Fr Mathew Naickomparambil VC
We have to know the ways in which the Holy Spirit guides an individual and how to listen to the voice of
God.
God teaches us to pray in our afflictions and sufferings. What should we pray for? Should we pray that
troubles be removed, or that God grant solutions to the problems? Through their troubles people learnt
to pray.
God is with us always and strengthen us
The night before Jesus was crucified, He also prayed in agony sweating blood. He appealed to the Father
to let the cup pass from Him, if possible. Jesus knew He had to drink the cup of suffering given by the
Father. So He added, not my will but yours be done. God, the heavenly Father did not remove the cup of
suffering, instead He sent an angel to strengthen Jesus. Besides, there was a person, the Holy Spirit, with
Jesus during every moment of His passion. This Holy Spirit is with us all the time during our sufferings.
This is the reason we did not turn away from God in our sufferings, but stayed close to Him. The Holy
Spirit was there next to us all the time. He consoled us reminding us of the Word of God. His Word
assures, “The LORD says, I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch
over you. Do not be like a senseless horse or mule that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control”
(Ps 32:8-9). What does it mean to be sensible? It means to have the Divine Wisdom.
Our God is with us always. He is not far from anyone. God answers our calls. He waits for us to answer
even before we call to Him (Mt 6:8). All the goodness in our body, mind, soul and life itself is a gift from
God. There is no goodness in our life that is our own. Why then does God permit sufferings? He allows us
to be chastised through suffering. Our pride needs to be quenched. We have to realize the stupidity of
relying on ourselves and the promises of men rather than on God and His promises.
God desires all people to lead holy lives discerning His will
We have to know the ways in which the Holy Spirit guides an individual and how to listen to the voice of
God. In this age of evangelization, God desires all of us to lead holy lives listening to His voice and
discerning His will. The working of the Holy Spirit is evident in the lives of many these days. However, we
need to recognise it as the working of the Holy Spirit in order to move ahead in the ways of God.
The Autobiography of St. Therese, the Little Flower, is a book that had inspired me from my school days.
In her testimony, St. Therese has explained in a simple style how to do missionary work and carry out the
will of God through endurance in suffering. All the daughters in the saint’s family joined the convent.
Observing the spiritual growth of little Therese, the mother insisted on her to write down all her
personal experiences and give it to the mother. This is how her autobiography came about. The book has
been translated to several languages. St Therese, who died at the age of twenty four, has been
recognized by the Catholic Church as the patroness of world evangelization. Another great apostle is St
Francis Xavier. While working as a distinguished college professor, he pondered over the question posed
by St Ignatius Loyola that turned him to a new life.
Ignatius Loyola was in hospital, injured in a battle with broken legs. While he was recovering, the nursing
sisters gave him a Bible and books on the lives of saints to read. As he lay bedridden, these books had a
profound impact on him and he became very devout. The Holy Spirit began to work in him. He gave up
his job of a soldier and desired to become a working servant of Jesus. Those days, Ignatius befriended
seven men who formed a group called “Friends in the Lord”. The religious order Society of Jesus was
formed by this group and Francis Xavier was one of the group members. Whenever Ignatius met Francis
Xavier, the Holy Spirit reminded him of one verse in the Bible that Jesus put forth to His disciples: “What
do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your
soul?” (Mt 16:26).
Pray in union with Jesus
Eternal life is of utmost importance to a person. The value of the soul is greater than anything else in the
world. The noblest act of love is, therefore, the ministry that leads to the repentance of sinners and
salvation of the mankind. What can I do for the millions of people who live in darkness without knowing
Jesus? How should I pray for that? These are important questions we have to ask ourselves. To the
measure the Holy Spirit enlightens, let us do even little things in our life with great love for this particular
intention. We shall offer up our prayers in union with the infinite merits of Jesus, all our daily activities
and all of our sufferings for the repentance of sinners, for their salvation, and for millions of people
belonging to all religions to be filled with the Holy Spirit. This is a very important form of prayer that our
sufferings can lead us into.
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