The world is in dire need of revival.

"John said: One mightier than I is coming; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."  (Luke 3: 16).

Today is the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. It marks the end of the Christmas Season.

Jesus will baptize us with Holy Spirit and fire. What an amazing promise.  Are you ready?  “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!"  (Luke 12: 49).

The Journey to the Promised Land was not a straight road. There were many bends, curves and detours. So is our personal Journey of Faith. From the arrival in the Promised Land to the Coming of Jesus Christ more bends, curves and detours for the chosen people.  From Pentecost to the Second Vatican Council, more curves, detours and bends for Christians. The Genealogy of Jesus Christ teaches us that God's loving and all powerful Providence anticipates all these.  He built in correctives and resets into the march of the world to Kingdom of God.

Friends, to make a long story short, the world is in dire need of reset. Yes. Of Revival. The Holy Spirit is the Principal Agent for this great Revival.  Are you ready to be baptized with the Holy Spirit and fire?

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Can you let Jesus increase a little bit in you?

"He [Jesus] must increase; I must decrease.”  (John 3: 30).

John the Baptist at the end of his ministry says Jesus's elevation has made his joy complete. (John 3: 29).
With this parting gift of heavenly wisdom, he left a great legacy for the Church.
Yes, Jesus must increase. We must decrease.

But how?

"I let go of my desire for security." 
"I let go of my desire for affection ."
"I let go of my desire for control ."
"I let go of my desire to change the situation ."
"I let go of my desire for perfect health ."
"I let go of my desire for perfect family harmony ."
"I let go of my desire for the perfect job."

I let go and let Jesus use me as He wishes.

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Jesus can not resist trust in Jesus!

‘Sir,’ he [man full of leprosy] said ‘if you want to, you can cure me.’ Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him and said, ‘Of course I want to! Be cured!’ (Luke 5:  12 ).

And the leprosy left him at once.

Dear friends, what is the one thing that melts the Heart of Jesus? Simple and full trust in Jesus.! That's it.  Serving in soup kitchens is great. Flying about in all parish ministries is good work.  But if you have not figured out how to increase your trust in Jesus, you are a non starter and may be missing a lot in this side of the Kingdom of God.

Jesus caused this words to be written in His Divine Mercy picture:
JESUS I TRUST IN YOU.
Jesus can never resist trust in Jesus.

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There is no fear in love.

"There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear." (1 John 4: 18).

We are talking here not of our love for God. For example: "Thou shall the Lord thy God with all thy heart, all thy mind and all thy will."  We are talking about God's love for us that never changes, never fails. This is such a radical concept that if you can become aware of how much God loves you, the knowledge and trust in God’s love for you will transform your life beyond widest expectation.

How do you become aware of how much God loves you? How do you become aware of how much your wife, father, friend loves you?  You match up the person's behavior towards you with your concept of love. For example:

This is how God loves you and me:
God is patient; God is kind. God is not jealous, nor is He pompous, or inflated.  He is never rude nor seeks His own interests. He is never quick-tempered nor broods over our sins.  He does not rejoice over our wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth and our success.  He is longsuffering and merciful to the extreme. (Adapted from 1 Corinthians 13 : 4 - 7).

To own this truth, you repeat the above every day until it becomes yours. The result is unbelievable. You come to believe that God loves you and is with you every single moment everywhere. And you know that this God is in control of every situation.

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If God is love, who are we?

"God is love."  (1 John 4: 8).

My friends, what does it mean to say that God is love? It is like saying "The sun is shining. There is light."  Of course there will be light if the sun is shining.  God's love suffuses everything. It penetrates all His creation. Genesis teaches us that after God created the world, He reviewed the work of His hand and sees that it is good and He loves it.

Original Sin damaged our ability to love and receive love.
We needed a re-education in other to understand love from God's perspective. This is how God loves you and me:

God is patient; God is kind. God is not jealous, nor is He pompous, or inflated.  He is never rude nor seeks His own interests. He is never quick-tempered nor broods over our sins.  He does not rejoice over our wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth and our success.  He is longsuffering and merciful to the extreme. (Adapted from 1 Corinthians 13 : 4 - 7).

"In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins." (1 John 4: 10).

Without the Spirit of Love living and working in us, we may never be able to overcome the effects of Original Sin working against love.

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What happens when we abide in the will of God.

"Beloved, We receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him."  (1 John 3: 22).

Friends, Scripture promises that when we keep God's commandments and do what pleases Him, we receive from Him what we need.  It is not the will of God to deprive us of the necessities of life.  Man does not live on bread alone.  Neither does he live on money alone. Man needs good health, family peace and prosperity. Man needs good job and tools and possessions. We need food all the time.  Who can live without peace of mind and soul? Finally, we are constantly preoccupied with thoughts of the future as we move from one lifecycle to another.

Today's message from 1 John should bring us great comfort.
"Those who keep his commandments remain in him, and he in them, and the way we know that he remains in us is from the Spirit that he gave us."  (1 John 3: 24).
Friends, do you know for certain that the Holy Spirit remains in you?  Without the Holy Spirit, you cannot live effectively the Christian life and you cannot enjoy the privileges promised the children of God.

"You belong to God, children, and you have conquered them, [the world] for the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world."  (1 John 4: 4).

We are engaged in a life and death struggle with the spirit of this world.  Are you gaining victory war zone by war zone: family, finances, job, health, etc. Are you winning sector by sector: workplace, home, church, etc.

"We belong to God, and anyone who knows God listens to us,
 while anyone who does not belong to God refuses to hear us. This is how we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit."  (1 John 4: 6).

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