The Wind of the Spirit

Wakkanai is the northernmost city in Japan on the island of Hokkaido. I had the pleasure of visiting Wakkanai and have stood at the tip of Cape Soya. How can I describe Wakkanai in 2 words? – Blown away. I was just blown away both figuratively and physically by the wildness and beauty of Wakkanai.

Wakkanai faces the Sea of Japan to the west, Soya Bay and Soya Strait to the north and the Sea of Okhotsk to the East[1]. I saw these vast sheets of water, the wild seas, crashing waves into the beaches and coasts, the rugged terrain. I was in awe of the wide-open space, the changing colours and hues of the sky, clouds and sun; bright sky – blue for a time, then turning grey and heavy with rain.

Then there were brilliant sunsets with the ever-changing palette of white, yellow, orange, reds, shades of blues, purple, magenta, violet and that magic moment of dusk as Day bids its goodbye. And then there was Night, with the constellation of stars and moon. Is that how Abraham saw the stars when he was invited by God to “Look up at the heavens and count the stars – if indeed you can count them.”[2]

But what really blew me away was the WIND. This Wind of Wakkanai whips through your hair, you feel its power and force when it pushes into and around your body and face. The Wind is everywhere and comes in all directions. It is not like the gentle breezes during my evening walks around the neighbourhood padang. To a city girl like me, the Wind is strong, fierce, powerful and uncontrollable and I revelled in it. No wonder Wakkanai is called wind town[3].

What can anyone do with all this Wind? The Japanese have cleverly harnessed wind power and constructed Soya Misaki Wind Farm, with fifty-seven turbines each with a capacity of one megawatt. When completed in 2005 it became Japan’s largest wind farm, capable of powering approximately 41,000 households, with a theoretical annual emissions reduction of 120,000 tons of CO₂ relative to an oil-fired power station of equal capacity.[4]

From a distance the Wind Turbines look like matchsticks topped with three-winged fans pinned into the undulating terrain of Wakkanai. But up close these wind turbines are like towers with huge propellers. They are truly a sight to behold.

The verse that came to me is John 3:8

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

Jesus often speaks metaphorically and in this instance, he describes the Spirit (pneuma)[5] as a wind[6] in order for us to be able to come to some understanding of the nature of the Holy Spirit. He said in verse 12, “I have spoken to you of earthly things, and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?”

“If this earthly wind can be so fierce and violent; What then is the power and strength of the Wind from Heaven?” I thought to myself. Have I underestimated the power of the Holy Spirit? Have I failed to grasp Heavenly things?

If the wild wind of Wakkanai can turn the huge wind turbines which then generate power for 41,000 households, what then is the capacity of the Holy Spirit?

When Jesus spoke to Nicodemus of the wind, Nicodemus as a member of the Sanhedrin would have recognised the wind as the Holy Spirit and the imagery that would have come to his mind would be the reference to Ezekiel 37:1- 14[7]. \

In it, Ezekiel tells of a story of being led by the Lord to a valley of dry bones. The Lord asked Ezekiel, “Son of man, can these bones live?” Ezekiel replied, “O Sovereign Lord, you alone know.” Then the LORD said to Ezekiel:

“Prophesy to these bones and say to them, “Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath[8] enter you and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin: I will put breath in you and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.”

So Ezekiel prophesied as he[9] was commanded. And Ezekiel said,

“And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.

Then the Lord said to Ezekiel,

“Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man and say to it “This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain that they may live.” So, Ezekiel prophesied as he was commanded and breath entered them; and they came to life and stood up on their feet – a vast army.

This wind of the Holy Spirit is capable of raising up a vast living army from the bunch of dead dry bones. It was not only one body coming to live, but an entire battalion. The Holy Spirit is not meek and mild but a powerful force that drives the Universe and gives life. And gives life to many who believe.

Again in Romans 8: 11, the Bible declares that the Holy Spirit raised Jesus from the dead[10]. And it goes on with a promise, “If the same Holy Spirit lives in you, He will give life to your bodies in the same way.”

In the New Testament, on the day of Pentecost, there is a description of the violent wind that came from heaven filling the whole house where the apostles and believers were gathered. Tongues of fire separated and came to rest on each of them and all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in tongues as the Spirit enable them – Acts 2:1 – 4.

This passage describes the Holy Spirit as a violent wind from Heaven. “Violent wind,” I ask myself. In my small mind, I have put the Holy Spirit in a tiny box of being only meek and mild, a comforter just to sooth me. I have failed to come to terms that this Holy Spirit is not a comforter (like my blanket) but the Comforter with the capital C. He is powerful, potent, forceful, and strong. For that I bend my knees and repent.

I believe that in this precarious time in history we need the triune God, and need to come to life in the Holy Spirit more than ever before. It is not a luxury but a matter of necessity.

We are all aware of the Holy Spirit. We speak of Him in the pulpit, we read of Him in our books, and we sing of the Him in our songs. But do we[11] truly believe in His power and strength, His capacity to bring about change and transformation? The Holy Spirit cannot be controlled, we do not know where He comes from or where He is going, but when He is present, do we want to be open to Him. Do we want to be led by Him? Do we want to be harnessed by the power of the Wind of the Spirit? Do we want to go with His flow? Do we want revival in the parched dry bones of our souls? I put this question to myself. And this invitation is open to you.

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[1] Wakkanai- Wikipedia

[2] Genesis 15:5

[3] Japan Deluxe Tour, Hokkaido Wakkanai/ The Wind Town – Sept 3, 2020.

[4] Soya Misaki Wind Farm – Wikipedia

[5] Bible gateway

[6] The Holy Spirit compared to the Wind, the Spurgeon Library

[7] Bible Ref on John 3:8

[8] It is to be noted that the Hebrew word for breath can also mean wind or spirit

[9] I have reworded this passage in third person, referring to Ezekiel as he. In the original passage, Ezekiel refers to himself as “I”

[10] New Life Version. See also 1 Peter 3: 18, Romans 1:4

[11] When I use “we” it also includes myself.