THE WILD GOOSE II

Discovering a Deeper Relationship 

with the Holy Spirit
(Parts 8 thru 14)

 

Fr. Dave Pivonka, TOR

 

The Wild Goose was a term that the ancient Celts had for the Holy Spirit, and apart from the Wild Goose there is no life.

 

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 8
THE SPIRIT AND THE SACRAMENTS

 

“Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit and the door which gives access to the other sacraments.” _ Catechism of the Catholic Church 1213
"The Sacraments are always an encounter with the Holy Spirit and each and every time we come to the Sacraments, the Holy Spirit is present. Often times when we think of the Holy Spirit and His work in the Sacraments we only think of Confirmation. This is great, but the Holy Spirit is present in all of them. In this segment we will look at how the Holy Spirit is present in the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Marriage and how this can impact your life."

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 9
THE FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT

 

"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control... If we live in the Spirit, let us also follow the Spirit." (Galatians 5:22-25)
"By the way we live and how we treat people, our lives produce some type of fruit. The sort of fruit our lives produce has eternal consequences for us personally as well as a profound impact on those people we love. In fact, our fruit impacts all of our relationships, from the most casual to the most intimate. When we live animated by the Holy Spirit, our lives produce fruit that not only makes our own life more peaceful, patient, and loving but also influences positively those whom we encounter each and every day."

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 10
THE SPIRIT AND THE DESERT

 

“[Jesus] was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, to be tempted by the Devil.” (Luke 4:1)
"On the day Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit anointed Him. Immediately after this event the Holy Spirit led Jesus to the desert. The desert was a place of isolation, death and defeat but Jesus was led to the desert so that it may be forever changed. So that it may be a place of grace. The Spirit led Jesus to the desert and also protected and cared for Him while He was there. The desert is a part of every Christian’s life but it does not have to be a place of despair or isolation. The Holy Spirit is present to life’s deserts and when we experience His presence, it changes our spiritual life. The desert is no longer a place to be feared, but can be a profound encounter with Jesus."

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 11
THE SPIRIT CONVICTS

 

“And when He comes He will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and condemnation: sin, because they do not believe in Me.” (John 16:8)
"Pope Francis has stated that we must stop 'masquerading before God' in relation to our sin. We must take seriously the reality and nature of sin and the impact that sin has in our lives. It is not an exaggeration to say that our attitude towards sin has eternal consequence. Sin wounds and at times destroys our relationship with Christ. The Spirit of God convicts us of our sin, not to condemn us but to convert us. In this segment we will see how the Spirit draws us closer to Christ by revealing to us our sin."

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 12
THE SPIRIT'S FREEDOM

 

“When the Son sets you free you are free indeed.” (John 8:36)
"The Holy Spirit brings freedom from fear, anger, and the past. So often Christians find themselves bound by so many things and are not aware that the Holy Spirit wants to bring the freedom of God to them. Many are slaves to anger, envy, jealousy, comparisons, and addictions. You do not have to live life like that. In this segment we will discuss how the Holy Spirit can bring you greater freedom."

 

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 13
THE SPIRIT'S WITNESS

 

“We are witnesses of these things, as is the Holy Spirit that God has given to those who obey Him.” (Acts 5:32)
"The Holy Spirit gives witness to Jesus. We are not able to fully understand who Jesus is on our own strength, intellect, and power. The Holy Spirit aids us in moving from our limited intellectual perception of who Christ is and what He has done for us, to a life-changing understanding of Christ. It is also the Holy Spirit who inspires us to give witness to Christ by our words and actions. This segment will look at how we are best able to cooperate with the Holy Spirit so that we may see Jesus as He is and give witness to Him."

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 14
THE SPIRIT REMEMBERS

 

“For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God. He does not ration His gift of the Spirit.” (John 3:34)
"It’s important for us to remember the great things that God has done for us. Often we become consumed with our daily struggles and forget all that the Lord has done. We may also only focus on God not doing what we want of Him. One of the blessings of the Holy Spirit is that the Spirit reminds us what Jesus said and what He has done for us. There is no limit to what God has done or what He desires to do in our lives."

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THE WILD GOOSE I

Discovering a Deeper Relationship 

with the Holy Spirit

(Parts 1 thru 7)

Fr. Dave Pivonka, TOR

The Wild Goose was a term that the ancient Celts had for the Holy Spirit, and apart from the Wild Goose there is no life.

