Understanding

5 Minute Meditations. Between now and Pentecost (May 23rd), we’re going to talk about the Gifts of the Holy Spirit and the Fruits of the Spirit. The blog entries will be much shorter, but you can spend as much time in meditation, contemplation and prayer as you like.

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him:  a spirit of wisdom and of understanding, a spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be the fear of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:1-3) These seven gifts (piety is described, not labeled, in the verses that follow) are part of the blessings given the Messiah, Jesus, and therefore, given to Christians. We receive these gifts at baptism. They are strengthened in us in the sacrament of Confirmation when we affirm our identities as soldiers of Christ, that is, Christians who will battle sin in ourselves and in the world to bring about the Kingdom of Heaven.

Ponder: Understanding helps us see God working in our lives. Understanding penetrates words and symbols to help us comprehend the deeper truth. For example, when a parent says, “How are you?” we understand the deeper truth as “I care about you.” Understanding goes beyond the world’s shallow meanings and motivates us to act out our faith. Understanding begins with listening to what God reveals through creation, Scripture, sacred traditions, prayer.

The Road to Emmaus is an example of Understanding. The disciples walked with a “stranger”, telling him about Jesus’ death and resurrection. It wasn’t until they had dinner together, and the “stranger” broke the break, that they recognized Jesus. They understood then, that Jesus was the Bread of Life. That He was broken for our sake. That He said, “Do this in memory of me” so that every time the bread is broken (at every Mass) we would understand that He is the nourishment for this life that will get us to everlasting life. But to understand, the disciples had to listen to Jesus before His death.

Reflect: What are you struggling to understand today? What might help your understanding: The Bible? Prayer? (Or reflect on the word or phrase that stood out to you.) Talk it over with God … and listen.

Pray (and add your own words): For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, (Colossians 1:9)

Thanks for joining me today! Hope you’ll stop back on Tuesday. Click for free 1-Line Subscribe to receive post reminders and monthly mini-newsletter. Cancel anytime.