Novena to the Holy Spirit, Day 3
Beloved Holy Spirit, You gentle soul guest, let grow in us the spirit of gentleness, that spirit that permeates everything, that transforms and softens our heart, purifying it from all hardships; that is as mild as Your wonderful Bride, our Mother!
“Blessed are the gentle: they shall have the earth as inheritance.” (Mt 5,4)
You do not need us, but rather lure us with Your love! You would rather let Your love taste like honey than give us bitter herb, even if we sometimes need it!
You also made yourself known to your friend Elijah as a gentle whisper when he suspected you in the storm! But when he perceived your mild presence, he covered his head (cf. 1 Kgs 19,11-13)!
As the Word says, it takes courage to be gentle, because it is not to be confused with defencelessness, with feeling abandoned, never teasing or being cowardly! No, that is not gentleness! It is firmly grounded in its innermost being and in the truth! That’s why it doesn’t need to use violence.
Gentleness is just like you, beloved Holy Spirit, it is your nature, because you do not use violence in the guidance of souls. In Your infinite kindness You allow the truth to dwell in us! Love and truth enter into an indissoluble union, love conveys truth gently and truth consolidates love!
We are created for love as well as for truth and we are deeply responsive to it! But often we do not understand true love properly, the truth seems hard to us, and often the true image of our Father is distorted! Yet he loves us so tenderly. But it is precisely this gentleness which shows him to us in the right light and makes us understand him in Your light!
So help that we may set to work together, not tense up, but watchful! We offer you our heart with all the hardness that is still in it, with the dark depths, with the obstructions and resentments that we may still have towards other people! You simply let your love fall into our heart, and where this love meets with resistance, there you knock and call us persistently to let you in! Then you break down layer after layer, you melt the ice around our hearts, because you are the love of the Father and the Son. And when the ice melts, then the sun of salvation will permanently come to this place – the ice age of our heart will pass!
And what happens in me, why should this not also succeed in other people?
Perhaps when I have become gentler, I can better help to win the earth for you!