What is the purpose of consecrating ourselves? In this day and age is there any need for us to consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit?
Consecration means making holy. Thus, when we make an act of consecration to the Holy Spirit we are saying to Him that we are seriously committing ourselves to respond faithfully to His sanctifying grace that is at work in our personal and communitarian lives. Since the Holy Spirit is, as Pope Francis defines Him, an inexhaustible well of the life of God in us, we do extremely well if we daily consecrate our lives to Him.
There are ten objectives that explain our consecration to the Holy Spirit. First, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit so as to live and grow in God’s grace daily. Second, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to know the value and the marvels of grace. Third, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to spread the knowledge and devotion everywhere we go to this life-giving Spirit. Fourth, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to realize the presence of the Holy Spirit in ourselves since we are His living Temples. Fifth, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to repeat frequently acts of faith and love to the Holy Spirit.
Sixth, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to supplicate the Spirit for the conversion of sinners. Seventh, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to pray to Him to shower all His graces and gifts upon the universal church. Eighth, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to ask Him for all His Gifts as a continual personal Pentecost. Ninth, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to open our soul to the faithfulness and to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit. Tenth, we consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit to be tireless workers for our sanctification and that of others.
Let us not forget that the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Wisdom. It He who helps us seek God, make Him the centre of our lives so that love and harmony may reign in our souls. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Understanding. He enlightens our minds that we may know and love the truths of faith and interiorise them in ourselves. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Counsel. He enlightens and guides us in all our ways that we may know and do His holy Will. He makes us both prudent and courageous. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Fortitude. He upholds our soul in every time of trouble or adversity. He makes us loyal and confident. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit ofKnowledge. He helps us know good from evil. It is He who teaches us to do what is right in God’s sight. The Holy Spirit gives us a clear vision and firmness in decision.
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Piety. He possesses our heart and inclines it to a true faith in Him. In other words, to a holy love of Him, our God, so that, with our whole soul, we may seek Him, who is our Father, our best and truest joy. The Holy Spirit is the Blessed Spirit of Holy Fear. He penetrates our inmost heart that we may be mindful of His presence. He makes us fly from sin and gives us intense reverence for God and for our fellow brothers and sisters who are made in God’s image.
If you and me want that the Holy Spirit renews our hearts, our lives, and makes us live differently, if we want to be full-time rather than part-time Christians or people of good will, let us daily begin our day with the following consecration to the Holy Spirit:
Come O Holy Spirit, receive the consecration that I make of my entire being. From this moment on, come into every area of my life and into each of my actions. You are my Light, my Guide, my Strength, and the sole desire of my heart. I abandon myself without reserve to Your Divine action, and I desire to be ever docile to Yourinspirations. O Holy Spirit, transform me, with and through Mary, into another Christ Jesus, for the glory of the Father and the salvation of the world. Amen.