St. Augustine Prayer to Holy Spirit

Breathe into me, Holy Spirit,
that my thoughts may all be holy.

Move in me, Holy Spirit,
that my work, too, may be holy.

Attract my heart, Holy Spirit,
that I may love only what is holy.

Strengthen me, Holy Spirit,
that I may defend all that is holy.

Protect me, Holy Spirit,
that I may always be holy.

In the Tradition of the Holy Mother Church, Monday’s prayers should be dedicated to the Holy Spirit. An invocation that the Holy Spirit will dwell in our souls. Of course the Holy Spirit abides in each of us already, but because of original sin and the fruits of human weakness, He finds resistance in each of us, and will not sanctify us without our consent. He (the Holy Spirit) will do no violence to our liberty; our free-will. He waits for us, to lovingly cooperate in His work, we must yield our soul to His sanctifying actions, freely and with fervency.

In order to become the saints that God intended, we must consent to the work of the Holy Spirit, and since we do not understand His actions, we must learn how the Divine Paraclete works in each of us through our prayer life. Though the Holy Spirit is active in our souls from the beginnings of our spiritual life…from our baptisms…It remains hidden, until we form our souls to accept these graces, and only then, is the Holy Spirit able to elevate us to a supernatural state. However, it is only because of God’s grace that we can become sanctified, for we can do nothing on our own accord in attaining sanctity with God. We do not create our own grace.Grace comes from God; it is a gift from All Three Persons of the Blessed Trinity; a gift created by the Father, merited by the Son in His Incarnation, Passion and death, and diffused in our souls by the Holy Spirit. By our baptisms we become justified in “the name of The Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit..” Through our baptisms we have broken our solidarity with Adam and are brought into solidarity with Christ Jesus. Baptism is an act of God, and it requires from us a response of faith.

St. Paul states: “For in one Spirit we were all baptized.” Therefore, it is only with the help of the Holy Spirit that our souls are prepared and made ready for the supernatural life by pouring forth grace in us. So on each Monday, let us remember the Holy Spirit in our  prayers. Let us try to remember that we must open our hearts and souls to the will of the One Who created us and saved us from death.

This mediation is adapted from the words of Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalan and can be found in the book “Divine Intimacy.”