With the Advent season soon upon us we are reminded of the light of Christ coming into the world to dispel the darkness. This is not just a poetic image, but a reality. Through dying to our egos and our own agendas and really opening our lives to the will of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, we can transform the world we are living in and bring about the kingdom of God. Each one of us is called to play his or her part in this, however, weak or insignificant we might feel. We do this by surrendering our lives more and more each day to the Lord and letting his love and his life flow through us. This message of personal surrender came through very much for me at various conferences over the summer and more recently with the visit of the relics of St. Therese of Lisieux (mid September-mid October), whose message for the Church is absolute surrender and dependance on God.

This month we have some very inspiring testimonies of people who have done just this. Eduardo Versastegui as part of a boy band, filled stadiums with screaming girls. Discovered by Hollywood, he was challenged by his English teacher about the meaning of his life and how he was using his talents. This led to a radical rethink and lifestyle change, which you can read about in my interview with him. Another inspiring person I met was Sonia Tissera, from Sri Lanka, who together with her husband, Marlon, stepped out in faith, to bring to Britain evangelist and teacher Lalith Pereira, the founder of the Risen Christ community. They were even prepared to sell their house if things didn’t work out. She tells her story and how she grew in trust of God.

This issue Fr Pat Collins CM shares with us some treasures from the past and the insight of 4th century spiritual master, John Cassian about how to pray constantly by using a line from Psalm 70. This helps us to grow in trusting in God for our salvation and temporal needs. A more modern spiritual master is Fr Bob Sharkey OP, who was poustinik at Madonna House in Canada for almost half a century. He died earlier this year, but his wisdom lives on in his writings and the people he touched. We share an article he wrote in the 70’s for Restoration, the Madonna House newspaper, called “Educating the Heart”. This is also about learning to surrender our own projects so we can grow in love and compassion of others.

Pat Kennedy continues her series on the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, received in nascent form with our baptism and reawakened at confirmation. She emphasises our responsibility as lay people to respond to our personal calling and to become more aware of the gifts we have received and what they are for. This month she looks at the Isaiah Gifts (Is 11.1-2). One of the best ways to grow in faith is to read and reflect on the Word of God. In this issue we have the second part of Archbishop Charles Chaput’s article on the power of the Word of God to change the way we think and behave. I tell of seeing how the power of believing the word of God helped liberate a young couple (from a Neo-Catechumenal community) from drug addiction. Films and the media are powerful tools shaping the way we think too. Just as Eduardo Versastegui felt called by God to use the medium for good in Hollywood, so Fr Paul Cannon tells how on a local level, he has used popular feature films in his parish to get people to talk about faith issues.

There will be no intercession column for the next few issues as Fiona Hendy, from the House of the Open Door Community, is away on a six month sabbatical in New Zealand so please pray for her, and Bernadette Hall, who is holding the fort in her absence. Sue Whitehead’s Other Half, with its humour and practical insight is here as usual, however, together with our regular resource page with recommendations for books and tapes to grow in faith. Despite or perhaps because of the problems around us, there seems to be a new and exciting move of the Holy Spirit at the moment. Many more Life in the Spirit seminars seem to be taking place both in the UK and Ireland, and Martin McTiernan tells us about the one he is involved with. Mike Oliver shares how his small prayer group has recently seen a huge increase in numbers and in power, thanks to new members from overseas, who have joined bringing their enthusiasm for the Lord and joy with them. We also have a round up of all the summer conferences in UK.

In this special Year for Priests, we have the testimony of Fr Jon who tells us how charismatic Renewal has helped him in his vocation. Fr Chris Thomas challanges us to not be afraid of “the other” but to grow in love by accepting difference. Gerry Gallacher also brings us up to date with the Assisi Pilgrimage Group who have felt led to start prophetic pilgrimages to Holy Places, to bring unity and reconciliation to our “northern Isles”.

Our Irish readers will also be able to hear in their pages more about the Galway City Mission organised by the Tine network and Marie Beirne the chairwoman of the Irish NSC encourages readers to go back to the basics of the Charismatic Renewal, particularly the power of praise and fostering the Baptism in the Holy Spirit.