THE CUSHION OF THE SPIRIT
Acts 2:1-11; 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13 or Galatians 5:16-25;
John 20:19-23 or John 15:26-27; 16:12-15
A submarine, under test, had to remain submerged overnight. A terrible storm hit the coast and battered the ships in the harbour.
The next morning, when the sub resurfaced, the harbour master asked the captain: “How did the storm last night affect you?”
The captain looked at him in surprise: “Storm? We didn’t even know there was one!”
The sub had reached an area sailors call the “cushion of the sea.” Though the winds battered the ships at the harbour, they never stirred the deep waters; the submarine remained safe despite the turbulence around.
This is a good image of the peace that comes from the Spirit that Jesus promises his disciples. It does not remove the causes of worry, fear, and suffering, but it does not allow these to swamp the disciples.
The disciples had shut themselves behind closed doors after the crucifixion “for fear of the Jews.” That’s where Jesus finds them on “the first day of the week.” That’s where he finds them a week later even after he had given them his peace.
But on Pentecost, after they were “filled with the Holy Spirit”, when they experienced the “cushion of the Spirit,” they moved out to fearlessly proclaim Jesus crucified and risen.
The situation outside had not changed; it had worsened! The disciples faced persecution and death, and they “were scattered throughout the region of Judea and Samaria” (Acts 8:1). But they continued preaching the word – and how! The situation had not changed; the disciples had found the “cushion of the Spirit.”
We seek the peace that Jesus gave his disciples, that abides despite pain and suffering, anguish and fear. We need the peace that comes from remaining in the “cushion of the Spirit”. Then, we can move out of our “shut doors” to witness to the gospel.
Jesus gives us the Spirit and the peace that he gave his first disciples. Will I rest in the cushion of the Spirit? And then, filled with his peace—despite the turbulence that surrounds me—how will I proclaim Jesus and witness to him?
