‘O infinitely good God! You never deprive us of your gifts, unless we ourselves withdraw our hearts from you’ (St. Francis de Sales).
The wonderful gifts that God has given us, whether natural or supernatural, are meant to praise His glory and only reach their true splendour when we use them for this purpose. How empty art becomes when it does not glorify God! How vain are words if they do not praise God and edify men! How empty life becomes when it is lived with our backs turned to God!
How different everything is when it is placed at the service of God! Every gesture, every action, every word is imbued with God’s love. Our Father will never want to deprive us of His gifts, but they become empty when they are stripped of their deepest meaning. This happens when we turn our hearts away from God and use His gifts for other purposes, thus stripping them of the splendour of love that gives them their true beauty. This beauty can never be replaced by merely human things, for then the gifts lack their most intimate principle: the glorification of God in everything that creatures are capable of doing.
We must therefore watch over our hearts so that they do not stray or turn away from God. In this way, the goodness of our gifts — especially those of the spirit — will bear witness to the wonderful presence of God in this world and in our souls. The more our hearts belong to the Lord, the more the gifts we have been given will shine for the glory of our heavenly Father and for the service of others.