Baptism in the Holy Spirit Video

This is an awesome video that explains the history of the Charismatic gifts in the Catholic Church and specifically the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. With Pentecost coming up, I recommend it to all who want a deeper relationship with Jesus and empowerment for holiness and service.

Open to the Holy Spirit

"Mary tells us that we are all called to open ourselves to the action of the Holy Spirit in order to achieve, as our ultimate destiny, the immaculate state, fully and definitively free from evil".
~ Pope Benedict XVI, Feast of the Immaculate Conception 2010

Renewal and Prelest

I remember talking with an Eastern Orthodox brother about the Charismatic Renewal and he referred to it as "Prelest". That there are no shortcuts in the spiritual life, so the idea of "baptism in the Holy Spirit" and speaking in tongues was delusion.

This Russian Orthodox word "Prelest" is often translated into English as spiritual deception, illusion, or delusion. It is the opposite of spiritual sobriety or watchfulness.

General Prelest is to think that you have no sin or need for forgiveness. Like the pharisee you see yourself as righteous before God based on your own efforts. The reality is that without Christ you are nothing. As you truly grow in holiness you become more aware of your sinfulness.

The Eastern fathers often speak of a particular Prelest that happens when you "live beyond your capabilities". This is someone who hasn't been cleansed of passions yet strives for a life of contemplation and desires the delights of spiritual grace. This spiritual "eagerness" leads to demonic exploitation of these desires. This person imagines that they are near to God and in a higher dimension of spirituality.

Seraphim of Sarov warned that "Surpassing their acquaintances in struggles of prayer and fasting, they imagine that they are seers of divine visions, or at least of dreams inspired by grace. In every event of their lives, they see special intentional directions from God or their guardian angel. And then they start imagining that they are God's elect, and often try to foretell the future."

The possibility of falling into Prelest is the leading cause of Eastern reluctance to the Charismatic Renewal. "The monks on Athos don't speak in tongues, so how could Nick the usher?"

I've been around the Charismatic movement since I was in diapers and will admit there were ups and downs in the last four decades. Mistakes and mis-steps have been made and some people do swim out over their heads and get into trouble.

The best safeguard against Prelest, according to Eastern writers, is to have a good spiritual director. If you are accountable to a priest or other elder in the Lord you are less likely to fall into error.

And that is exactly what the Charismatic Renewal in the Catholic Church did. Those who had experienced this new outpouring of the Holy Spirit went to the Church hierarchy for guidance and clarification. In their wisdom the Pope along with many cardinals and bishops recognized the "new Pentecost" that they were praying for.

My experience in the Orthodox church showed me a different reaction. Suspicious bishops "disciplined" priests who encouraged Charismatic experience. Lay people who experienced an outpouring of the Holy Spirit had their enthusiasm "bridled".

Direct access to the Holy Spirit? That's something you earn by fleeing the world and living a life of strict asceticism--even then there are no guarantees. Illumination is a reward--no shortcuts!

This rigid thinking has led to a quenching of the Spirit. Like the pharisees they only expect God to act in a certain way according to established rules. Anything outside of those rules is suspicious, delusional, or even heresy.

It's all based on fear. Fear of prelest, fear of diluting or destroying tradition, fear of losing ethnic identity, fear of "ecumenism".

We are so fortunate in the Catholic Church to have a shepherd that encourages all the faithful to experience the baptism in the Holy Spirit (May 2008). We have a growing Charismatic presence that compliments and enhances our ancient rituals and devotions.

Pray for our brothers and sisters of the East that they would overcome fear and re-discover the joy and freedom found in the Holy Spirit.

St. Symeon the new Theologian

Let us be like those who knock patiently and to whom the Lord opens the doors of His kingdom, according to His promise, and like those who seek and are given the Holy Spirit. It is impossible for a man who seeks with all his soul not to find the Holy Spirit and be enriched by His Charismata. (Cateshesis 22)

A person who has within him the light of the most Holy Spirit, unable to endure it, falls prostrate upon the ground; and he cries out and shouts in terror and great fear, for he sees and experiences something that surpasses nature, thought and imagination. He becomes as one whose entrails have been set ablaze: devoured by fire and unable to bear the scorching flame, he is beside himself, and he cannot control himself at all. And though he sheds unceasing tears that bring him some relief, the fire of his longing is kindled to yet fiercer flames. Then he weeps more abundantly and, washed by the flood of his tears, he shines as lightning with an- ever-increasing brilliance. When he is entirely aflame and becomes as light, then is fulfilled the saying, ‘God is joined in unity with gods and is known by them. (Practical and Theological Chapters 3:21)

When someone suddenly lifts up his gaze and contemplates the nature of existing things in a way that he had never done before, then he is filled with amazement and sheds spontaneous tears without any sense of anguish. These tears purify him and wash him in a second baptism, that baptism of which our Lord speaks in the Gospels when He says, ‘if someone is not born through water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of heaven.’ Again He says, ‘If someone is not born from above’ (John 3:5,7). When He said ‘from above’, He signified being born from the Spirit.

