“…….how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?” Luke 11:13

Knock. Knock Who’s there? The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit who?

The point is that many of us do not really know or have not really encountered the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit seems to be the forgotten person of the Blessed Trinity. In our youth, we may have memorized the Gifts of the Holy Spirit…but have we as adults developed a relationship with the Holy Spirit?

In the introduction to the series, The Wild Goose (the ancient Celtic word for the Holy Spirit) which is on Formed.org, Father Dave Pivonka asks the viewer to visualize themselves standing on a beach viewing the water. He then says to view yourself putting a snorkel mask on going under water. We discover a the whole world that exists below the surface with the plants and animals present. He compares standing on the beach as how we frequently view and live our faith and how the ‘snorkel view’ allows us to see a whole new spiritual world we have not seen or accessed before. When we live in the Spirit our faith becomes alive and dynamic and much fuller.

Fr. Pivonka states that living in the Spirit is not complicated. It is open to each of us no matter who we are or what our role in life is. In fact it is quite simple and natural. We have already received the Holy Spirit in Baptism and Confirmation we only need awaken our awareness of the Spirit’s presence within us and pray to keep our hearts and minds open.

The first three sessions of the series lays the foundation and desire for living in this way. If you desire to learn more view the other nine sessions the give practical examples of people living in such a way and ways we too can do that. Fr. Pivonka’s presentations can help us get beyond the intellectual knowledge that God loves us to having a profound experience of God’s love that leads us to continual encounter the Holy Spirit. It will be life changing.

I encourage you to take the time to sign onto Formed.org (parish code: CFMYY) and search for the Wild Goose series. You will not regret it!!!! I hope you have the time to enjoy these summer days.

Peg Orzel