When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Acts 2:1-4
During 2026, Peachtree Church is inviting everyone into Cultivate, a churchwide discipleship plan centered on the fruit of the Spirit and the kind of life God longs to grow in us. Throughout the year, we’ll explore how love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control take shape in everyday life through the Spirit’s work. Cultivate brings together worship, Scripture, group guides, and meaningful practices designed to meet you where you are and support growth in ways that fit your season. These twice-weekly devotionals are one way to stay connected, offering reflection and grounding for daily life with God. Whether you engage in many ways or just one, you’re invited to be part of this shared journey of becoming more rooted in who God has created and called you to be.
Devotional
For many of us, when we read this passage, “When the day of Pentecost came,” we read it in one of two ways: as a change of time from what had just passed or as an understanding of what is now Pentecost, which was then known as the Jewish Festival of Weeks. When we read it in either of those two manners, we miss the fact that the disciples had been waiting for something to happen between the events that end the first chapter of Acts and the events that occurred on Pentecost.
We can read in the text that the disciples were waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit, both through the promises Jesus had given them and through the events that occurred in this passage. Still, the transition in time given by these words loses the sense of expectation that most of us feel in the midst of a season of waiting. When we are in one of these seasons, we have a choice in how we handle it: we can seek others to be with us as we wait, or we can try to power through on our own.
The plan that God has set forth for us is that we would seek out community, which we see in the disciples gathered together in one place. By grounding ourselves in community, we have the basis of support that undergirdshow we focus our attention during these times of waiting. It shifts our thoughts and actions away from the feeling of despair that can accompany waiting. We understand that, together, we have support and care that build us up while also allowing us to hear the often-needed words, “What you are experiencing is normal.”
For Reflection
- Who makes up the community to which you turn during a time of waiting?
- How do you support those around you when they are struggling to need patience?
Prayer
Lord God, we know that your view of time is not the same as our own. We know that in your plan for creation a greater good will occur than ever we can understand. Help us to surround ourselves with other people to whom you have spoken your truth so that together we might hear your voice, together we might lift one another’s spirits in the most trying of times, and together we might place our trust in you. In Jesus’ name we pray; amen.
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Devotionals