Nobody knew who he was for almost 30 years of his life. Then he came down to Judea and listened to John the Baptist. One day he stepped into the river and the Spirit came upon him like a dove. From then on, everything was different. He stepped out of that river and became the preacher, healer, wonder-worker known all around.
Let us think about Mary.
She was a teenage peasant girl in a hick town. One day the Spirit came upon her and her whole life changed.
And what about the disciples?
They were frightened, paralyzed by fear. They were huddled in the Upper Room behind locked doors. Then Jesus appeared to them and breathed the Spirit upon them, and, well, we know the rest of the story.
Whenever the Spirit comes upon people in the Gospels, they suddenly come alive in a new way.
And the same is true for us.
- Little White Book, Diocese of Saginaw