This is part of the Consecration to St. Joseph Set

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DAY 5: Did you know that, with the exception of Our Lady, the Holy Spirit was more active in the life of St. Joseph than in any other saint? Saint Bartolo Longo wrote one of the most beautiful prayers to St. Joseph, Vicar of the Holy Spirit.

DAY 5: God, the Holy Spirit, Have Mercy on Us

How great his [St. Joseph’s] union with God, how sublime his gift of prayer, how wonderful the direction of the Holy Spirit!1 — Blessed William Joseph Chaminade

The Holy Spirit wants you to know and love St. Joseph. With the exception of Our Lady’s life, the Holy Spirit was more active in the life of St. Joseph than in any other saint. The earthly father of Jesus never did anything without seeking the direction of the Holy Spirit. Saint Joseph’s docility to the Holy Spirit made it possible for him to communicate with God even while he slept!

Saint Joseph wants you to be docile to the direction of the holy spirit so that you can be led in the ways of holiness. What is holiness, anyway? Is it some unattainable spiritual summit you can never hope to reach? No, it is not. Holiness is living in intimate, loving communion with God. More specifically, holiness is observing the two great commandments of love of God and neighbor, avoiding sin, leading a life of virtue, and abiding in sanctifying grace. None of this is possible without the Holy Spirit in your life.
Wherever St. Joseph is present, the Holy Spirit is present. And St. Joseph would tell you that if you want to be filled with the Holy Spirit there is one absolutely necessary thing: prayer. Without prayer, you will never be able to have intimacy with God. Without prayer, you will not be able to follow the direction of the Holy Spirit.

To be holy, you need to imitate St. Joseph. You need to maintain a heart aflame with love of God and neighbor through committing to a devout interior life. Don’t panic after reading this. You don’t have to become a monk or a nun. Holiness is for everyone. Yet, no matter what your vocation in life, holiness is only attained by those who pray and have an active interior life, ignited and sustained by the Sacraments, fueled by prayer and a life of charity.

Saint Joseph is a model of the interior life for all his children. Saint Joseph was not a priest, yet he is holier than all priests, including the patron saint of parish priests, St. John Vianney. After Jesus and Mary, St. Joseph is the holiest, most prayerful, and most virtuous person who has ever lived. He avoided anything and everything that displeased the Holy Spirit. How did he do it? Prayer. Through prayer, St. Joseph perfectly exercised the virtues of faith, hope, and charity, as well as the moral virtues of prudence, temperance, justice, and fortitude.

Consider that the entire life of Saint Joseph was interior and hidden in God; so little known to the world that but a few holy writers mention him in a few places; and of his death give no information. His was a life of prayer, quiet work, and constant sacrifice, and at the same time, a life shining with the splendor of all virtues. — St. Joseph Sebastian Pelczar

There has never been another quite like St. Joseph, and there never will be. Yet you can become “another Joseph” in the world. You can become an “apparition” of Joseph for others. If you imitate St. Joseph’s dedication to prayer and the interior life, you can resemble your spiritual father.

Consecration to St. Joseph will increase the Holy Spirit in your life. Through consecration to St. Joseph, the Holy Spirit will recognize St. Joseph in you and pour extraordinary graces into your heart, mind, and soul. You can be a saint! Ask the Holy Spirit to make you into “another Joseph.” Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you with graces similar to those he gave to the paternal heart of St. Joseph.

Those souls most sensitive to the impulses of divine love have rightly seen in Joseph a brilliant example of the interior life. — St. John Paul II

Gifts of the Holy Spirit

There is a general rule concerning all special graces granted to any human being. Whenever the divine favor chooses someone to receive a special grace, or to accept a lofty vocation, God adorns the person chosen with all the gifts of the Spirit needed to fulfill the task at hand. This general rule is especially verified in the case of St. Joseph. — St. Bernardine of Siena

Saint Joseph had the loftiest of vocations, the greatest of missions. He was called to be the spouse of the Virgin Mary and the father of Jesus Christ. His mission required all seven gifts of the Holy Spirit (knowledge, understanding, counsel, fortitude, piety, fear of the Lord, and wisdom).

Consider that the Holy Spirit chose only Joseph to be the pro-tector of the Blessed Virgin, to be her true husband and consequently, no created being can equal the glory of this great saint. — Blessed William Joseph Chaminade

Saint Joseph was not only chosen to be the protector of Mary, but also the protector of Jesus — and you! Jesus and Mary are in heaven, but you are not. This means that St. Joseph’s mission is ongoing. From heaven, he watches over those entrusted to his loving care and asks the Holy Spirit to pour out gifts on his children.

You have a mission: to become holy, loving God truly and your neighbor mercifully. You need the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit in your life. They will help you resemble your spiritual father and reach heaven.

What specifically do the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit do for us though? Well, the Holy Spirit Fathers provide the answer for us. The Holy Spirit Fathers (also called Spiritans) are the religious community responsible for promulgating throughout the world a very powerful novena to the Holy Spirit that contains an excellent summary of what the gifts are and what they do for us. Reprinted with the permission of the Holy Spirit Fathers, listed below are the descriptions of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit from the novena, as well as a beautiful prayer:

The Gift of Knowledge enables the soul to evaluate created things at their worth — in their relation to God. Knowledge unmasks the pretense of creatures, reveals their emptiness, and points out their only true purpose as instruments in the service of God. It shows us the loving care of God even in adversity, and directs us to glorify him in every circumstance of life. Guided by its light, we put first things first, and prize the friendship of God beyond all else.