Did Eastern Fathers Pray in the Spirit?

In the Spiritual writings of the Christian East, specifically the Philokalia, many types of prayer are described: psalmody, the Jesus Prayer, contemplation, singing hymns, and vigils. One type of prayer that is often mentioned but not explained is "formless prayer" that, according to St. Peter of Damaskos, exchanges human words for "the divine words of the Spirit".

Ilias the Presbyter calls this free-form prayer, "sweet smelling wine," and "those who drink deep of this wine are rapt out of themselves." (Gnomic Anthology, 72)

If you've been following my recent posts then you can guess where I'm going with this. When I read words like this through a Charismatic lens I can't help but connect it to the spontaneous prayer in the Spirit associated with the Renewal. I naturally associate praying with "divine words of the Spirit" with praying in tongues. And the resulting rapture and ecstasy is that sweet consolation one feels when caught up in Spirit-filled worship.

I'll admit that I could be totally off-base here and simply projecting my experience onto ancient words. Even so, what I have discovered in my recent survey of Eastern Christian spirituality is a vocabulary for understanding contemporary Charismatic experience in an Eastern context.

My prayer is that Eastern Christians find joy and "sober-minded drunkenness" as they transcend the words of prayer, psalms, and Liturgy into communion with the Holy Spirit.

Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, everywhere present and filling all things, Treasury of Blessings and Giver of Life, come and dwell within us, cleanse us of all stain and save our souls, o gracious One.

~Eastern Prayer to the Holy Spirit, Tone 6

Fire Divided for Sharing Gifts

O Lord, the Spirit of Your salvation, which formerly was received by the prophets in fear, now creates a pure heart in Your apostles and renews in our hearts an upright Spirit; for your commandments, O Lord, bring us light and peace.

~Pentecost Matins Canon, Ode 5

From Pentecost Matins arranged by the
Metropolitan Cantor Institute of the
Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh

Getting Drunk with St. Macarius

The Makarian Homilies were attributed to St. Macarius of Egypt, a fourth-century desert father. In the eleventh century they were paraphrased by St. Symeon Metaphrastis. It is this text that appears in the Philokalia.

Like much of Eastern Christian spirituality he considers individual effort (heroic virtue) essential to spiritual perfection: We receive salvation by grace and as a divine gift of the Spirit. But to attain the full measure of virtue we need also to possess faith and love, and to struggle to excercise our free will with integrity. (1)

But, St. Macarius adds that through much prayer and faith, and by turning completely to God, we are able, with the help of the Spirit, to conquer the passions and root out sin (3). This is what distinguishes him from most Eastern Fathers. He emphasizes communion with the Holy Spirit and the need for more than human effort. In fact, he considers asceticism without the joy of the Holy Spirit to be empty:

[The Christian] may have fasted, kept vigils, chanted the Psalms, carried out every ascetic practice and acquired every virtue; but if the mystic working of the Spirit has not been consummated by grace with full consciousness and spiritual peace on the altar of his heart, all his ascetic practice is ineffectual and virtually fruitless, for the joy of the Spirit is not mystically active in his heart. (113)

To bear fruit, according to Macarius, requires participation in the Holy Spirit. He calls the Spirit a heavenly treasure and admonishes his reader to aquire it (87). For those who experience this release of the joy and love of the Holy Spirit, "Sometimes it seems they are in some realm greatly rejoicing and drunk with the inexpressible drunkenness of the mysteries of the Spirit, and then at other times they are full of grief, weeping and lamenting as they intercede for men's salvation." (89)

His descriptions of communion with the Holy Spirit sound very much like my experience in the Charismatic Renewal. I've seen similar emotional and physical reactions to the Spirit at prayer meetings. So, what we see is that such experience is not foreign to Eastern spiritual life. Of course, St. Macarius lived during the golden age of Church history before spontanaety succumbed to institutionalism.

