God has created the universe. "He holds the whole wide world in His hands." God is big. He has big plans. He wants all to be saved (1 Tm 2:4). He commands us to make disciples of all nations (Mt 28:19). He calls us to live with Him in heaven forever.

Each human being is very small. Each of us is like a microscopic dot on a microscopic planet. Our lives last less than a second in comparison with eternity.

The Holy Spirit, God, comes to us to change our vision. Despite our fleeting littleness, we will no longer have peep-hole, tunnel vision, but catholic, universal, heavenly vision. We will set our hearts "on what pertains to higher realms where Christ is seated at God's right hand" (Col 3:1). We will "be intent on things above rather than on things of earth" (Col 3:2).

The Holy Spirit will open our eyes to see that sin means much more than just breaking the law. Sin is a refusal to believe in Jesus (Jn 16:9). The Holy Spirit shows us that justice is not only Jesus' death on Calvary but also His enthronement in heaven (see Jn 16:10). Finally, the Holy Spirit reveals to us an invisible world of "principalities and powers, the rulers of this world of darkness, the evil spirits in regions above" (Eph 6:12). The Spirit reveals that "the prince of this world has been condemned" (Jn 16:11).

In the Holy Spirit, open your eyes and see the big picture. See the universal Church, the whole world, over six billion people, heaven, and hell. In the Holy Spirit, do not be imprisoned in the present but look into the mystery of timeless eternity.

Nihil Obstat:  Reverend Ralph J. Lawrence, December 9, 2000

Imprimatur:  †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, December 12, 2000