Jesus said to his disciples: If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for the faith you have given me. It is what sustains me. I hope in you, trust in you, and depend completely and totally in you. But sometimes I struggle with suffering. I do believe that you love me and I want to show my love for you more than I do especially during the difficult times. I recommit and I surrender myself to you. I put myself into your hands.
 
Petition: Lord, impress your love on my soul very, very deeply, and make it grow stronger than any trial or difficulty I may have to go through. Let me never doubt your love.
 
1. Intimacy with Jesus. Jesus showed that he is much more than a friend to us, for he did what very few friends are willing to do, he gave his life for us when we were still sinners. He knows we want to be his friends in return; we want to love him but sometimes don't know how. Looking at the cross and wanting to repay his love, it may all seem out of reach. But Jesus tells us a very simple, real, direct, "foolproof" way of loving him. We simply need to use the grace he has given us and keep his commandments. "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." The commandments, and especially Jesus' new commandment to love one another, are not arbitrary restrictions. They are the path of life. They guarantee that he will live in us. "Do this and you will live." This is how our wills will be united with his, and his will represents our true good. It may seem strange to us to speak of obedience and love together, we tend to separate them. Love for Jesus was not some kind of vague feeling of goodwill toward God and us. Because he loved us enough to want to redeem us, he obeyed his Father's will as to how this was to be done. And it required sacrifice. It cost him his life. When we ask Jesus for the grace to love as he has loved us, we are asking him for the grace to obey his commandments.
 
2. Intimacy with the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised his disciples "another Advocate", one who would remain with them forever. The disciples were upset to hear Jesus speak of his death and departure. They couldn't bear to think of Jesus leaving them, so much they loved being with him. They didn't want to be left by him, alone in the world, with no future, returning to a life without him. He promises them "the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you." The Holy Spirit is the spirit of truth; he is the one who will "teach us all things." In him we understand not only Jesus' words but we are more importantly led to his heart, by the Spirit of Love. We learn the logic of love, he gives us the strength to live in love, he enables us to fulfill the commandments. The Holy Spirit works in the interior of our souls. He is not seen by the world, he is only "seen" by the person who lets him act in his soul. 

3. Intimacy with the Father. "On that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them." We tend to think of the Father as being distant, yet Jesus wants us to be close to him. There was no distance between Jesus and his Father, for the two are one, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, and Jesus wants us to be one with him, and enter into the joy of a filial relationship with the Father. He wants "his Father" to be "our Father." If we love Jesus, he says, we will be loved by the Father. If we fulfill the commandments, and Jesus' New Commandment of love, we will be guaranteed the love of the Father. What can we possibly fear? He wants to draw us into his living and eternal relationship of love. In a thousand different ways he is calling us, inviting us, pulling us towards him. Jesus reveals the mystery not only of three persons in one God, but of the three divine persons present and active and finding their delight in dwelling in us. What a mystery!
 
Conversation: Jesus, thank you for opening to me the heart of your Father, thank you for sending me your Holy Spirit to strengthen me and to enable me to be pleasing to the Father, thank you for making me a son of your Father. Help me to be steadfast in my faith and love, fulfilling your commandment. Implant your love deeply in my heart so that I will always remain in your love, and enjoy the presence of the Father and the Holy Spirit. 

Questionnaire:
 
1. How much to I love Christ, judging from the way I keep his commandments? 

2. What do I do in order to cultivate the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in my life?

3. Is the Father still a distant reality for me? Do I pray to him with confidence and trust?