The dove Noah sent out from the ark gave Noah three successive messages:
1) The world was still flooded (Gn 8:9).
2) The world was still flooded, but the "plucked-off olive leaf" in the dove's mouth was a sign of hope (Gn 8:11).
3) The flood was over (Gn 8:12), and the dove was free to fly away.
Today, the Holy Spirit, descending "like a dove" (Mt 3:16), continues to give us these three messages.
1) The Holy Spirit has revealed that this world is flooded with sin and is therefore a "culture of death."
2) The Spirit also proclaims "a future full of hope" (Jer 29:11).
3) The Spirit sets us free in a new Pentecost (see Lk 4:18).
If we listen to the Dove, the Holy Spirit, we too will fly away when Jesus returns. We "will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Thenceforth we shall be with the Lord unceasingly. Console one another with this message" (1 Thes 4:17-18).
| PRAYER: | Father, give me wings in the Spirit. |
| PROMISE: | "His sight was restored and he could see everything clearly." –Mk 8:25t. |
| PRAISE: | Edward, a policeman, gathers with his wife and children each day as he leaves for work. They pray the St. Michael prayer for his protection, and bless each other with holy water. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College