"It is the Lord!" The celebration of the Eucharist is many things, but it is certainly and most profoundly an encounter with Jesus, our Risen Savior.

"It is the Lord!" When we receive communion, we receive Jesus, our Lord and our God. Therefore we approach the Eucharist in a spirit of reverent adoration. We also most fittingly spend time in adoration in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, reserved in the tabernacle to be brought to the sick. We can pray anywhere, but there is no more fitting place to pray on earth than in the sacramental presence of the Lord. There we are profoundly struck with the awesome mystery of God's grace.

When we pray in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament we extend in contemplation the mystery we celebrate in the Eucharist. We bring before the Lord all of our cares and troubles, and prepare ourselves for the next time we receive Jesus in Communion.

Extended prayer before the Blessed Sacrament is an expression of the ancient tradition of vigil: offering time before the Lord. Our lives are made up of time, and the way we spend it is the surest measure of our priorities. In Gethsemane, when Jesus "returned to his disciples he found them asleep. He said to Peter: "So you could not keep watch with me for one hour?"" (Matthew 26:40) In the Gospels, Jesus himself keeps vigil before the Heavenly Father (e.g., Mark 1:35; Luke 6:12). 

If you are interested in deepening your relationship with Jesus Christ through Eucharistic Adoration please contact Phil/Mary Ziesemer 715-409-0165 to set up a holy hour.