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 1

GOD'S LOVE POURED OUT

 

 

"God is Love." (1 John 4:8)
"This simple statement is the beginning and the ending of our pilgrimage of Faith. God is Love and the Lord’s Love is perfect, passionate and unconditional. There is nothing that we can do that would cause God to love us more and nothing we can do that would cause Him to love us less. We are able to come to experience the beauty and freedom of God’s Love by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God reveals the Love of the Father that changes us. When we experience God’s Love we come to understand in a powerful way that we are in fact 'lovable.' God’s Love reveals our beauty and goodness before Him."

 

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 2

THE BREATH OF GOD

"The breath of the Almighty gives me life." (Job 33:4)
"The only way we are able to live a life of faith, a life full of love, peace, joy and power is by the Holy Spirit. We see this most clearly in the lives of the Apostles. They had every advantage in being with Jesus and hearing Him preach and seeing the many miracles that He had done. And yet, even with that advantage they were frightened men living their faith life in a locked room before they received the Holy Spirit. What took place in the upper room changed the lives of these men and women and would change the course of human history. This experience of the Holy Spirit is an encounter available to everyone; it is not reserved for a select few. Pentecost and the transforming power of the Holy Spirit is the theme of this segment."

 

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 3

BAPTISM IN THE HOLY SPIRIT AND FIRE

 

 

"He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." (Matthew 3:11)

"Jesus came to baptize us in the Holy Spirit, and the power and grace that comes from the baptism in the Holy Spirit changes lives. For the millions of Catholics worldwide who have had this experience it is a transforming grace that brings freedom, peace, and the very presence of God. Unfortunately for many Catholics the term 'baptism in the Holy Spirit' is not a term with which they are familiar. In this segment we will discuss what the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is all about."

 

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 4

THE SPIRIT AND OUR LADY

 

 

"The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you." (Luke 1:35)

"Our Lady, from the moment of her conception, was overshadowed by the Holy Spirt. As the Spouse of the Holy Spirit she models for us what our lives can look like when we say 'yes' to God's will and fully give ourselves over to the actions of the Spirit of God. Mary's fiat led her to the cross, the empty tomb, and ultimately the upper room where she was once again overshadowed by the Holy Spirit. If we have the courage, as Mary did, to say yes to God’s Spirit, to surrender our will to His, we too will experience the power of the Most High overshadowing us."

 

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 5

GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

 

 

“The Spirit Himself is ‘God's gift’ par excellence (John 4:10) a gift from God, and in turn communicates different spiritual gifts to those who welcome Him." _ Pope Francis

"The greatest gift of the Holy Spirit is the Holy Spirit. The living God gives the gift of Himself to those who are baptized. From the Spirit flows other gifts, some of which are for our personal sanctification while others are for the building up and support of the body of Christ. Many of the gifts are very familiar to us (wisdom, counsel, love) while others are somewhat foreign (healing, prophecy, tongues). Whatever our experience, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are for all Christians, and no one should think that the gifts are not for them."

 

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 6

THE SPIRIT AND THE EUCHARIST

 

 

At the center of the Church is the Eucharist, where Christ is present and active in humanity and in the whole world by means of the Holy Spirit.” _ Pope St. John Paul II

"The Eucharistic Liturgy is saturated with the presence of the Holy Spirit. From the moment you decide to go to Mass, the Holy Spirit is active and alive. Sadly, many people don’t experience the Holy Spirit, and attending Mass becomes a chore for them rather than a life giving encounter with Jesus. In this segment we will look at a few of the many ways that the Holy Spirit is present in the Mass that will enable you to encounter God when you attend the Liturgy."

 

THE WILD GOOSE - PART 7

THE SPIRIT OF ADOPTION

 

 

"For those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, 'Abba, Father!'" (Romans 8:14-16)

"The Holy Spirit reveals many things to us. One of the most beautiful is the Spirit revealing God as our loving Father, our 'Abba - Daddy.' Jesus related to His Father as Abba and never before had God been spoken of in such personal and intimate terms. God as Abba is a uniquely beautiful Christian revelation. The Spirit of Jesus desires to free us from fear and a master-slave relationship to a Father-Daughter or Father-Son relationship."

 

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