Scientists tell us that life on Earth would not be possible without oxygen, light, the warmth of the sun, and water. It is very interesting that almost every manifestation of the Holy Spirit occurs through one of these elements. Today, we see that the Spirit manifests itself through a strong wind and through fire/light. Just as the human body dies without these elements, so too does the life of our soul, no matter what we do, without the Holy Spirit it is dead. The Christian and the Church without the Holy Spirit are dead bodies.
Saint Paul, in the second reading, gives us a very powerful message, telling us that those who put their trust in the deeds of the flesh will reap only death, while those who put their trust in the Spirit will reap eternal life. Where am I/are you placing my/your trust, in the flesh or in the Spirit of God? What is the deepest desire of my life, to do what I want or to do the will of God revealed to me through the Spirit who dwells within me? Some do not care about the Spirit of God and what He wants, others try to find a compromise between what they want and the Spirit of God, but the saints always said yes to the Holy Spirit and, therefore, He poured grace upon grace on them.
The more one truly says ‘yes’ to the Spirit of God, the more He continues to pour His graces upon them. This is why the saints amaze us, not because they were born special or had some unique talent, but because they always said ‘yes’ to the Spirit, and thus the Spirit continued to pour His graces upon them. The Apostles were not people with special skills, in fact, we know that they made many mistakes, but with complete sincerity, they allowed Jesus to shape them with His Word so that when they received the Holy Spirit, they were transformed from night to day.
What should we do? We should become people of prayer because in prayer the Spirit gradually changes us and shows us what His plan is for us. Secondly, we should give special space to listening to the Word of God in our lives because the Word is the school of the Spirit. And thirdly, we should never lose heart because the Holy Spirit pours His gifts upon us to strengthen us on the way.
Holy Spirit of God, come into us, make us like Jesus so that we may be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Pour out your abundant gifts upon us and fill the whole world with the beauty of your presence as seen in the saints of our time.
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