In tune with the Holy Spirit
The story is told about an old man who was asked: “At your age, what would you prefer, Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s?” His response: “I’d rather have Parkinson’s; better to spill half of my wine, than to forget where I kept my bottle of wine!”
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In today’s Gospel (Luke 1:1-4; 14-21), we hear how Jesus, fully aware of who He was, returned to Galilee to proclaim His mission. He neither had Parkinson’s nor Alzheimer’s when it came to His identity and mission. Neither fear nor praise prevented Him nor distracted Him from fulfilling His mission.
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Many of us vacillate between commitment and selfishness. We often live calculated and compromised lives. Why? Because we are not empowered by the Holy Spirit, but by our own worldly wisdom and understanding, and by our worldly resources and connections. Unless and until we rely more on God, and less on ourselves, we can never be true disciples and followers of our Master.
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“He must increase. I must decrease.” (John 3:30) As we grow on, may we realize more and more that without God, we are nothing, and without Him, all our work and so-called achievements are empty, vain, and self-serving.
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Are you in tune with the Holy Spirit? If you are open, and if you operate and cooperate with the Holy Spirit, your life, your ministry becomes more real and personal, more fruitful, and more meaningful. Only with the Holy Spirit can we truly bring the Good News to the poor, proclaim liberty to the captives, give sight to the blind, and set the downtrodden free. Without the Holy Spirit, we end up bringing bad news, proclaiming hopelessness to the captives, giving darkness to the blind, and making the downtrodden captives. Come Holy Spirit, we need you!
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Praying that our public servants be empowered by the Holy Spirit and not empowered by money and worldly ambitions. It is greed, unbridled and never satiated greed that makes our country continue to be poor and underdeveloped in many aspects. Without the Holy spirit, public service is neither public, nor service.
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“Diakonia” is the Greek word for service. Sad to say it is a word that is Greek to many persons who claim to be servants of the people. Please remember that “diakonia” (service) is all about mission, not “commission.”
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Sometime this week, as I was about to start Mass in St. Williams Cathedral in Laoag City, I asked Fr. Marlon Vargas, SVD to charge my phone which was already low batt. As I sat down during the First Reading, I saw my phone being charged from an outlet at the upper corner of the altar! At the end of the Mass, Father Marlon gave me back the phone with the words “fully charged.” Yes, indeed Father Marlon, it is the Lord, it is the Eucharist that helps us to be recharged and fully charged. Amen!
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I remember Mama as I write this column on her death anniversary (+Jan. 25, 2014). I remember how my Mama always told me to rely on God, and not on myself, and to always call on the Holy Spirit. And so, it is that, before I begin my homily or sharing, I always pray: “Come Holy Spirit, bless this unworthy priest, so that I can share with humility and with love, and that the people listen with the Holy Spirit in their hearts. Come, Holy Spirit come!”
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We ask ourselves today: What have I really done, what have I sacrificed for the poor, the captives, the blind, and the oppressed? May we be guided and empowered by the Holy Spirit so that we continue to bring God’s justice, love, hope, and light, to the lost, the last, and the least in our midst.
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Today is National Bible Sunday. It is the Word of God given to us through authors inspired by the Holy Spirit. May the Bible lead us not only to know God, but more so, to experience Him, and His Divine Word. It is the food of our souls, the light for our feet, and the sure compass in our journey to God’s heart. Read the Bible, love the Bible, live the Bible!
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A moment with the Lord:
Lord, may we always be in tune with the Holy Spirit, be guided by Your Word, and be recharged by the Eucharist. Amen.
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