I was introduced to the story of St. Seraphim of Sarov by Jim Murphy at a charismatic day of reflection, and his story has blessed me over and over again as I meditate on the mystery of the Transfiguration.
St. Seraphim is a Russian Saint often compared to the Western St. Francis of Assisi. His story is well chronicled in the book FLAME IN THE SNOW, and includes a story about his own transfiguration, along with his nephew Nicholas.
As I remember it, Seraphim was a holy hermit, having lived a saintly life and often consulted for spiritual wisdom. His nephew came to him asking questions about the Holy Spirit, and Seraphim explained to him painstakingly about the Third Person of the Trinity. Nicholas still didn’t understand, so Seraphim put his hands on the young man’s shoulders and told him to look into his eyes. It was winter, and cold; snow lay on the ground around them. And as Nicholas gazed at Seraphim, the Saint was literally transfigured before his eyes. They carried on a conversation in this state, Seraphim noting and explaining the fragrance, the warmth, the incredible Joy that was being experienced by the two of them. Nicholas recorded all this carefully – you can find the whole story on-line, or in the book.
When the experience ended, Seraphim proclaimed that the Lord had given them this incredible grace not just for themselves, but to share with the world. It’s a beautiful and amazing recounting of an actual experience of transfiguration! And it fills the reader with a deeper love for and appreciation of the Holy Spirit – what an incredible Gift of God!
St. Seraphim tells us that the whole purpose of the Christian life is to acquire the Holy Spirit, that we may live in the power of the Spirit and be the agent of grace and blessing that the Lord calls us to be. Another favorite quote of his that I found is “acquire interior peace and many will find salvation near you.” When we begin to live in Christ, Who is our Peace, we do begin to acquire that interior peace which the world is so longing for. It’s the peace that remains in the midst of any circumstance, as we grow in our trust in God’s Goodness and Provision. St. Seraphim, pray for us…
Lord God, thank You for the lives of the Saints that help us to understand Your mysteries and call us to holiness. May we get to know them as our allies and friends, and call on them often for the help we need to be the people you call us to be ~
(re-visited from Rosary Reflection, 4th Luminous Mystery)
On a beautiful spring day, with blue skies, sunshine and no breezes, our little group of ladies had gathered to pray and plan for an up-coming retreat at our parish. We were meeting outside on a patio at one of the ladies’ houses, and enjoying the beauty and peace of the natural surroundings.
Our planning included concerns about the resistance our church leadership had with our retreat, and we were seeking a good way to cooperate with authority, and have the retreat take place. We did our planning, and were wrapping it up with prayer, praying especially for the pastor, that he might be blessed and find peace in his heart as he led our parish.
Gratefully, our prayers weren’t to “change him,” or to pray that he would do what we wanted him to do – they were prayers being prayed in one accord for his well being and to receive God’s blessings. The unity we felt was tangible, as we prayed spontaneously for the retreat, and for our pastor.
What I will never forget is what happened as we were closing our prayers! Although the air had been very still, suddenly the sheets on the clothesline began to flap loudly, and a strong wind came up and swirled the leaves that were scattered around the patio. It was really loud, and seemed to come out of nowhere! This lasted for several minutes, and then all was again peaceful and calm, with not a cloud to be seen in the sky.
The husband of the house where we were had been working a little distance away in the family garden; he stopped working and came up to us, asking in surprise, “what was That?!” We were all asking the same question 🙂
What came to us was a sense of God’s pleasure in our Unity of heart and in our sincere prayers for our pastor. “How good and pleasant it is when brothers (and sisters) live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured n the head, running down the beard, running down Aaron’s beard, down upon the collar of his robes.” (Ps 133:1) The Lord takes delight in HIs children when they come together in Unity, with the intentions of their hearts in line with the desires of God’s own heart – to extend blessings and peace, even to those with whom we have differences.
We all were blessed to feel that Wind, and to recognize in it God’s Holy Spirit, affirming our prayer with a loud exclamation point! Come Holy Spirit of Unity, bind our hearts together and renew the face of the earth! How we need You, especially in our culture today with increasing divisions. Come Holy Spirit, Come!
Our parish participated in the Renew program, and it was a real blessing to many of us. It reawakened our faith, with a new and deeper desire to live the Gospel life. One part of the program was a large group gathering with speakers from the diocese doing a presentation.
There weren’t very many of us there that night, and the couple presenting said they felt led to change their original presentation. The core of the message they felt led to give was how to fulfill the desire within you to experience God’s power in your life.
