Journey of the Heart / Jennifer Burger

May we never grow weary of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in life

Autumn brings many splendors and delights with the brilliant color and light that play upon golden landscapes.

What I enjoy the most, however, are the times when the wind catches the leaves as they fall and whisks them into a joyful frenzy, or rustles them from their resting place upon the ground. These moments capture my attention and stir my heart with amusement in much the same way.

This brings to my mind the Holy Spirit and how it too animates and moves in and around us, bringing to life what we couldn’t possibly imagine or even comprehend doing on our own.

The nature of wind can certainly be destructive, but the creative nature of the Holy Spirit can only be benevolent. The Holy Spirit as the third person of the Holy Trinity is the “Giver of Life.”

We profess this during every Sunday liturgy and Feast of Solemnity, but how often do we actually pause to consider the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives?

The same Holy Spirit with which God breathed the heavens and Earth into existence. The same Spirit that overcame Mary at the Annunciation, forming the life of Jesus within her, that raised Christ from the tomb in the resurrection and through which he conquered death, giving us access to everlasting life. It is the same Spirit that descended upon the Apostles at Pentecost, giving birth to the Church. It is the Spirit called down by the priest and through which ordinary species of bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ we receive in the Eucharist.

This same Holy Spirit can animate, awaken, enliven and create in and through us, too!

I find this incredibly awe-inspiring and humbling at the same time. In our works, in our relationships, in our spiritual zeal or dryness—where we resist and in those places in our hearts that have become dormant—when we call on the Holy Spirit, we invite the life of God that dwells in us to come alive and animate our hearts with God’s love. May we never grow weary or neglect the creative work of God through the Holy Spirit and the impact the Spirit has in our lives and in the world!

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and enkindle in us the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit, and we shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the Earth.
 

(Jennifer Burger is a spiritual director and a member of St. Simon the Apostle Parish in Indianapolis.) †