Acts 1:1-11 / Eph 1:17-23 / Luke 24:46-53
There are many concerns and worries and anxieties of movie producers.
There is the budget to keep within; there is the script that must be attractive enough for the cast to work on; and there is also the consideration of whether the movie will be a box-office hit.
But one of the pressing fears of movie producers and directors is that of the lead actor and actress.
In the course of producing a movie, if anything should happen to the star actor or actress, then the movie will be in trouble.
And anything can happen - from injury to illness to sudden death.
That will jeopardize the making of the movie in many ways, and may even grind it to a halt and the movie may even be abandoned altogether.
Such is the critical importance of the star actors and actresses.
But whether it is the making of a movie or on the level of reality, we know how fragile it is when everything hangs on just one person or just a few people.
Jesus came to proclaim the Good News of salvation. Like the making of a movie, He is the central character and all was focused on what He taught and on what He did.
Jesus also did something that was of significance. He chose 12 apostles and He nurtured them with His teaching.
He taught them to proclaim repentance and the forgiveness of sins.
Jesus also empowered His disciples and gave them authority over evil spirits and to heal the sick.
In other words, Jesus had a succession plan. Although He was the central figure in the proclamation of the Good News and in the mission of salvation, He also formed His disciples to to continue His work.
He sent forth the Holy Spirit, the promise of the Father, the power from on high, to empower His disciples to be His witnesses.
Through the power of the Holy Spirit, the disciples continued the mission of Jesus and witnessed to His presence in the world.
This same Spirit is also given to us, the Church, and each of us is empowered to witness to Christ in a unique way and collectively as the Body of Christ, we manifest His presence in the world.
So Jesus may have gone "up", but everything goes on.
Yet in order to go on and be witnesses to Christ, we must be renewed with the power from on high.
In order to be filled with the Holy Spirit, let us prepare our hearts with prayer.
Singing a simple hymn like "Come Holy Ghost, Creator Blest" everyday would invoke power from on high.
And with the power of the Holy Spirit, we too will go forth to proclaim, to witness, to form, to nurture, and to continue the story of salvation.