MORNING PRAYERS

Dear Ohana family& friends,
Grace and peace to you on this day after a wonderful Pentecost Sunday at St. Stephen’s in Wahiawa, where the trade winds still carry the scent of plumeria, and the cool shade of the big tree; and where our lives—like our island home—are shaped by both beauty and challenge, and spirit!

In yesterday’s Gospel from John, (John 20:19-23 is a pericope from the same Gospel reading from the 2nd Sunday of Easter), we find the disciples gathered behind closed doors. They are maka’u- afraid. The world outside feels dangerous and uncertain. They don’t know what comes next. And into that locked room, Jesus comes and stands among them and says, “Aloha oukou – Peace be with you.”

That is where Pentecost begins—not in strength, but in fear; not in certainty, but in confusion. And maybe that sounds familiar….

Because today, the day after Pentecost – we find ourselves in a world that still feels unsettled. There is terrible war in the Middle East. The cost of food and gas keeps rising. COFO ALOHA – Food Outreach and Disaster Preparedness is more active distributing food sharing food and love to over 21 sites. Families are wondering how to make ends meet. The future feels less predictable than it used to. Please pray and support families having difficult times.

And yet, at the same time, we are celebrating new beginnings—our keiki graduating from preschool, our young people stepping into high school and beyond. Joy and worry are sitting side by side. That’s exactly where the Holy Spirit shows up.Jesus doesn’t wait for the disciples to have everything figured out. He breathes on them (ha) and says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Not as a reward for being fearless—but as a gift for when they are not.

The “rain sticks” always sound at the end of services at St. Stephen’s and children and the young at heart are invited to share the joyful hope. In biblical theology, “early rain” and “latter rain” refer to the Holy Spirit’s outpouring. The “early rain” was the initial, Pentecostal outpouring that empowered the early church to begin spreading the gospel. The “latter rain” represents a final, powerful spiritual revival meant to ripen believers for the harvest.

Pentecost Sunday is one of the highest-ranking and oldest solemnities in the Christian calendar, celebrated 50 days after Easter. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles marking the birth of the Church, and the inauguration of its global mission. It is also rooted in the Jewish harvest festival of Shavuot.

HERE ARE THR MORNING PRAYERS – TAP HERE TO PRAY FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT IN YOU AND IN THE WORLD!