Sea Glass

Have you seen sea glass? It is simply that…glass that somehow got into the ocean and it floats around in there for years and washes up on the beaches. When it finally washes up much of the glass no longer has sharp edges but is smooth and clear. People are collecting it, cataloging it, making books about it and some of it is made into jewelry. One of my friends gave me a sea glass necklace. It is round and smooth and pale green. Probably when it started out it was angular and sharp and a darker shade of green. With time and the relentless exposure to the sea it has changed into a thing of beauty.

Here we are once again approaching Pentecost…the birthday of the church. Once again we read the Acts 2 account of the power of the Holy Spirit blowing into the disciples’ prayer room and changing the world forever. The Holy Spirit gives us power to witness, gifts for service, guidance for the work, and comfort in times of distress. Let’s not forget the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying work that takes the likes of you and I, with all our sharp edges and unrepentant habits, and slowly shapes them into the likeness of Christ. This does not happen overnight but it is the reality of the Christian life. As we continue to walk with Jesus he works on us to perfect us in love and make us in his image.

As we ordain our class of Elders and Deacons this year at Annual Conference we ask them if they are going on to perfection. They say “yes.” May we all say “yes” to the Holy Spirit as it chips away at our faults and failures and makes us, like sea glass, into beautiful Christians.