Acts 2:1-11 / 1 Cor 12:3-7, 12-13 / John 20:19-23
There is a vast amount of information available that can enrich our knowledge of the world and the reality around us.
But even with all that information, there are still a lot of things that we don't know or don't understand.
How the world revolves and how the computer works are just a couple of the many things that we take for granted.
To go into the details would be too much and also unnecessary if we are to live our lives in the ordinary sense of the word.
If such is the case with the world and the reality that we live in, then when it comes to religion and the mysteries of the faith, it can also be said that there is only so much we know and a lot more that we do not know about or understand.
We believe that God is the Holy Trinity, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
With God the Father, we may have a concept or an image in our minds. With Jesus Christ, the concepts and images may be clearer as He is the God-became-man. Jesus had a human form, so we may know and understand Him a bit more.
But when it comes to the Holy Spirit, then what comes to our minds is the dove, or from the 1st reading, a powerful wind and tongues of fire.
We only know that much about the Holy Spirit, that He is the Lord and Giver of life, which we profess in the Creed.
And from the 2nd reading, we are told that no one can say that “Jesus is Lord” unless that person is under the influence of the Holy Spirit.
And in the gospel, Jesus breathed on His disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
That may help us to recall that in the story of the creation of man in the Book of Genesis, God blew into the nostrils of man and he became a living being.
The Holy Spirit is Lord and Giver of life, and He is the breath of life that helps us to live our lives in union with Jesus Christ and to be more like Him.
That breath of life is also something we take for granted, until we have difficulty in breathing. Without breath, it won't take long before there is no more life.
So, every breath we take is a gift of life from God. Every breath we take is a sign of the Holy Spirit entering into our lives and uniting us to God the Father and the Son.
And with every breath of the Holy Spirit, we proclaim that “Jesus is Lord”, and we are sent forth to proclaim the marvels of God, as the disciples did in the 1st reading.
The 2nd reading tells us that all gifts come from the Holy Spirit, who is working in all sorts of different ways in different people.
The particular way in which the Holy Spirit is given to each person is for a good purpose, which is essentially for the glory of God and service to others.
Knowing all that, what is important is how to pray to the Holy Spirit. The Church has a traditional prayer to the Holy Spirit: Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of Your love.
That is a short and simple prayer to the Holy Spirit. It may even be shortened to an invocation like “Come Holy Spirit”.
So, with every breath we take, let us call upon the Holy Spirit to come into our lives and into the world and the reality we live in.
We ask the Holy Spirit to come into the situations where there is hatred so that we be channels of God's love.
We ask the Holy Spirit to come into the situations where there is hurt and pain, so that we be channels of reconciliation and peace.
We ask the Holy Spirit to come to where there is sickness, anxiety and worry so that we will be channels of healing and hope.
We ask the Holy Spirit to come and send us forth into the world, so that we will be the signs of God's love in a troubled world.
May our first breath of the day be this invocation “Come Holy Spirit”, and may our every breath be also “Come Holy Spirit”, for the Holy Spirit is our Advocate and He will guide us and protect us from harm and danger.