You do not know where the wind comes from nor where it goes; so it is with the Spirit of God (Jesus to Nicodemus--John 3).
None of us "understand" (to control or manipulate) the movement of the Holy Spirit--He enters by wisdom into dark corners with His great illumination. We can only ask and seek and await His sudden appearance. Once we experience a flash, or movement, of the Spirit, like Peter at the Transfiguration of Jesus, we immediately want to build a "tent" where we can capture and continue to live in the indwelling Presence of God. The "tent" is our "formula" for "making it happen" again, or to keep the Presence with us forever.
But the Spirit of God does not dwell in tents constructed by human hands. He goes where He wills. As a community, we can continue coming together in prayer, seeking God's direction for all of us, being open to the move of the Spirit among us---but it is more like a windmill harnessing the movement of the wind for energy than a "tent" or formula that tries to contain and control the Spirit.
But God is faithful to those who await Him; He completes the work He begins and does not leave or abandon those who trust Him. Once we begin to trust and submit to the work of the Holy Spirit in us, once we begin to welcome His action in our lives, we do see uniform results---purifying, cleansing, illuminating, teaching, and revealing truth. We cannot predict exactly how the Spirit will accomplish His work in us, but we can learn to recognize the infallible signs of His presence in any group or individual ---see Galations 5:22.
If there is any "formula" at all, it is just openness, trust, and prayer, knowing that we ourselves do not know "how to make it happen," but knowing that God cannot fail to do the work He has always done in those who hope in Him---Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.
Our best "formula" is the beatitudes --- the new Torah, one that cannot be codified or canonized.
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