Servant Winds

 

“He makes the winds his messengers.”

—Psalm 104:4

The Bible’s use of the image of “wind” fascinates me. Some passages speak of stormy winds, such as those sent to the ship in which Jonah tried escaping God’s call, as recorded in Jonah 1:4. Or, the stormy winds sent while the disciples maneuvered to cross the Sea of Galilee, as recorded in Matthew 14:22-36. Or, the stormy winds sent to Paul and the other prisoners traveling to Rome, as recorded in Acts 27:1-44. In each case, God had specific purposes for such storms.

In some cases throughout the New Testament, the word “wind” refers to the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2:1-13, we read the story of the first Pentecost during which “a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.” That powerful “storm” filled everyone there with the Holy Spirit.

In Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, recorded in John 3:1-21, He said:

“…the wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So is everyone born of the Spirit.”

God’s people and His Church both need the “wind” of the Holy Spirit to blow within us, to remove the dust that has fallen upon us during the years we sat idle. We need to pray again that the Living Lord Jesus Christ would breathe His wind through us, sending us in new directions, bringing new birth by the Holy Spirit, and making the “wind” His servant to fulfill His purposes in us, through us, and for us.

Like seasoned sailors, we need to watch for the direction of the God-given spiritual winds and set our sails appropriately. We need to meet together and wait in prayer, just as the believers did after Jesus’ ascension, watching for Him and for His promised Holy Spirit.

This well-known hymn expresses the kind of prayer God wants us to pray:¹

O Breath of Life, come sweeping through us,
Revive Your church with life and pow’r,
O Breath of Life, come, cleanse, renew us,
And fit Your church to meet this hour.

O Wind of God, come bend us, break us,
Till humbly we confess our need;
Then in Your tenderness remake us,
Revive, restore, for this we plead.

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1 Head, Bessie P. O Breath of Life. Public Domain.