Do you all remember the Wizard of Oz? Of course you do, if not, spoiler alert. The characters spend the whole movie on a
quest for qualities that the wizard informs them they already have.
Famously, the cowardly lion was lacking in the courage
department until the wizard pinned on a badge of courage and told him that he always
possessed it, he just didn't know it.
The same is true for us. We are
cowardly. How many times have I seen an
opportunity to bring Christ up in a conversation or to perform a random act of
kindness and been too afraid?
Countless. We miss out on
opportunities to share the Good News of Christ’s love all the time, and for
what? Fear. The most repeated phrases in the
Bible are “fear not” and “do not be afraid”, I think God’s message to us is
pretty clear.
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| picture via magvickers |
The thing about our fear is that we have all we need to be
courageous, we just don’t know it. If
you have been baptized you have received the Holy Spirit and if you have been
confirmed you have received the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit. One of the gifts of
the Holy Spirit is fortitude, or courage.
We possess the gift, it has been given to us, have we bothered to open
it?
How do I open this gift?
That’s how I feel so much of the time.
People tell me to open the gifts of the Holy Spirit and it seems so cliché
and nobody knows how actually accomplish the task (not helpful). So I am going to tell you some ways I try to “open
my gifts”.
I am not just talking about an organized group study
(although those are awesome, shout-out Bible Bombshells!) I am talking about
personal reading and reflection. This is
a daunting task for some. I know that
when I decided to try this I had no idea where to start. A simple way to start is with reading the
Gospels, this is where we get to know Jesus in all of his humanity and in all
of his divinity. It is a wonderful way
to grow in our relationship with him. Another way to go about studying the
Bible is to read the daily mass readings.
I do this on my Laudate app every morning which also provides a
reflection to aid in deeper thinking.
Whichever method you choose I recommend practicing Lectio
Divina. Read through a small passage two or three times, look
for words and phrases that stick out, ask why they stick out, look for ways
they apply to your life, and open your heart to what Jesus is telling you(don’t
resist change).
Prayer:
This is another area that I know people can struggle
with. God created us for relationship with him! That means he wants to talk to us, he wants
us to talk to him. How cool is it that
God is interested in what you have to say!
I recently apologized to my Dad after talking his ear off and he replied
with, “No, I like it!” He wanted to know
what was going on in my life and what I was thinking about, and he wanted to
hear it directly from me. SO much more
so does God want to hear from us. Just talk
to him, it doesn't need to be fancy or scripted. I remember I used to feel unholy if I prayed
in the same style as I speak to my friends.
That is ridiculous. God is our best friend. That being said, if you have trouble
talking to God on a familiar level right now and need to build a relationship
there are a multitude of set prayers. I
suggest starting with The Our Father. Set
aside at least 10 minutes a day just for prayer and chat with God.
Sacraments:
The sacraments will be
getting their own posts but for right now lets talk Reconciliation and Communion. First off, Reconciliation has such a bad rep
but it is incredible and I highly recommend it.
I especially urge you to go to Reconciliation so that you can enter into
communion fully with Christ in the Eucharist.
The Eucharist is the “source and summit” of our Catholic faith. Jesus Christ has given us the incredible gift
to be able to receive him into ourselves physically. WHAT!? I know, stop and
think about it and your mind gets blown.
The sacraments give us grace and grace helps us open up our gifts like
an over-eager younger sibling.
I am sorry that this post has gone longer than usual. I see fear as the biggest obstacle we face in
our quest to fulfill Jesus’ great commission to make disciples of all
nations. The topic deserves time, more
than I can provide so I urge you all to think about your own fear, hunt for
your gifts, and open them up!
Do you have an example of fear or an example of
courage? How do you “open” your
gifts? Comments? Suggestions? Questions?
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