Psalm Reflection: Pentecost Sunday - Cycle A

“Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.” - Psalms 104

Do you have AAA?

Over 50 million people in the United States & Canada have a membership to AAA (The American Automobile Association). I have mine mainly for roadside assistance, mainly because my parents always had it. I rarely use it, but it still auto-renews every single year. When I hear the word “renewal,” that is what my mind first thinks of: something that you recommit to and have access to, but it pretty much stays the same and it is there if you need it.

Unfortunately, that is how most of us also view the Holy Spirit. We were Baptized and Confirmed, so we have this “member-exclusive” access to the Holy Spirit that is always there if we need it, but we rarely use it. When the Psalmist wrote about the Spirit renewing the face of the earth, this is not the type of renewal he meant. The Holy Spirit is not meant to linger in the background of our lives until the rare occasion we might need a little spiritual boost. 

No, the renewal of the Holy Spirit is complete revival. The Holy Spirit should not only be invoked in difficult moments to simply bring things back to the way they were like a towing service. On the contrary, the Holy Spirit wants to completely restore and transform us into the people God created us to be.

Think about restoring an old car that has been neglected: many elements have rusted and the parts do not work the way that they should, if they even work at all. Some parts are so old they cannot be replaced, they need to be updated with something brand new. When we give our lives to the Lord in Baptism, it is as if the rust and decay are taken away, and parts of us that were broken or dormant become better than they were before. That is only accomplished by the saving work of Jesus on the cross, and it manifests in us through the Holy Spirit:

Baptism not only purifies from all sins, but also makes the neophyte "a new creature," an adopted son of God, who has become a "partaker of the divine nature," member of Christ and co-heir with him, and a temple of the Holy Spirit. - CCC 1265

God does not want to come into your life to make it fine or okay. He wants to transform you into an even more glorious creation and pour abundance into your life. 

“I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.” - John 10:10

God wants complete revival in your life, but revival never happens without the Holy Spirit.

Will it be hard or seem difficult at times? Yes, scraping away the rust and clearing out the debris takes work. We need to clear away the junk and the sin in our lives before restoration can happen.

What does that mean for us? 

It means that the Holy Spirit wants to make you a new, but that will require letting go of the things standing in the way.

It means that the Holy Spirit wants to be constantly at work in your life, not a rarely used part of your relationship with God.

It means that there is still more that God has in store for your life. Things will change, nothing will ever stay the same, and that is a good thing. 

God wants so much more for you than fine or good. He wants a life for you that is abundant and overflowing with His love, mercy and grace. 

Do not let the Holy Spirit be uneventfully “auto-renewed” in your life this Pentecost. Let the Holy Spirit into every part of your life, ask the Holy Spirit for guidance and gifts, and see how your life transforms. 

Come, Holy Spirit, bring revival.

Is the Holy Spirit a background "membership" in your life — something auto-renewed but rarely engaged — or is He an active, daily presence? 

What "rust" — habitual sin, old wounds, or spiritual complacency — has built up in your life that the Holy Spirit is waiting to scrape away, and what is one specific area where you have been resisting His work?

Where in your life have you settled for "fine" or "okay" when God is offering something far greater? What would it look like to stop managing your spiritual life and start surrendering it?

Where do you need ongoing renewal right now — in your marriage, your vocation, your faith, your relationships — and have you actually asked the Holy Spirit for it?

This Pentecost, what is one concrete step you can take this week to let the Holy Spirit into a part of your life you have kept closed to Him?

I am praying for you, please pray for me, and I will see you in the Eucharist.

Matt

This reflection is based on the Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday, May 24th, 2026, Pentecost Sunday: Psalms 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34.