance of early new blossoms or freshly laundered clothes on the line. The feel of the wind blustering and straining against the string of a kite. The sound of wind whispering through the pines, or a strong wind snapping damp sheets on a clothesline.

Jesus must have loved the wind. He often used it in lessons. Like that time in the garden. I can picture him feel a cold breeze touch his face and then, hearing the murmur of leaves, gesturing toward a nearby tree and commenting as he did in John 3:8, "The wind blows . . . you hear its sound . . . you cannot tell where it comes from . . . So it is with the Spirit."

Little wonder Jesus likened the wind to the Spirit. Wind moves. So does the Spirit. It - or I should say - He never stays still. He is always moving and making His presence known. And if this Holy One lives at the center of our lives, we will see, feel, and at times, almost smell and hear the effects. The Spirit is constantly doing something in us. Just as we can see the effects of the wind in the trees (although we cannot see it), others will observe and appreciate the effects of the Spirit in our lives.

It's absurd to suppose you can have the Spirit of Christ within you and not see, feel, and experience His presence. The Holy Spirit will produce holy living. Paul says in Galatians 5:22 that, "the fruit [or evidence] of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."

Step outside on a breezy spring morning and notice that the wind marks its movement by what it touches. In its wake it leaves freshness and cleansing. Sense God's stirrings in your life today. Feel His movement in your heart . . . you may have to be still to really know that He's there. Let Him sweep away anything that displeases the Father. As you allow the Spirit to touch your life, others will mark His presence and breathe deeply of His fragrance. They will give thanks to God . . . and thanks to you."