I knew that something was missing in my spiritual life. All of my life I had been trying to live the Christian life, but it was obvious to me that something was lacking – my walk was so far from the Gospel life I desired. I listened intently to the words I hoped would bring me the answer I sought.
The couple said, if you want to experience the power of God in your life, do three things:
pray
get to know Jesus personally
invite the Holy Spirit into your life
I could remember a simple formula like that, so first, I made a commitment to spend 15 minutes a day in prayer. Secondly, I had been teaching 3rd grade CCD, and the need came for a 7th grade teacher. I agreed, and found that the 7th grade curriculum centered on the life of Jesus. Third, a prayer to the Holy Spirit literally fell out of two different books at me! So I began to pray that prayer daily also.
In our Renew group, I had begun to recognize more clearly the difference between my walk and my talk, especially in the matter of prayer. I talked about it a lot, taught it to the kids, but wasn’t consistent in my own prayer life. One of the ladies in the Renew group was a member of a charismatic prayer group that had formed in our parish to pray for Renew – so I joined them. I also joined a Moms in Touch prayer group that met weekly to pray for our kids and the schools. The three points were in place now, and I found a gradual sense of growth in my faith life. It made a huge jump when our prayer group went through a Life in the Spirit video seminar, and I was prayed for to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit. The Lord had been preparing my heart, and I was finally ready to give Him a solid Yes.
I experienced what have been almost universally agreed as fruits of receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit. My knowledge of God’s deep love for me moved from just in my mind into my heart; the desire to pray grew stronger; I had a desire to read the Scriptures, and they came alive for me in a new way; the Mass became more meaningful; and perhaps most noticeable was a gift of courage to do things that I had always been fearful of before. To speak before a group, even a small group of people I knew, would paralyze me, whereas now I found myself taking on leadership roles and speaking in front of people with an inner strength that wasn’t my own.
I realized that although I had been trying so very hard to live the Christian life, I had been doing it in my own power, which was painfully inadequate. The Lord was showing me how to begin to live it in the power of the Holy Spirit. There’s still so very much more to grow into, but I’m incredibly grateful for the gift of the Holy Spirit to lead me on the way!
Lord God, thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit! Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful and kindle in us the fire of Your love. Send forth Your Spirit, and we shall be created, and You shall renew the faith of the earth…
I was introduced to the story of St. Seraphim of Sarov by Jim Murphy at a charismatic day of reflection, and his story has blessed me over and over again as I meditate on the mystery of the Transfiguration.
St. Seraphim is a Russian Saint often compared to the Western St. Francis of Assisi. His story is well chronicled in the book FLAME IN THE SNOW, and includes a story about his own transfiguration, along with his nephew Nicholas.
As I remember it, Seraphim was a holy hermit, having lived a saintly life and often consulted for spiritual wisdom. His nephew came to him asking questions about the Holy Spirit, and Seraphim explained to him painstakingly about the Third Person of the Trinity. Nicholas still didn’t understand, so Seraphim put his hands on the young man’s shoulders and told him to look into his eyes. It was winter, and cold; snow lay on the ground around them. And as Nicholas gazed at Seraphim, the Saint was literally transfigured before his eyes. They carried on a conversation in this state, Seraphim noting and explaining the fragrance, the warmth, the incredible Joy that was being experienced by the two of them. Nicholas recorded all this carefully – you can find the whole story on-line, or in the book.
When the experience ended, Seraphim proclaimed that the Lord had given them this incredible grace not just for themselves, but to share with the world. It’s a beautiful and amazing recounting of an actual experience of transfiguration! And it fills the reader with a deeper love for and appreciation of the Holy Spirit – what an incredible Gift of God!
St. Seraphim tells us that the whole purpose of the Christian life is to acquire the Holy Spirit, that we may live in the power of the Spirit and be the agent of grace and blessing that the Lord calls us to be. Another favorite quote of his that I found is “acquire interior peace and many will find salvation near you.” When we begin to live in Christ, Who is our Peace, we do begin to acquire that interior peace which the world is so longing for. It’s the peace that remains in the midst of any circumstance, as we grow in our trust in God’s Goodness and Provision. St. Seraphim, pray for us…
Lord God, thank You for the lives of the Saints that help us to understand Your mysteries and call us to holiness. May we get to know them as our allies and friends, and call on them often for the help we need to be the people you call us to be ~
Spiritual Sun Pennies 