Holy Spirit Novena Day 3

If I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you (Jn. 16:7, Word on Fire New Testament).

How many times we have felt, If only I had someone on my side! We are alone, defenseless. But Jesus promises not to leave us orphans. He sends the Holy Spirit to us to be our Defense. The Gift of the Father’s Love comes to embrace us in our need and to see us through the most difficult times of our lives.

Before the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Apostles were hiding in the Upper Room with the doors locked. Mary was with them, teaching them how to wait prayerfully and trustfully so when the Advocate came upon them at the end of their ‘novena’ on the Jewish Feast of Pentecost they were transformed into men of strength and zeal for the Gospel. His coming filled them with a joy that burst the bonds of fear and sent them out to all the nations to baptize the people in the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit! They no longer felt despondent or defenseless. They were ready to give up their lives for the sake of Jesus. They were a new creation.

Our Pentecost in a few days need not be less than they experienced. The details may be different, but by the Holy Spirit’s power we are enabled to place God above all other interests. Or rather, we learn from the Spirit how to prioritize our passions and place first things first. We will still love our families, enjoy hiking with friends, take trips to places we’ve never been and talk about politics with like-minded people. But the overarching desire of our hearts, newly transformed by the Grace of His coming, will be for God Himself. We will find ourselves tuned, as it were, to the chords that make up the symphony of devotion to all things Godly. We will hear with the ears of our soul the music of goodness and integrity that will set us apart from worldly pursuits for their own sake, and remind us to use the things of this world for the glory of God.

In a word, we will be drawn in new ways to a personal holiness that has peace at its center and heaven as its final measure.

This is the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus. So let us pray:

Dear Mother Mary, teach me to await the coming of the Holy Spirit this Pentecost with trust and prayerfulness. I want to receive Him as you and the apostles received Him, with openness and hope. I ask that you implore for me the Grace to receive Him as my Comforter, my Defender in the face of the trials of daily life, and to help me listen to Him as he teaches me to love all that is good and true and beautiful. Empty me by Grace that He may fill me. Make me a new creation by the power of the Holy Spirit, in the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

In  just a few days….