Beloved in Christ,
"God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us."
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a king come to live with you? What would you do if you knew that your house was going to be a royal palace?
I once asked a group of elementary school students what they would do if they knew that a king was coming to their house. The first child who raised her hand answered that she would make sure everything was spotlessly clean. The second answered that he would cook the best meal that he could. The third answered that he would make sure the door was unlocked.
When we pray to the Holy Spirit, we use the words, "Heavenly King, Comforter, ... come and dwell in us." We ask the Holy Spirit, as the King of all creation, to live inside of us, to make our hearts into his palace. A King dwells in each one of us who is much more powerful than any king who has ever ruled an earthly kingdom.
Our response to the presence of the Holy Spirit in each of our hearts can only be, as today's Gospel reading says, to "seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness." We seek first his Kingdom when we make it our number one priority to nurture the Holy Spirit's presence in our heart. Our response to the presence of this King in our lives can only be to prepare his throne (cf. Psalm 103:19) in our hearts, to give him a dwelling-place fit for a King.
There are three practical steps we can take to do this. First, we can 'make sure everything is spotlessly clean.' We can make our heart a fitting home for the Holy Spirit by doing our best to sweep away the dirt that may have accumulated there, by scrubbing the floorboards free from their stains. A pure heart is the best gift that we can offer to our creator, knowing that he will help us with the cleaning that is too difficult for us to do on our own.
Second, we can 'cook the best meal' that we are able by offering to God our virtuous lives. We prepare this meal when we do good deeds for others. When we feed the hungry, when we clothe the naked, when we visit the sick and the prisoner, these acts of caring are like the meat and vegetables that are seasoned by our life of prayer. Let us make sure that our way of life gives us something to offer the King who comes to live with us, so that we are not empty-handed at his coming.
Third, we can 'unlock the door' of our heart for him. Many of us go through life with hearts that are locked to the Holy Spirit. The King wants to live with us, but through our own stubbornness we refuse to let him in. God is calling us today to let go of the anxieties that keep us from allowing God to transform our lives. Let us not leave the King out in the cold, but let us welcome him into our own selves with warm hearts. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me," (Revelation 3:20).
In Christ,
Fr. Jeremy