Father send Your Spirit into our lives with the power of a mighty wind.

"They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke of the marvels of God." (Acts 2: 4, 11).

Pentecost Sunday 2019. The Birthday 🎂 of the Church. Happy Birthday our dear Mother and Teacher!

"The mission of Christ and the Holy Spirit is brought to completion in the Church, which is the Body of Christ and the Temple of the Holy Spirit. This joint mission henceforth brings Christ's faithful to share in his communion with the Father in the Holy Spirit. The Spirit prepares men and goes out to them with his grace, in order to draw them to Christ. (CCC 737).

"Father of light, from whom every good gift comes, send your Spirit into our lives with the power of a mighty wind, and by the flame of your wisdom open the horizons of our minds. Loosen our tongues to sing praises your in words beyond the power of speech, for without your Spirit man could never raise his voice in words of peace or announce the truth that Jesus is Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever." (Pentecost Collect).

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The sweet Providence of Jesus provided for Paul in Rome.

"He [Paul] remained for two full years in his lodgings. He received all who came to him, and with complete assurance and without hindrance he proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ." (Acts 28: 30 - 31).

Saturday of the 7th week of Easter. The end of the Easter Season. Sunday is Solemnity of Pentecost. Paul has now arrived in Rome after a scary sea voyage. He will be tried by the Emperor. Our Scripture text today is the very last verses of the Acts of the Apostles. What strikes you in this Scripture? It is a happy ending for Paul and consolation for us.
Although Paul was under house arrest, he was allowed to remain in his own lodgings. He was free to receive whomever he wished.
"And with complete assurance and without hindrance he proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ."

What a happy set of circumstances! Is this situation accident, luck or just a happy break for Paul? It is the providence of Jesus that arranged these circumstances for Paul. Why? In order to encourage Paul and every disciple of Jesus that the Lord is faithful. He will always be with us in every situation.

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Bless the Lord my soul.

"Bless the Lord, my soul; and do not forget all his gifts." (Psalm 103: 2).

Friday of the 7th week of Easter is also the First Friday of June. Our reflection today is taken from the Responsorial Psalm 103, verse 2. This Psalm is titled the Psalm of David and is in praise of divine goodness. David, the "man after God's heart" gives us the secret of enduring loving relationship with God: Thanksgiving and Praise.

David remembers every one of God's favors to him and frequently composes psalms to celebrate new favors. For example, he lists particular favors below:
"Who pardons all your sins, and heals all your ills,
Who redeems your life from the pit, and crowns you with mercy and compassion,
Who fills your days with good things, so your youth is renewed like the eagle’s." (Psalm 103: 3 - 5).

Sunday is Pentecost Sunday. We have the opportunity for a special renewal by the Holy Spirit. All we need is the desire and asking for it. David had a great boost of the Holy Spirit after he was anointed by the Prophet Samuel. When the Holy Spirit is established in us, remembering God's gifts will be automatic. The Holy Spirit will constantly remind us of these gifts.

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Honor Jesus in the First Friday of June 2019.

June 7th First Friday in June 2019.

The 12 Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus:  Jesus promised 12 special favors to all those who will honor His Sacred Heart especially on the First Friday of every month.  In the 6th month of the year 2019, we look at Promise #6.

#6.  "Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and infinite ocean of mercy."

June is the Month the Church honors the Sacred Heart of Jesus. 

"O Sacred Heart of Jesus, living and life-giving fountain of eternal life, infinite treasure of the Divinity, and glowing furnace of love, You are my sanctuary.  O adorable and glorious Savior, consume my heart with that burning fire that ever inflames Your Heart.
Pour down on my soul those graces which flow from Your Love.  Let my heart be one with, and in all things conformed to, Yours. May Your Will be the rule of both my desires and my actions. Amen."  (St Alphonsus Ligouri, Bishop and Doctor of the Church).

"Jesus has loved us all with a human heart. For this reason, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, pierced by our sins and for our salvation, "is quite rightly considered the chief sign and symbol of that. . . love with which the divine Redeemer continually loves the eternal Father and all human beings" without exception."  (CCC 478).

Honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus this Friday by attending Holy Mass.

For the 12 Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, click the link below:

http://sfjweb.com/?q=content/sacred-heart-12-promises

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Where is your Jerusalem?

“Take courage. For just as you have borne witness to my cause in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness in Rome.” (Acts 23: 11).

