Humbly submit your will to God (Thy Will be done) and consecrate yourself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through Mary.

On the evening of that first day of the week,
when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,
for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood in their midst
and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you.
As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”
And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,
and whose sins you retain are retained.” JN 20:19-23

As Catholic Christians, we often fail to recognize the Holy Spirit in our lives.  At Pentecost, Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit on the Apostles, but each one of us receive the same Holy Spirit at out baptism.  We are baptized in the same waters and given the same Spirit.  On Pentecost and at our baptism, “God’s Spirit joined our spirit and would now direct our lives”. -Richard J. Hauser, S.J. book, “In His Spirit”
Sometimes we lose our identity as a Catholic.  We don’t realize the power we have been given and what our mission is. Most importantly, it is optional by free will, but their are consequences of not living out the freedom God has given us.  Our salvation hinges on this freedom and whether we use it to do good, nothing (is this possible-we are either doing something good or evil) maybe mindless, or evil toward God and others.  The Spirit of God is alive in every one of us and directs us, but we must respond with the free will God has given each of us.  Recognizing we are made in God’s image and likeness, we inherited a fallen human nature, are fighting the most powerful fallen angel, that we need and have received a Savior who took on all sin and made the relationship between God and man right again, and being redeemed and given the Holy Spirit we have a task to accomplish by responding to the Holy Spirit that moves us to love God and others.  The Holy Spirit draws us into a deeper relationship with Jesus so that we may be more like Him.  Then, our actions will show love.  Richard J. Hauser, S.J. also says, “The presence of the Spirit does not take away our inclinations towards evil or the flesh (St. Paul talks about this to a great extent in his epistles), but it does give us the power not to be controlled by them; grace is stronger than sin.  Christ, our redeemer, frees us from the power of sin.  THIS IS THE WHOLE KEY!  We must open our selves to God’s Spirit and recognize all we have and do throughout the day stems from His Spirit, the Holy Spirit.  If we recognize all we do is by our own power we fail to recognize the One who gave us this power and we fail to allow the Holy Spirit to guide us.  This means failing at drawing closer to Christ which will in turn influence our actions to fail at loving God and others.  OUR BIGGEST FAILURE IS WHEN WE FAIL TO RECOGNIZE OUR IDENTITY WHICH BEGINS IN GOD. Jesus said, “”But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.”  JN 16:7
Why?  God is inside of us in His Spirit instead of outside of us.  This is the Good News!  We must tell the world.  We have God’s power and energy in us.  The Holy Spirit is often symbolized by fire; fire is energy!  We are animated by the Spirit that lives in us. It is what moves us to love in our actions and if needed, with words (St. Francis)!  Listen to the words of the Come, Holy Spirit prayer in the daily challenge below.  Fulfill your mission, recognize your identity, allow the Holy Spirit to work in you, be Christ for others, and allow God to transform the world through you!

Today’s challenge: Say the Come, Holy Spirit prayer every day for the rest of your life!

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful
and kindle in them the fire of your love.  Send 
forth your Spirit and they shall be created and
you shall renew the face of the earth.

Make your password on your phone be, “Come Holy Spirit” to remind you of your identity and mission, become a saint!

Be a servant, allow the Holy Spirit to guide you, and become a saint!
​Christian YOLO