"Father, without you we can do nothing. By your Spirit help us to know what is right and to be eager in doing your will." Mass Prayer in Lent
The Holy Spirit helps us on two levels:
Jesus promised that the Father grants our prayers on our needs and even more so when we ask for the Holy Spirit.
"Let my words reach your ears, Lord; listen to my groaning, and hear the cry of my prayer, O my king, my God." (Psalm 5: 2-3)
What is my prayer? What is my groaning and cry to God this Advent?
Greater docility to the Holy Spirit
I have come to recognize that the success of my spiritual journey, the Enterprise is in direct proportion to my openness to the Holy Spirit.
"Father, you never fail to give us the bread of life. May this Eucharist renew our strength and bring us to salvation." Mass Prayer in Lent
Father has blessed me very frequently with the Eucharist since 1996. The Eucharist renews our strength and moves us closer to full redemption. Our life is a journey; a journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. Our destination, that is, salvation cannot be reached in one day or without struggle. The Eucharist is the food that sustains us in this journey. Every thought, word or deed moves us closer to our homeland or away from it.
"This is an evil generation; it is asking for a sign. The only sign it will be given is the sign of Jonah. For just as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of man be a sign to this generation." (Luke 11: 29 – 30)
The Church is an authentic sign of the existence and presence of God in the world today. During the consistory of November 24, 2007, Pope Benedict said that the gathering of Bishops and people from every part of the world is a sign of the unity and universality of the Catholic Church. It is also a sign that God is with the Church. Such a gathering is not possible by human means.
"A broken, humbled heart, O God, you will not scorn." (Psalm 51: 19)
God's word convicts us of our sins. God will respond with mercy to our brokenness and humility before his word.
"God saw their effort to renounce their evil ways. And God relented about the disaster which he had threatened to bring on them, and did not bring it." (Jonah 3: 10)
When God saw their response to his word, he became merciful and tender.
Preparation is the key to success: