Eighth day of the novena to God Father
The most beautiful thing we can give our father is our sincere love. We have heard at the beginning of our reflections that Jesus tells us: “He who has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me” (Jn. 14:21). This is the necessary and lasting response, so that the love of our Father can not only call us , but also penetrate us.
As long as we have not yet taken the path of the commandments of God, God knocks on the door of our hearts to seek to come in. If he finds our door open, then our Father wants to live in us with his Son and the Holy Spirit (see Rev. 3:20).
He does this especially through the wonderful presence of the Holy Spirit in us. The Holy Spirit is the love between the Father and the Son and has come into our hearts.
Now begins the path of intimate friendship with God when he sees that we are attentive to listen to him and do his will. Thus he can instruct us more and more, his love transformes us more and more according to the face of his son Jesus.
This happens especially through the invitations of the Holy Spirit, who does not cry, but addresses us in a soft whisper, as in the case of the prophet Elijah (see 1Kgs. 19: 11-13). It is necessary to follow Him and to respond.
What can God glorify more than if we respond to this love? It makes us recognize God not only through the works that he does, but in his very nature. The Holy Scripture testifies to us: “God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” (1Jn 4:16). If love is poured into us, then we only need to follow the inspirations, and we grow and glorify God.
To make it clear again: we love our father all the more the more we listen to the Holy Spirit and give him more space in our lives. Then it is the love of God itself that grows in us. We may participate in the innermost love mystery of the Most Holy Trinity, for we call the Holy Spirit the love between Father and Son.
This love will ask us to all the good works that glorify God and serve humanity. As we follow the Holy Spirit more and more so we think and acting as the Lord Himself, we love our Father more and more, he is more glorified.
Now God’s love asks us to seek people and invite them to God, because real mission means sharing in God’s desire to bring his children home to him.
“If I proclaim the gospel, I can not boast about it; a compulsion is upon me ” (1 Cor. 9:16), says the apostle Paul: it is this strength of love or, his “sweet yoke of love” which makes him work tirelessly for the kingdom of God.
With a burning heart, he cares about the building of Christian communities, takes care of the needs of the people, announces the Gospel (see 2Tim. 4:2).
All this glorifies our Father and we will grow in love for Him!