how to better oneself
"Moses decided, 'I must go over to look at this remarkable sight.' " —Exodus 3:3
To become better, live better, pray better, and work better, we must know God better. To become better husbands, wives, parents, religious, or people, we must know God better. For example, Moses, to do better than be a shepherd, had to know God better in the burning bush (Ex 3:2ff). Isaiah (Is 6:1ff), Jeremiah (Jer 1:5ff), and Ezekiel (Ez 1:4ff) all had to know God better before they could fulfill their prophetic ministry. Paul had to know God better before he could become the great missionary to the nations (see Gal 1:17ff).
We know God better through the Holy Spirit, Who "scrutinizes all matters, even the deep things of God" (1 Cor 2:10), guides us to all truth (Jn 16:13), and teaches us everything (Jn 14:26). After the apostles received the Holy Spirit at the first Christian Pentecost, they began to know God much better. Then they lived in a new dimension. They became transformed people who knew God is what life is all about. Either we "perish for want of knowledge" of God (Hos 4:6), or we "come to rate all as loss in the light of the surpassing knowledge of [our] Lord Jesus Christ" (Phil 3:8). Because of the Holy Spirit, "the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord, as water covers the sea" (Is 11:9). Plunge into the sea of the knowledge of God and emerge with a new life.
Prayer: Father, may I not settle for mediocrity but receive a new Pentecost, new knowledge, and new life.
Promise: "Father, Lord of heaven and earth, to You I offer praise; for what You have hidden from the learned and the clever You have revealed to the merest children." —Mt 11:25
Praise: Before delving into Bible study, Thomas prayed and the Lord opened up the meaning of the Scriptures for him (see Lk 24:32).
Rescript: †Most Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Auxiliary Bishop, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, October 24, 2018
The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.