Later, St. Macarius describes that the spirit-filled person at prayer, "...experiences an ineffible and measureless delight; his intellect wholly suspended and ravished, is overwhelmed, and during the time he is in this state he is mindless of every worldly concern. For his thoughts are filled with numberless incomprehensible realities and are taken captive by them. In that hour his soul through prayer becomes one with his prayer and is carried away with it." (91)

Those who have experienced the release of the Holy Spirit in their life know this delight and feeling of being carried away by love. The Charismatic Renewal did not invent this kind of prayer and worship, nor did we borrow it from Protestant Pentecostals--it was part of the undivided Church in the East and West.

What we see today is a rediscovery of refreshing, dynamic, active life in Communion with God the Holy Spirit. To my brothers and sisters in the Eastern Rite, I invite you to enter into joyful communion with the Holy Spirit by following the admonision of St. Macarius of Egypt:

We should eagerly drink spiritual wine and become drunk with a sober-minded drunkenness so that, just as those glutted with ordinary wine become more talkative, we too, brim-full with this spiritual wine, may speak of the divine mysteries. (99)

~David Samuel Thomas

*Quotations from "The Philokalia, Vol III". Palmer, Sherrard, & Ware, ed. trans. London: Faber & Faber, 1984

Spontaneous Prayer in Eastern Spirituality

St. Peter of Damaskos was an Eastern bishop of the eighth century. His writings appear in the Philokalia, an influential compendium of spiritual writings revered in the Orthodox church. In his work on the eight stages of contemplation he mentions yielding to the Holy Spirit when He "interrupts" your normal prayer routine:

When, however, God's grace kindles a sense of deep penitence in the heart, you should allow your intellect to be bathed in tears of compunction, even if this means that your mouth stops reciting psalms and your mind is made captive to what St. Isaac the Syrian calls 'blessed captivity'. For now is the time to harvest, not plant.

He also quotes St. Isaac's description of someone in a state of pure prayer:

Often it happens that a person so concentrates his intellect during prayer that, like Daniel the prophet, he falls unbidden to his knees, his hands outstretched and his eyes gazing at Christ's Cross; his thoughts are changed and his limbs are made weak because of the new thoughts that arise spontaneously in his intellect. (from the Mystic Treatises)

St. Peter adds that "the more habitual these thoughts become, the more the longing for God draws us on to understand and worship the Father ' in Spirit and in truth', as the Lord said. St. Paul also indicates this when he says: 'I would rather speak five words whose meaning I understand than ten thousand words in a strange tongue' (1 Cor. 14:19); and again: 'I wish that men would pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands without anger and quarrelling' (1 Tim 2:8)."

He concludes that singing hymns is a remedy for weakness, but "the experiences of rapture mark the perfection of the intellect."

Here is an example of the charismatic and liturgical working together in the spiritual life of the Eastern church. If you are sensitive to the action of the Holy Spirit, then don't be surprised if He interrupts your regularly scheduled prayer rule. Don't be afraid to fall on your knees, lift holy hands, and even pray in tongues. Here are two eastern saints, Peter of Damaskos and Isaac the Syrian, who testify to this reality.

*Quotations from "The Philokalia, Vol III". Palmer, Sherrard, & Ware, ed. trans. London: Faber & Faber, 1984

Spontaneous Vocal Worship in the Eastern Rite?

As long-time readers know I spent 12 years in the Eastern Orthodox church and was a tonsured Reader in the Antiochian Arrchdiocese.

I still frequent Eastern Rite Catholic parishes now that I am in communion with St. Peter's successor in Rome. My home parish in the Latin Rite is officially Charismatic and encourages spontaneous vocal worship, and yes, "speaking in tongues", during Mass. There are liturgically appropriate times for such expression, known among the Church Fathers as "jubilatio".

Today I was musing about how such expression would work in the Byzantine Rite.

The Divine Liturgy in the Eastern churches has less flexibility and is treated as a museum treasure that should never be altered. Of course, one finds variations between Russians, Greeks, Antiochians, Serbs, and Romanians but nothing to convene a council about. Then you get the ultra-orthodox who only do the Liturgy in Church Slavonic or Greek and consider English as an inferior language for worship. But I digress...

There are two parts of the Divine Liturgy where I most often feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. So, maybe I'm biased about where He would inspire the faithful to break out in spontanous worship and glossolalia.

