The more we live by the Spirit, the more we follow the Spirit, sharing our Lord’s gifts and fruits through our acts of self-sacrifice, good works, and prayer during Lent and all the days of our lives. The Holy Spirit gives us the strength to follow Christ’s way of life, including the way of the cross - willingly. Perhaps our most difficult task is to admit that without God, we can do nothing. We are restored in the greatness of God.Īs we experience our transformation into children of God, we also recognize our own littleness and limitations, and our need for penance and reconciliation. In essence, we become extensions of Christ’s presence of merciful love and forgiveness. “This love…is the source of the new life in Christ, made possible because we have received ‘power’ from the Holy Spirit.” (CCC 735)Īnd by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can bear the first fruits of eternal glory (charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity) (CCC 1832). With God’s love comes forgiveness of our sins and the chance to start our lives anew in unity with the Holy Trinity to love one another as God has loved us. Are we willing to accept the responsibility of this lifelong commitment? Fruits of the Holy Spiritĭo not be afraid to accept God’s love. But grace also includes the gifts that the Spirit grants us to associate us with his work, to enable us to collaborate in the salvation of others and in the growth in the Body of Christ, the Church.” (CCC 2003).īy the grace of the Holy Spirit, we too can make the Word visible by the way we live our lives, enabling us to be raised in holiness as brothers and sisters in Christ. “Grace is first and foremost the gift of the Spirit who justifies and sanctifies us. Mary was indeed filled with the grace of the Lord’s Spirit and through Mary, the Word of God became visible. From those journeys, Mary was raised in holiness as mother of our Savior, united with her Son in His work of our redemption, to become intercessor and Mother for us all. The Holy Spirit led Mary on every journey of her earthly life. Perhaps we hesitate because we know acceptance means taking on the responsibility that comes with conforming our lives to God’s will. Do we accept these gifts and use them in our daily living? Or do we tuck them in the back of our mind because they do not fit well in our current lifestyle and get in the way of what we want in and out of life? With God’s gift of the Holy Spirit comes the gifts of wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear - wonder - of the Lord (CCC 1831). Our Lenten journey is meant to help us experience the intimacy of the Trinitarian life by depending more on the greatness of God’s love and less on ourselves in our joys, our works, and our sorrows so that we may share in the glories of Heaven. Remember: “the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us.” (Romans 5:5)Ĭonsider this: In His infinite love for each of us, God humbled Himself to become man in Jesus Christ - giving us His body and blood and His Holy Spirit - to unite with us and protect us from sin.
The Holy Spirit awakens our faith which gives us hope and the inspiration to share God’s love in the world.
Gifts of the holy spirit bible verse full#
In our prayers, we say we believe in the Holy Spirit, but do we actually follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit, thereby giving our Lord full rein of our existence? To be true children of God, we need the Holy Spirit dwelling within each of us. Do we allow the Spirit of the Lord to lead us and protect us on our journey as we try to be obedient to God? Although hungry, Christ was filled with the Holy Spirit and in His loving obedience to His Almighty Father, He did not give in to the devil’s temptation. If we are beginning to slip, let us ponder: The Holy Spirit led Jesus into the desert where He fasted for 40 days and was tempted by the devil. As we journey through the Season of Lent, is our resolve to keep our Lenten promises beginning to weaken? Is the devil trying to tempt us with thoughts of futility? What difference does it make if we give up chocolate? We’re going to start eating it again on Easter Sunday!
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