Thursday of the 7th week of Easter.
Paul was under voluntary house arrest when Jesus appeared to him at night and promoted him in his ministry. "I am happy with the work you have done in Jerusalem. I here and now promote you to go up to Rome."

Where is your Jerusalem? How do you account for your stewardship? Remember the commission? We are to bear witness to 4 things:

#1 The Death of Jesus.
#2 Testimony of Scripture to the suffering and death of Jesus: (Luke 24: 44 - 46).
#3 The Resurrection of Jesus.
#4 The power of the Name of Jesus.

Are you ready for the New Pentecost?

Eternal Father, prepare us for the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Let Your Spirit come upon us with the power to fill us with His gifts and make us always willing to embrace Your gracious will every moment of our lives. Amen.

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Lord, prepare us for spiritual warfare.

"Keep watch over yourselves and over the whole flock of which the holy Spirit has appointed you overseers, in which you tend the church of God that he acquired with his own blood." (Acts 20: 28).

Wednesday of the 7th week of Easter. The above Scripture fits the life and mission of St Boniface (680 - 754), the Apostle to Germany whose feast the Church celebrates today. Born in England and sent to evangelize Germany, he was consecrated to the truth as the first Bishop of Germany. Boniface was martyred by the natives. The people who martyred him did not know that the blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church. The German Church flourished to the benefit of Christianity.

What did Jesus mean when He prayed for us:  "Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth." He prayed that our minds will remember and understand the wonderful truth He came to teach us. Baptism of the Holy Spirit brings us the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. It is also preparation for spiritual warfare. Do you not yet understand? Do you not remember that you too must suffer before you come to everlasting life?

But do not be afraid. Jesus our Captain and Leader has gone there before us and He tells us: "Have courage. I have overcome the world." St Boniface too overcame the world. He is honored all over the world on his feast day.

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T'is not from chance our comfort springs.

"The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of all I have told you." (John 14: 26).

Tuesday of the 7th week of Easter. There are 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit. There are 12 fruits of the same awesome Spirit. When I became acquainted with the Holy Spirit and began to appreciate Him more and more, what I appreciated most is the subject of our Scripture reflection: The Holy Spirit helps me to understand the Scriptures that I have appropriated and secondly, the Holy Spirit reminds me of the good things God is doing for me. It is impossible to offer praises and thanks if you do not know what God is doing for you. I thank the Holy Spirit every morning for this wonderful gifts.

Consider for a moment what God is doing for you:

"The child of God can fear no ill,
His chosen, dread no foe;
We leave our fate with thee, and wait Thy bidding when to go.
‘Tis not from chance our comfort springs, Thou art our trust, O King of kings." (Liturgy of the Hours).

What does this mean? Not even a single comfort you enjoy in life comes from chance, luck or accident. Every good thing that comes to you is from God's gracious ordaining. We find exactly the same idea in 2 Corinthians 1: 3 where God is called "Father of mercies and God of ALL comforts."
Did you notice the word ALL. It means TODO, no exception. It is impossible for you to know all these without the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

On Sunday the 9th of June, as we celebrate the feast of Pentecost, each of us has the opportunity to be renewed with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

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We have never even heard there is anything like the Holy Spirit.

“Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?” (Acts 19: 2).

Monday of the 7th week of Easter. Why did Paul ask the Christians of Ephesus this blunt and embarrassing question? Probably Paul noticed something from their questions, words and behavior that were dissonant with the experience of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Is this really the Blood of Christ? Asked a Eucharistic minister, a new convert to the Church.

How would you answer the question? “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?” Not this way: “We have never even heard that there is a Holy Spirit,” said the new Ephesian Christians. What difference does the Holy Spirit make in your life? Which of His gifts can you claim?

1. Wisdom
2.Understanding
3. Counsel
4. Fortitude
5. Knowledge
6. Piety
7. Fear of the Lord

Without the active indwelling of the Holy Spirit, it will be impossible to avoid serious sin and to live an effective Christian life. Was this what Paul observed in Ephesus?

Pope St John XXIII must have the Holy Spirit in mind when he advised: "Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but what is still possible for you to do." (Pope St John XXIII)

Today is the feast of St Charles Lwanga and 14 companions who were martyred in 1886 and 1887 by King Mwanga of Uganda for resolutely refusing to participate in homosexual practices.

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