Holy Spirit Mondays: Saying 'Yes'

Each week I send a short reflection to help you deepen your relationship with the Holy Spirit. If you have a question or a prayer request, please reach out here.

Read:

“And the angel said to her, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God'" (Luke 1:35).

Ponder:

The actual fact of an Archangel visiting a person is, in and of itself, worthy of great study and deep meditation. But the extraordinarily personal and private (yet ultimately public and history-changing) visitation of Gabriel to Mary is something to behold, rather than truly grasped.

Still, it provides to us a view into the interior life or, more specifically, the contemplation of (theoria), and dare I say, union with, God (theosis).

Think about it like this: God speaks to us ... all of us ... sometimes in the silence of our hearts ... sometimes through other people ... sometimes through extraordinary events. But do we actually believe this occurs? Are we prepared for it when God comes? Are we prepared to say, 'do this in me according to your will'?

This is clearly the hardest part. The ability to put aside our desires ... our plans ... our frustrations ... our disappointments ... in order to say a total and unreserved yes to God ... that takes lots and lots of prayer ... and spiritual preparation.

So, let's pray for each other during this Nativity ... to start working on this 'yes' to God.

Pray:

"Most Holy Spirit, save me from myself and sanctify me."

Ask:

If you have a question or a prayer request, please reach out here.

A Coptic Orthodox icon of Pentecost.

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