The first place is during the Trisagion. Right after the Little Entrance, when the priest comes out with the Gospel and declares "Wisdom, be attentive" the faithful sing "Come let us worship and fall down before Christ..." But where is the worship? Where is the falling down? Sounds like an invitation to DO something.

Next is the Trisagion hymn: Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us (three times). Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen. Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.

HERE is the place where I imagine singing in tongues, shouting praises to God, vocal declarations of worship like I find in my Charismatic parish. What happens after? The priest declares "Dynamis" or "Again with fervor" and the faithful sing one more time "Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us."

Okay, I can hear a collective groan from the Byzantine liturgists, but if you consider this seriously, it appropriately enhances what is happening at that point in the Divine Liturgy. What if people are distracted? Well, the next thing said is "Let us be attentive", so everything is brought back into order. Did the Holy Spirit set it up that way?

At the beginning of the Anaphora, right after the priest tells the faithful to lift up their hearts,"We lift them up unto the Lord" is the reply, then the celebrant commands "Let us give thanks to the Lord", with the response "It is proper and right".

Here we go again! More time to worship in the Spirit. Hearts (and for some, hands) are already lifted, why not praise the Lord with angelic tongues. This naturally leads to the next part of the Liturgy, what the Latins call the Sanctus, where we join the angels in singing "Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord of Sabbaoth..." Totally appropriate in timing and order.

I don't claim any historic precedent for these musings. We know that spontanous expression did happen in the early Church, but with the establishment of organized Liturgy the freedom faded. I am not proposing that Orthodox and Eastern Catholics modify their Liturgies to accomodate such innovations.

My point is that IF spontaneous worship and speaking in tongues were to happen in a Byzantine Divine Liturgy, this is where I imagine it.

Pentecost Vigil Podcast

Pentecost Vigil at Christ the King Catholic Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan was incredible this year. What a wonderful time of praise, worship, encouragement, and best of all, the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Fr. Ed Fride's homily was a rallying call to boldly proclaim the message of Pentecost and stop apologizing for being Charismatic.

Now that the sermon is online, I recommend it to everyone who wants to know about what the Holy Spirit has been doing in the Catholic Church. It's almost an hour long, but is time well spent. You can listen or download the message here...

http://ctkcc.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=489322

The Vocation of Being Yourself

Poet Wendell Berry wrote in his essay God and Country that using the term "full-time Christian service" turns the devoted life into a religious specialty or career. It removes the possibility of devotion from other callings. If the priest or preacher is a "full-time Christian servant", then the farmer can merely serve God in his spare time.

The work of Christ on earth is not just for the professionals. At several points in my life I was in full-time "career" ministry. Now that I am a "civilian" it's easy to discount what I am doing for the Kingdom. Would my service mean more if I wore a collar or a cassock? Of course not. My daily social contacts provide opportunities to minister to others. A parent, a good neighbor, a caring friend: all of these are vocations.

The fathers at Vatican II reminded the ordinary Christian of this. In Apostolicam Actuositatem they explained, "the laity likewise share in the priestly, prophetic, and royal office of Christ and therefore have their own share in the mission of the whole people of God in the Church and in the world." Here are some other declarations from this document:

"Since the laity, in accordance with their state of life, live in the midst of the world and its concerns, they are called by God to exercise their apostolate in the world like leaven, with the ardor of the spirit of Christ."

"On all Christians therefore is laid the preeminent responsibility of working to make the divine message of salvation known and accepted by all men throughout the world."

"They should not cease to develop earnestly the qualities and talents bestowed on them in accord with these conditions of life, and they should make use of the gifts which they have received from the Holy Spirit."

When you wake up in the morning, ask the Lord to show you ways to bless those around you. Seek the gifts of the Holy Spirit for the building up of the Church. Be the fragrance of Christ in a dying world.

Best of 2008 -- Part 1

As 2008 comes to a close I'd like to recall articles from the past year on various topics. Today I will list some articles on the work of the Holy Spirit, Charismatic gifts, and the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. Click each title to read the articles.

