Message of 1-3-2024

Published: Wed, 01/03/24

A Daily Spiritual Seed
Wednesday: January 3, 2024

Message of the Day

How many gifts and graces You have given me! How many favors You have fed me from your hand! I look for your love in all directions, then suddenly its blessing burns in me.
- Rabia Al-Adawiyya

(Pray these words slowly and reverently until they truth they signify become real in your heart.)

Readings of the Day

1 JN 2:29–3:6; PS 98:1, 3CD-4, 5-6

Jn 1:29-34

John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said,
"Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.
He is the one of whom I said,
'A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me
because he existed before me.'
I did not know him,
but the reason why I came baptizing with water
was that he might be made known to Israel."
John testified further, saying,
"I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from the sky
and remain upon him.
I did not know him,
but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me,
'On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain,
he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'
Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God."

USCCB lectionary

Reflection on the Scripture

“Dearly beloved, we are God’s children now.” —1 John 3:2

God loved us so much that He wanted us in His family. However, our nature was not compatible with being in God’s family. It would be like a human family adopting a beetle, cockroach, amoeba, orangutan, or giraffe. It just wouldn’t work. Even if we pretended these creatures were part of our families, they don’t have the capacity to join in family life. They could be nothing other than pets at best. In the same way, human beings don’t naturally have the capacity to belong in God’s family.

Consequently, God the Father sent His Son to become a man and make it possible for our human natures to be changed so significantly that we can be adopted into God’s family. “Any who did accept [Jesus] He empowered to become children of God. These are they who believe in His name — who were begotten not by blood, nor by carnal desire, nor by man’s willing it, but by God” (Jn 1:12-13). “See what love the Father has bestowed on us in letting us be called children of God! Yet that is what we are” (1 Jn 3:1).

Jesus was born in Bethlehem so He could die on Calvary. By being baptized into His death, we share in His resurrection and become new creations (Gal 6:15) and adopted children of God. The Christmas season is for children — God’s children.

Prayer: Father, thank You for making us adopt-able.

Promise: “When you see the Spirit descend and rest on Someone, it is He Who is to baptize with the Holy Spirit.” —Jn 1:33

Presentation Ministries

Amazon Gift Cards: Good for any occasion.

Spiritual Reading

-Readings from Jesus Alive in Our Lives, by Philip St. Romain. Ave Maria Press, 1985. Contemplative Ministries, Inc. 2011.

Part Three, Gift of the Spirit

Chapter 1: Overview

- Selected quotes

In planning these presentations, I plotted out many organizational schemes, most of them developing the topic in a rather logical, systematic manner. While it’s certainly possible to present the material that way, after awhile it just didn’t feel right. When I studied my reactions, what I noticed was that my own experience and education concerning the Holy Spirit has been anything but straightforward through the years. I was reminded of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, where he states, “the wind blows where its pleasure takes it, and the sound of it comes to your ears, but you are unable to say where it comes from and where it goes; so it is with everyone whose birth is from the Spirit” (Jn.3:8).

What I’ve learned from this passage is that the Spirit works with us on many levels at once, and that it’s generally impossible to “organize” what’s going on into systems and stages without considerably distorting the reality. That’s kind of what it’s felt like writing these chapters as well: inspirations and enthusiasm for one aspect of life in the Spirit would come at one point, then something seemingly unrelated would follow. Things just didn’t flow in an orderly manner, so I finally quit trying to force things into that mold. If Jesus says that no one can predict where those born of the Spirit come from and where they go, then how much more the kinds of thought processes prompted by the Spirit?

This is not a bad thing, however, for while the Spirit doesn’t seem to be opposed to reasoning and logical approaches, She’s not especially enamored of them either. She (and I use the feminine pronoun at times as it resonates with several Old Testament references to the Spirit) seems to much prefer working on many levels at once, and of keeping one just a little off-balance in the process. Control is not a high priority for the Spirit, but organization that enhances creativity is. Problem is, sometimes, we mistake the former for the latter and that’s what I don’t want to do in these presentations.

So I will jump around a bit—actually, a lot. If it doesn’t hang together or seem to flow from one thing to the next, well, trust your perception, for it will be correct! Nevertheless, I am confident that, on the whole, we will cover the relevant topics and explore the important issues.

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