Come Holy Spirit…In Remembrance

In the last 2 years we have lost many dear friends and family members. Each loss has been an opportunity to dwell on a life well lived. Today I would like to honor one of our dear friends, Deacon Timothy Borbas.

Deacon Tim was a man who inspired many people with a simply devoted life. He drove around in the truck he learned to drive in as a teenager, enjoyed a good Louisiana cracklin stop, and was constantly singing the song of Jesus. Here are some memories I have of this friend.

• His devotion, protection and love for his sweet wife, daughter, and son-in-law.
• He read the first chapter of Matthew on Christmas Eve better than anyone, ever. Lets here it for Boaz, Rehoboam, and Abijah.
• Roadtrips in his Oldsmoville to Louisiana with trivia questions
• Each time he preached the homily he would start by greeting the congregation and required the congregation to say a hardy “good morning” back, if it did not have enough gusto he would require the congregation to try again. 
• Singing as he went about his activities. One of his favorites was “Jesus in the morning, Jesus in the noontime”
• When he preached, often he would pull out a mirror from under the ambo and say “I am looking in the mirror.” He wanted to remind the congregation that he was preaching to himself as well.
• Humming None but Jesus
• Deacon Tim officiated our wedding and we had several sessions of marriage prep with him on what he called the Love Couch, so much of the communication methods we use, mindset, and advice we have about marriage are from him.
• He always talked about how he was headed home. He would say I love Gina and Ragan (wife and daughter) but this isn’t my home. He would say with resolve that his home is in heaven.
• He taught my family to place our baptism days on the calendar and celebrate them together.
• Never did he let an opportunity go by without sharing the gospel of Jesus, whether at a wedding, funeral, on the job, or in a gas station.
• But more than anything else, he always made people feel like they were someone special, worth his time, and someone to invest in.

He hasn’t been gone quite a year yet, but what I have been dwelling on lately is a little story he told me once about his service at the altar during the liturgy of the Eucharist. He explained that each time he knelled as the bread was consecrated into the body of Christ he would pray Come Holy Spirit.

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

He explained that in this moment, he prayed that the sacrament would set those gathered on fire, not in a quick flash burn, but in a kindled lasting manner. He desired for us, himself included, to leave the sacrament filled with the holy spirit, empowered to make holy decisions to glorify God.

In remembrance of this inspiring life, I have been letting this prayer sink into my bones, reaching for it throughout the busyness of my day. Here are some graphic images of the Come Holy Spirit prayer.