Pentecost Sunday

My day began early. I thought I'd try to sleep a little later than usual, but Katherine (who needs an alarm clock?) poked me on the shoulder at 5:15 while whispering, "want coffee, want coffee!" I pulled her into bed with me and snuggled for a few minutes, then we went to turn on the coffee pot, read our Bibles, and start breakfast. Yesterday, I picked up some dates on the "day-old" rack (even though they won't expire until June 12), so I decided to make a date-nut-ring that I've had my eye on for some time. It turned out so yummy - especially with the scrapings from the Nutella jar warmed up and spread on top.

Knowing that Pentecost was fast approaching, I've been pondering the Holy Spirit and how to give the kids something to chew on, too. So, we talked about how the Holy Spirit has always been and briefly traced His work through the Old Testament. Then, we tackled the New Testament and Jesus' gift of the Holy Spirit to us as believers. We focused on the symbol of fire so frequently used to represent the Holy Spirit because His work in our lives purifies us and reveals the path that we should take. I was wondering if all of this was just going over their heads, when Sarah said, "Yeah, Mom. I need the reminder to let the Holy Spirit work in my life when it's really hard to be a peacemaker with Olivia." Bingo!

We lit tealights and floated them in a bowl of water throughout the morning to remind us of the Holy Spirit's role in our lives, and the kids each chose a verse to post in a prominent place this week to remind them of the lessons learned today. This was Benjamin's choice:

"Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground." Psalm 143:10

I think it's obvious that we like to celebrate with food, so we finished our day with rainbow-themed baking to remind us of the rainbow around God's throne in Revelation 4. Olivia had already mixed up "rainbow cookies" (with M&Ms from a care package), and we used the best cookie dough scooper ever (thanks to Aaron's mom!).

Sarah mixed up a rainbow cake all by herself, and we took both goodies to a SITAG potluck to share. I'm so thankful for God's gift of the Holy Spirit and for a day set aside to celebrate!