Two things are necessary…

The Holy Spirit is a gift of God, He cannot be bought, no one merits Him; it was that even Jesus Christ worked a whole life toward paying the price, and ultimately, He gave his final coin; He shed all His blood on the cross and gave us His life. High on the cross it says that He expired for He let out His last breath. After having resurrected, Jesus appeared to the disciples and also breathed over them saying to them. “Receive the Holy Spirit!” Thus it happened.

If the Holy Spirit is a gift, He can only be given. If on one side we do not merit Him, on the other we can prepare ourselves better to receive Him. Christ speak of two conditions to receive the Holy Spirit: ask and want.

Asking:

The Holy Spirit only comes to the humble. When we bring our prayer to Heaven, we ourselves become conscious of the needs that we have and how much we need God in our live. Humility is to know our place as creatures and subject ourselves to God. There is no better environment to grow in this than prayer.

The Lord wants to give us His grace, but he wants that we ask; He even wants to be pestered and compelled like that with ourprayers: “Ask and you shall receive …” But when we are going to pray, we should not do it like the pagans that believe that they will be heard by the strength of their screams. We should ask with the heart fill of confidence. God want to complete that which was promised, to satisfy His promise, he wants that His children ask. He is our hope, he wants to hear our prayer.

The experience of the Holy Spirit is personal, unique. There are persons that live in much different circumstances and places, Despite this it is certain that He [Holy Spirit] likes to pour out through the community when the members of pray together. “If two of you come together on earth to ask, whatever it may be ,you will get it from my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I with them ” (Mt 18:19-20)

Wanting:

The help of God will be given when we desire it. The stronger the desire, the stronger the prayer will be. The Holy Spirit goes where He wishes. God does not want that we seek Him only through graces that he concedes on us, but he wants that we may be made through He who is: our greatest good, the greatest of all the graces. The Holy Spirit is the companion we all dream of having, he is the best friend, never gives boring counsel. Despute being the guest, he does not allow the lack of anything in the house. He is always near to wipe our tears. Who does not have weakness; he transforms fear into courage, gives us already a wisdom that many only experience in old age. Our character becomes solid and becomes the foundation of our family, for Jesus in put in the center of our lives as the corner stone, that sustains our existence in God.

Márcio Mendes

(Text excerpted from the book: “Quando só Deus é a resposta” [When only God is the Answer”] by Marcio Mendes

translated from Portuguese