Surprising Connection between Rome and American Pentecostals
Renewal vs. Revival
Dark Nights & Deserts
Speaking in Tongues (Book Review)
The Importance of Hierarchy for accountability
Perfect Pitch
Docility to the Spirit
Heart of Fire -- St. Philip Neri
Spiritual Gifts in the Fourth Century
The Spiritual Life

From the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI
Sermon in Washington DC
The Power of the Spirit -- World Youth Day 2008
Rediscover the Baptism in the Holy Spirit

Prayers to the Holy Spirit
O God the Holy Ghost
Riga Quod est Aridum
Lava Quod est Sordidum
Lux Beatissima

Spiritual Gifts in the 4th Century

Early-fourth century Church Historian Eusebius of Caesarea had this to say about the gifts of the Spirit in his time:

For some of them drive out demons effectually and truly, so that those who have been cleansed from evil spirits frequently believe and unite with the Church. Others have a foreknowledge of future events, and visions, and prophetic revelations. Still others heal the sick by the laying on of hands, and restore them to health. And, as we have said, even dead persons have been raised, and remained with us many years.

As also we hear that many brethren in the Church possess prophetic gifts, and speak, through the Spirit, with all kinds of tongues, and bring to light the secret things of men for their good, and declare the mysteries of God.

~Church History 5:7

Rediscover the Baptism in the Holy Spirit

Today I would like to extend this invitation to everyone: Let us rediscover, dear brothers and sisters, the beauty of being baptized in the Holy Spirit; let us be aware again of our baptism and of our confirmation, sources of grace that are always present. Let us ask the Virgin Mary to obtain a renewed Pentecost for the Church again today, a Pentecost that will spread in everyone the joy of living and witnessing to the Gospel.

~Pope Benedict XVI, May 11, 2008

Catholic Charismatic Renewal 2.0

When I was becoming Catholic I was thrilled to know that the Charismatic Renewal was active in the Church. What a joy to find that there were more Spirit-filled charismatics in the Catholic Church than all non-catholic Pentecostals and Charismatics put together!

I did have a few disappointments. It took much searching to get information on the Renewal. Many Charismatic web sites are outdated or poorly maintained. Local prayer groups are hard to find or they are stagnant.

Some things I did find encouraging. The CCR is a grassroots movement within the heart of the Church supported by hierarchs, especially the last several Popes. It is Catholic first, THEN Charismatic. There were no celebrities--there are some leaders who stand out, but they don't have personality cults around them.

The Holy Spirit placed some things on my heart about the future of the Renewal:

*More cohesion, coordination, and cooperation.

*More visibility and a stronger web presence.

*The next wave of leadership must be trained.

*Be prepared for tremendous growth.

I don't know if this was a prophecy or not, but I have a strong feeling that many Protestant/Evangelical Charismatics and Pentecostals will be coming into the Catholic Church. Weary of being tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine, they will be searching for the stability and authority that the Church offers. The Lord wants shepherds ready to feed them and help them recover from spiritual abuses that they come out of.

Let's get ready for the next chapter in CCR history!

Beware of Spiritual Arrogance

Those of us who take our Christian faith seriously can easily fall into elitism. That is, an attitude that we are somehow more enlightened or holier than the "average" Christian.

During Apostolic times the Jewish Christians looked down on the gentile believers. When new religious orders appeared on the scene they met resistance: consider the opposition faced by St. Francis, St. John of the Cross, or the Jesuits. Though these are examples of the establishment opposing change, our saints could easily have judged others as being less spiritual for not understanding them. But they didn't.

I bring up all this because I occasionally run across folks in the Charismatic Renewal who consider the "regular" Catholic to be inferior. They often ignore anything that doesn't come from a Charismatic source. "How could someone who hasn't been 'baptized in the Holy Spirit' have anything worthwhile to say?"

This attitude was common in the early days of the Renewal, not just among Catholics, but Protestant Charismatics as well. Prayer groups became islands where the "enlightened" gathered. Some left their churches and ended up in established Pentecostal congregations. I think that this attitude contributed to the stagnation of many prayer groups and the disappearance of others.

If we tell people that they need the baptism in the Holy Spirit because their current experience with God isn't good enough they'll close themselves off. Just because someone is uncomfortable with the gift of tongues, prefers traditional forms of worship, or quiet prayer does not make them inferior. The pious little old lady sitting quietly in Mass every day may have more of the Spirit in her big toe than my entire prayer group put together!

An emotional experience like the baptism in the Holy Spirit is not required in order to have spiritual gifts. A confessor can have the gifts of knowledge or wisdom even if he doesn't speak in tongues. God supplies each of us with gifts for the building up of the Church and the only requirement is our openness to the Holy Spirit.

At confirmation every Catholic experiences their personal Pentecost. Wouldn't it be cool if those being confirmed spoke in tongues when the Bishop blessed them! But, alas, they don't. Does this mean nothing happened? Of course not.

