DEVOTION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT by Casmir U. Okwara

 DEVOTION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT

Devotion to the Holy spirit is the golden key where with the soul gains free access to His infinitely rich treasures chambers. From this treasuring, the Holy spirit dispenses graces upon graces with boundless liberality. In His infinity love, He desires to à souls happy, more than a mother desires to gladden her child.

WHAT IS DEVOTION

Most christians use these terms to refer to one-on-one time spent in prayer, reading the bible and meditating. Devotion is the time a follower of God sets aside to grow their faith by spending time with God. It is a strong religious feelings.

WHO IS THEN THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Holy spirit is the third person of the blessed trinity, the person of divine love. He is called the spirit because He proceeds from the God the father and God the son. God the father and the son loves one another with an infinite love and this love is a person, the person of the Holy Spirit, who is bond of union.

The Holy spirit is the third person of the blessed trinity, the person of divine love.he is called a spirit because He proceeds from the God the father, and God the son. The father and the son loves one another with an infinite love and this love is a person, the person of the Holy spirit, who is bond of union.

The Holy spirit has seven gifts that He gives to us and we recieve these gifts through baptismwith the three theological virtueswhich are, faith,hope and charity.the seven gifts of the Holy spirit includes the following:

WISDOM

Which is the highest and most privildged gift of the Holy spirit. St Bernad calls it the supernatural gift of the Holy spirit which enables us to know God and to rejoice in perfect love.

UNDERSTANDING

This is another gift of the Holy spirit which enables us to comprehend the mysteries and doctrines of our holy religion.

COUNSEL

Counsel is a gift of the holy spirit which moves the soul to choose what is most conducive to the glory of God and to it’s own salvation.

FORTITUDE

Fortitude banishes all timidity and enhances human respect, strengthens souls to hate sin, to practice virtue and give us strength to accept persecution, fulfil the will of God and to undertake greatest sacrifices of our salvation.

KNOWLEDGE

By the gift of knowledge, the Holy spirit enlightens us with an inner light, that we may know and may choose the fittest means to overcome sin and not been of the world.

PIETY

Piety inclines us to love God as the best of fathers; love His beloved son and the Holy mother Mary. It also makes us to love the saints and as well our feloow men.

FEAR OF GOD

This gift is like that of a childlike fear which causes us to dread no misfortune so much as that of displeasing God.

HOW TO BE DEVOTED OR SHOW DEVOTION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT

I can remember in the bible when peter was asking the lord after their breakfast by the sea, “how can i be sure i won’t fail you again? Where will i find the power find the sheep and shepherd the lambs?” And Jesus answered or said “wait, and the power will be given to you” also in Lk.24:49 when Jesus said to the disciples “stay in the city until you have clothed with power,from above”

The Holy mother of God and the apostles where the first to practice spical devotion to the Holy spirit. St Paul speaks of the Holy Spirit more than a hundred times in his epistles. And all holy fathers of the church have followed in the footsteps of the apostles. 

Devotion to the Holy spirit seeks to awaken in us a consciousness of the presence and indwelling of the Holy spirit not only in the churuch as a whole but in each of us. Most catholics do not honor the Holy spirit, we should keep in mind that our body is the temple of the lord and the Holy spirit dwells in us, when we destroy it through sin , we are gruadly loosing the Holy spirit as God do not stay in a dirty place.

According to Fr.ED Broom, OMV, he listed the following ways by which we can be devoted to the Holy spirit;

READ THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 

Acts of the apostle which has twenty-eight chapters and is beeen attributed to saint luke. Just as in the past weeks till now, you can notice that the readings centers more on the acts of the apostle. However, the capital importance of reading and mediating upon this book is the presence of the Holy spirit , as it is often referred to the “ gospel of the Holy Spirit”

PRAY OFTEN TO THE HOLY SPIRIT

For one to be devoted to the Holy Spirit you have to been praying often to the Holy Spirit. There are many prayers that can be said to the Holy Spirit such as “come Holy Spirit and fill the heart of the faithful” try to memorize at least one of these prayers.

BE FAMILIAR WITH THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Just as i have mention earlier the gifts of the Holy Spirit, know them and beg the Holy Spirit that these heavenly giftsd will become more and more active or operative in your daily life.

MAKE SIGN OF THE CROSS ALWAYS

Make sign of the cross frequently as this includes or symbolizes God the Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit.

READ ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT

If you want to know something or get facts about something or somebody, you have to make researches about the person or thing. Therefore, read more about the Holy Spirit, articles and books etc on the Holy Spirit.

IMITATE MARY’S LOVE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

Finally invoke Mary in all you do as she is our intercessor. Beg her that the Holy Spirit might come into you. The blessed virgin Mary was at all times and place open to the workings and operations of the Holy Spirit right from the beging, because through her Jesus came into the world by the power of the Holy Spirit.

CONCLUSION

God speaks through His Holy Spirit into every single circumstance in our lives, to provide answers to the questions and concerns we face. We should know and and understand that devotion to the Holy spirit awakeßness our spirit to know that the Holy Spirit dwells in us and not in the church therefore we should keep ourselves holy.