What an amazing way to close Grandparents’ Month by listening to our one and only Patricia Koh. Auntie Pat has walked on her faith journey and has seen God’s faithfulness in the good times and bad. She encourages us to press in and to not hold back. Pressing in today means new wineskin for tomorrow.
As Auntie Pat was sharing about LifeSpring’s journey of encountering the Holy Spirit, I couldn’t help but remember a funny Malaysian guy named Joe Chong. I remember this guy being a skinny, tall, Malaysian guy who always wore a hat. You would never, ever, see him without a hat. At one point the pastor wanted to make a point and asked Joe for his hat, but Joe didn’t respond, he simply shook his head no. The pastor thought Joe was joking and laughed, but Joe was being dead serious. I though it was hilarious!
Fast forward and we were at a retreat where the Holy Spirit fell on many young people (not me though). I looked out into the grass and saw this skinny, tall, Malaysian guy wearing a hat, but this time he was lying on the ground and didn’t move for hours! He encountered the Holy Spirit and his life was changed forever. This guy is now an elder of our church family here at LifeSpring.
As I remembered this moment, the Lord highlighted to me that this moment would not have happened if it wasn’t for the grandparent generation pressing into the unknown, pushing forward into the presence of God. When the Holy Spirit fell upon the Malaysian Singaporean Bible Church (LifeSpring before we were called LifeSpring), it was an unknown and it was scary. It caused arguments, it caused debate, and even resulted in broken relationships. However, grandparents like Alvin & Patricia, Perry & Catherine, and Eric & Angela pressed into the presence of God. They pursued God – they did not let fear cause them to turn back. It was on their willingness to embrace a new wineskin that we are able to openly invite and enjoy the Holy Spirit in our midst today.
I am greatly challenged by Auntie Pat. What new wineskin is the Lord putting before us that is meant for the next generation? Are we willing to pursue the presence of God even if we are afraid and don’t know what will happen next? Will the unknown cause us to turn back? I pray that will not be the case. I pray that our hunger for the presence of God will cause us to pursue Him and pave the way for new wineskins for our generation and the generations to come. Amen.