Spiritual Batteries

The Holy Spirit and the gift of freedom by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Our desire for God by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Freely choosing to abide in Jesus, the Vine by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Persistence in Prayer by Fr. Justin Gillespie

True friendship is a rare and precious gift. While it is a gift, it is also something that we need. Jesus provides it, and by praying about what true friendship is, we try to rediscover how vital friendship with Jesus is.

Love has always driven people to great things. It can draw us to holiness, to receive and respond to God's own life. Contemplating Mary Magdalene is a powerful help for us in renewing our faith in God's love AND in our ability - through his grace - to love as well.

The personal joy of Easter by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Good Friday: Jesus draws our sin from us in love by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Contemplating Jesus' love during Holy Week is perhaps made easier by seeing its impact upon other people in the Gospels. Today we consider Peter's denial of Jesus as a way of seeing Jesus' love reflected, as it were, in the mirror of Peter's sin and repentance.

Contemplating the tears of Jesus by Fr. Justin Gillespie

The Christian Vocation: "Do not be afraid" by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Following the Gospel of Matthew, we consider James and John's petition to sit on either side of Jesus in his kingdom. Even though they did not understand what they were asking for, they had eagerness and desire. Such desire will help us to understand, even if we don't understand in the moment.

Desiring to pray as Jesus prays by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Lent: Jesus tempted in the desert by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Following Pope Francis' message for lent this year, we consider the essential elements of Lent so that we might react to any coldness in our love, perhaps brought on by discouragement.

At times, difficulties rage around us like a storm. In the midst of it, it seems as if Jesus were asleep: we no longer feel him or see him present. The apostles - just you like all of us - had to learn that even in those moments of "sleep", everything is in his hands. Today we pray about this mystery, asking for a renewed faith in Jesus' commitment to us and that this faith overflow in confidence - even in the midst of the storms of this world.

Jesus forms a family around himself by Fr. Justin Gillespie

Jesus' personality is rich. In our prayerful consideration of the Gospels, we always want to rediscover facets of it so as to love him more and to trust him more. Today we consider how determined he was to love and to save. His unshakeable determination should be for us a source of confidence as well as a way for us to understand what it means for us to be children of the Father.

Jesus' desire for faith, the size of a mustard seed by Fr. Justin Gillespie

We know that God, as God, is invisible. At first, this might seem something that separates us from him. However, if we go deeper in our faith we can discover the reasons for our not experiencing him directly and, surprisingly, how this actually makes God our Father so much closer than we will ever realise in this life. Guided by St. Josemaria, we try to contemplate how this loving and invisible God can be found and loved in what is most visible and material.