The Gift of Understanding helps us to grasp the meaning of the truths of our holy religion. By faith we know them, but by understanding we learn to appreciate and relish them. It enables us to penetrate the inner meaning of revealed truths and, through them, to be quickened to newness of life. Our faith ceases to be sterile and inactive, but inspires a mode of life that bears eloquent testimony to the faith that is in us.

The Gift of Counsel endows the soul with supernatural prudence, enabling it to judge promptly and rightly what must be done, especially in difficult circumstances. Counsel applies the principles furnished by knowledge and understanding to the innumer-able concrete cases that confront us in the course of our daily duty as parents, teachers, public servants, and Christian citizens. Counsel is supernatural common sense, a priceless treasure in the quest of salvation.

The Gift of Fortitude strengthens the soul against natural fear and supports us in the performance of duty. Fortitude imparts to the will an impulse and energy which move it to undertake without hesitancy the most arduous tasks, to face dangers, to trample underfoot human respect, and to endure without complaint the slow martyrdom of even lifelong tribulation.

The Gift of Piety begets in our hearts a filial affection for God as our most loving Father. It inspires us to love and respect for his sake persons and things consecrated to him, as well as those who are vested with his authority, his mother, St. Joseph, the saints, the Church and its visible head, our parents and superiors, our country and its rulers. He who is filled with the Gift of Piety finds the practice of his religion, not a burdensome duty, but a delightful service.

The Gift of Fear fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread nothing so much as to offend him by sin. It is a fear that arises, not from the thought of hell, but from sentiments of reverence and filial submission to our heavenly Father. It is the fear that is the beginning of wisdom, detaching us from worldly pleasures that could in any way separate us from God.

The Gift of Wisdom embodies all the other gifts, as charity embraces all the other virtues. Wisdom is the most perfect of the gifts. Of wisdom it is written “all good things came to me with her, and innumerable riches through her hands.” It is the Gift of Wisdom that strengthens our faith, fortifies hope, perfects charity, and promotes the practice of virtue in the highest degree. Wisdom enlightens the mind to discern and relish things divine, in the appreciation of which earthly joys lose their savor, while the Cross of Christ yields a divine sweetness.

Prayer for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit:

O Lord Jesus Christ, who, before ascending into heaven, did promise to send the Holy Spirit to finish your work in the souls of your apostles and disciples, deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me that he may perfect in my soul, the work of your grace and your love. Grant me the Spirit of Wisdom that I may despise the perishable things of this world and aspire only after the things that are eternal; the Spirit of Understanding to enlighten my mind with the light of your divine truth; the Spirit of Counsel that I may ever choose the surest way of pleasing God and gaining heaven; the Spirit of Fortitude that I may bear my cross with you and that I may overcome with courage all the obstacles that oppose my salvation; the Spirit of Knowledge that I may know God and know myself and grow perfect in the science of the saints; the Spirit of Piety that I may find the service of God sweet and amiable; and the Spirit of Fear that I may be filled with a loving reverence towards God and may dread in any way to displease him. Mark me, dear Lord, with the sign of your true disciples and animate me in all things with your Spirit. Amen.

Pray the Litany of St. Joseph:

Lord, have mercy.  Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.  Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us.

God, the Father of Heaven,  have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God, have mercy on us.

Holy Mary, pray for us.
Saint Joseph, pray for us.
Noble Offspring of David,  pray for us.
Light of Patriarchs, pray for us.
Spouse of the Mother of God, pray for us.
Guardian of the Redeemer, pray for us.
Chaste Guardian of the Virgin, pray for us.
Foster-Father of the Son of God, pray for us.
Zealous Defender of Christ, pray for us.
Servant of Christ, pray for us.
Minister of Salvation, pray for us.
Head of the Holy Family, pray for us.

Joseph Most Just, pray for us.
Joseph Most Chaste,  pray for us.
Joseph Most Prudent,  pray for us.
Joseph Most Courageous,  pray for us.
Joseph Most Obedient, pray for us.
Joseph Most Faithful, pray for us.

Mirror of Patience, pray for us.
Lover of Poverty, pray for us.
Model of Workmen, pray for us.
Glory of Domestic Life, pray for us.
Guardian of Virgins, pray for us.
Pillar of Families, pray for us.
Support in Difficulties, pray for us.
Comfort of the Afflicted, pray for us.
Hope of the Sick, pray for us.
Patron of Exiles,  pray for us.
Patron of the Afflicted, pray for us.
Patron of the Poor, pray for us.
Patron of the Dying, pray for us.
Terror of Demons,  pray for us.
Protector of the Holy Church, pray for us.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us.

V. He has made him lord of his household,
R. And prince over all his possessions.

Let us pray. O God, who, in your loving providence, chose Blessed Joseph to be the spouse of your most Holy Mother, grant us the favor of having him for our intercessor in heaven whom on earth we venerate as our protector. You, who live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

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