Week Three // O Holy Spirit, Beloved of My Soul
O Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore You.
Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me.
Tell me what I should do; give me Your orders.
I promise to submit myself to all that You desire of me and to accept all that You permit to happen to me.
Let me only know Your will. Amen.
Week Three Intention
We pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our local communities and dioceses.
Week Three // Day Two
Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me.
The 18th century is known as the “Age of Enlightenment.” It was an intellectual and philosophical movement that dominated the mode of thought in Europe. Philosophers believed that rational thought was the most legitimate mode of thinking. “Reason” became king, ruling everyone’s actions, and the value of “faith” was brought into question. It was at this time that the deist movement began (the simple belief in God the Creator, with no reference to the Bible or any other miraculous source). The whole movement opened the door to modern day agnosticism and atheism.
It’s tempting to think of more knowledge as a good thing, but sometimes it’s not. In fact, in God’s original plan for mankind, He didn’t want us to know everything. He only wanted us to know “good,” which is why He made the world and everything in it “good.” It was goodness—and only goodness—that He desired for us. Sadly, we grasped at more. The mind of mankind was poisoned by the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. More knowledge was gained, but it was quite costly.
God gives us the option to consume the good that’s around us, or to consume the bad. Reason alone can be hollow, while faith alone can be blind. It is the combined use of faith and reason that helps us to weed through the gray matter and figure out the truth. When we ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten us, we aren’t necessarily asking for full knowledge and understanding of a situation. Rather, we are asking that He make the good more obvious, illuminating the path we should take—directing us away from matters and situations of which he does not want us to have first-hand knowledge.
Resolve to live your day based only on the knowledge that the Holy Spirit decides to give you.
Prayer + Discussion for Prayer Partners
Has your desire to be enlightened ever left you facing the dark? Do you trust that God gives you the exact knowledge you need, or do you fear He is holding out on you?
Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. #BISblog #prayerpledge //Click to tweet
Grace is a regular contributor to the BIS Blog. She had planned to be a nurse until an encounter with Christ in Confession ignited a spark that resulted in an ongoing career as a high school Theology teacher. Though a cradle Catholic, she continues to be amazed at the depth of peace and joy that can be found within the Faith and can’t help but share that passion with others as a teacher, writer, and speaker. Outside of ministry, she dabbles in a bit of everything, excels in almost nothing, and like most moms, cannot survive without at least one cup of coffee a day. Grace resides in Charleston, SC with her hunky husband and their daughter who looks just like him. You can find out more about her here. Read all of Grace's posts here.
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