I am thankful to be in a parish that is officially Charismatic with an active prayer group. We sing in the Spirit during portions of the Mass. Our worship is upbeat and lively. Our prayer group is active and attended by young and old. I wish that all Catholic parishes were like mine, but that doesn't mean mine is "better".

We must love our brothers and sisters and appreciate their gifts. We must recognize that the Holy Spirit dwells in all Catholics and pray that they open themselves to more and more of His blessings. And finally, we must humble ourselves and admit that there is still more that we lack no matter how Charismatic we happen to be.

More of God

There is always something MORE that God can give us.

He is without boundaries like a shoreless ocean.

We can never get enough.

The Holy Spirit wants to lead all of us into a deeper relationship with Christ.

He wants to energize us and enhance our prayer life.

He wants to set us free and bestow gifts.

But we can't "conjure" the Holy Spirit.

He leads as He wills.

The Power of the Spirit - B16

This power, the grace of the Spirit, is not something we can merit or achieve, but only receive as pure gift. God’s love can only unleash its power when it is allowed to change us from within. We have to let it break through the hard crust of our indifference, our spiritual weariness, our blind conformity to the spirit of this age. Only then can we let it ignite our imagination and shape our deepest desires. That is why prayer is so important: daily prayer, private prayer in the quiet of our hearts and before the Blessed Sacrament, and liturgical prayer in the heart of the Church. Prayer is pure receptivity to God’s grace, love in action, communion with the Spirit who dwells within us, leading us, through Jesus, in the Church, to our heavenly Father. In the power of his Spirit, Jesus is always present in our hearts, quietly waiting for us to be still with him, to hear his voice, to abide in his love, and to receive “power from on high”, enabling us to be salt and light for our world.

Being “baptized” in the one Spirit (cf. 1 Cor 12:13) means being set on fire with the love of God. Being “given to drink” of the Spirit means being refreshed by the beauty of the Lord’s plan for us and for the world, and becoming in turn a source of spiritual refreshment for others. Being “sealed with the Spirit” means not being afraid to stand up for Christ, letting the truth of the Gospel permeate the way we see, think and act, as we work for the triumph of the civilization of love.

HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
World Youth Day - Sydney, Australia

Sunday, 20 July 2008

Docility

Wow! This week has been one of great joy in the middle of trials! My only way through it has been to listen for the voice of the Holy Spirit and obey. The word "docile" keeps coming up this week.

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” (Rom. 8:14 RSV) I'm learning to place myself in the hands of Father God, like a child abandons himself to his father’s care.

I'm also learning that the Lord gives AND He takes away. It's easy to trust Him when He gives good things and takes away bad things. But what about when He allows bad things, and takes away what we love the most? What if God said, "Your sanctification requires that you suffer through cancer. Do you trust me?" Or, "Do you love me enough to let me take your children away?"

A true love for God is a martyrs love that responds with a willingness to give up what we hold dearest. That may be wealth (the rich young ruler), Status/learning (Nicodemus), the family business (Andrew & Peter), etc.

I went to the Charismatic prayer group at Holy Apostles Catholic Church in Colorado Spings on Wednesday night. It was so great to be with 100+ spirit-filled folks in community. The first song we sang was the Matt Redman song "Blessed Be Your Name". I've listened to the version by Tree 63 for years, but while singing it in the midst of loss meant something new. I broke down when we got to the verse, "Blessed be your name/On the road marked with suffering/Though there's pain in the offering/Blessed be your name."

Since my current ordeal hit heavy two months ago, I haven't really cried about it, but the Holy Spirit gave me that gift of tears. I couldn't speak or sing. I just wept, holding my rosary and letting Love wash over me.

The song came on the radio while I was driving home and I almost had to pull off the road!

God lights the way, even in darkness.

Perfect Pitch

A trained musician can hear a chord played and recognize the individual notes. They can hear a "C" for instance. It is rare to be born with "Perfect Pitch", the ability to identify the frequency or musical name of a specific tone, so it must be learned.

This came to mind when I was reading "In the School of the Holy Spirit" by Fr. Jaques Philippe of the Community of the Beatitudes. The Book explains how to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit and be obedient to the will of God.

When we become intimate with the Holy Spirit, and learn to recognize His voice, it is recognized in the noise of life. It takes time and practice to train our hearts to discern the vibration of the Spirit.

I recommend picking up this little book if you want more details on how to listen.