About 2,000 years ago, an amazing event took place. The apostles went from hiding in the Upper Room to becoming fearless evangelizers who spoke about Jesus with such conviction that the Bible says 3,000 people were baptized that day — despite knowing that to publicly proclaim Jesus was to risk one's life. What changed to make this happen? God sent the Holy Spirit, just as Jesus promised. Pentecost is recognized as the birthday of the Church because, filled with the Spirit, the apostles went out and fulfilled the mission of the Church.
The Holy Spirit comes to us even today bearing a variety of powers, which we call the gifts of the Holy Spirit. These powers include wisdom, knowledge, understanding, fortitude, counsel, piety, and fear of the Lord. (Side note: fear of the Lord is not actually being afraid of God — it's having respect for Him and being in awe of Him!)
This Pentecost, let yourself be set on fire with the Holy Spirit! Think about how God might be calling you to manifest the gifts of the Holy Spirit while you listen to this Spotify playlist featuring artists Liz Vice and The Native Sibling and themes of spirit and deliverance.