Download “In the World” for April 30, 2023 here.
THE PROMISE OF ELECTRICAL POWER
This month, rain and high winds knocked out power to twenty thousand Michigan residents, just as a cold front moved in. DTE Energy deployed more than 160 crews on the day of the storm, and by 2:00 p.m. the next day, power had been restored to 99.9% of their customers. We expect that sort of responsiveness from utility companies, as a CEO of another power company makes plain: “As an electric utility, our responsibility is to provide reliable power to our customers,” said Kevin Thornton, CEO of Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative. “That’s the promise we make, and we take it very seriously.”
THE PROMISE OF SPIRITUAL POWER
Today’s passage describes a time after the Resurrection but before the Ascension, when Jesus ate a meal with his followers. They pressed him for information about what was going to happen next, but Jesus told them to wait in Jerusalem until the promised Holy Spirit came upon them in power. Then they would know what to do, and it would be to take the good news outward from there until it reached the ends of the earth. But they could not accomplish that task without power from above.
- When were you most affected by the absence of electricity, water, or some other utility?
- What’s a task you simply didn’t have the power to accomplish on your own, and how did you eventually manage it?
- What questions would you have had for Jesus if you’d been eating with him after the Resurrection?
Additional Resources
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