Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me. 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

 

The spirit of the living God had fallen on Solomon,
and so he cried out:

I prayed and prudence was given me.
I pleaded, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.

He was wise enough to know that wisdom was more valuable than riches.

I preferred her to scepter and throne,
and deemed riches nothing in comparison to her.

O that we might have a share in that wisdom,
that the spirit of the living God might fall on us.

 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

 

The Psalmist, too, prays for wisdom,
knowing that when God fills us with God’s love
we [can] sing for joy,
knowing that when God blesses us
we gain wisdom of heart.

 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

 

The letter to the Hebrews also reminds us
that the word of God is living and effective,

And it enables us to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.

The word of God imparts wisdom.

 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

 

The young man in today’s gospel
was wise enough to know who Jesus was
and that Jesus could show him the way to inherit eternal life.

He knew the commandments found in the Hebrew scripture:
you shall not kill;
you shall not commit adultery;
you shall not steal;
you shall not bear false witness;
you shall not defraud;
honor your father and your mother.

But he was not wise enough to know what was even much more important.

He had the chance to follow Jesus,
but was not wise enough to accept the invitation
because he had many possessions.
He allowed what he owned to own him
rather than the other way around.

 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

 

Sometimes, we’re not wise enough to accept the invitation.

Sometimes, we go away sad
because we are not wise enough to know
not only what’s truly important,
but who’s really important.

We are invited today to pray for that wisdom
that helps us to be more and more like those
who chose to give up everything to follow the Lord.

Jesus promises us today
that if we put things in the proper order,
if we trust in him completely
we’ll always have more than enough of everything.

We, like the rich young man in today’s gospel
however, are often tempted to place our trust in our own possessions,
in our own hard work,
in our own ability to make decisions.

But today, we are invited to put Jesus first
and to truly believe that with Christ
we will be given the wisdom we need
to make choices that will lead us to the kingdom of God.

 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

 

The other week, as Pope Francis was meeting with reporters,
he said that Americans must choose wisely
who their next president will be.

He spoke about both candidates,
without using names,
noting how both of them have taken some positions that are not pro-life.
One proclaims that unborn life is not that valuable,
and the other that immigrant life is not that valuable.
He challenged us to pray for wisdom
as we choose between two imperfect candidates.

 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

 

And so today, we pray for wisdom
in whatever decisions we face.

We pray that we might have the courage to follow Jesus
wherever he leads us.

 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.

Melt me, mold me, fill me, use me. 

Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.