Behind the Holy Spirit

There are seeds we receive from the Lord, which come in the form of inspirations, insights, consolations or even revelations. We can attest for various reasons that these do not come from ourselves, but are from God. These seeds are given to be nourished, to be held within our hearts and pondered like the Blessed Virgin Mary. Not all seeds are to be spoken, many are not to be given away in haste. This is why the heart, much like Mary’s Immaculate Heart that stored up the treasures of God as she waited for the prompting of the Holy Spirit, is the temporary storehouse where our inspirations from the Lord can be readied more fully into what God intends.

How often do we receive these gifts of consolation and speak them or act on them in haste. God’s word is so good, so perfect, and it is good that we desire to share it when we receive it. We want to spread God’s love and truth to our neighbor by planting it in their hearts much like God planted it in ours. But much like a seedling that needs time in its own pot to grow and sprout before it is planted into the ground, we too need to nourish these insights in our hearts, pondering them and allowing the Holy Spirit to expand them and infuse them with His divine love. We must learn to wait for the Holy Spirit.

In the waiting, we allow space for the Holy Spirit to act. Through time and the further stirrings of the Spirit, the appropriate time and place comes about for the sharing of God’s word. If you’ve experienced one of these moments then you know the difference between times when you have forged ahead in our own time and when you have let the Holy Spirit lead you. It takes patience and meekness, virtues that aid us in humility. When we trust in God’s timing and wait for the Holy Spirit to present the perfect moment, the seed that the Lord planted in us comes to life and all the while God has readied our neighbor’s heart to receive it. Our trust in God’s timing always serves both us and our neighbor well.

While the Israelites were wandering in the desert, they had to follow God, who revealed Himself as a pillar of fire at night and a cloud by day. They dare not go before the Lord, to run ahead of Him, for they knew not what lay ahead. Their lives were safeguarded in the following, in the waiting, and in their trust in the Lord. We too are called to follow God, to not go ahead of Him, to not leave Him behind or find another way. We do this by being docile to the Holy Spirit, by letting Him prepare the way before us, by trusting in God’s timing, and by pondering in our hearts. The Holy Spirit should always move first, our words and deeds are always in response.

This all being said, we must be aware of the enemy and his tactics in this regard. The enemy is always lurking about, either tempting us to act or speak in haste or convincing us to disregard and dismiss the inspirations we receive from God. Sharing God’s word is good, but the timing of it and the way in which we share makes all the difference. The enemy tries to get us to use God’s word as a weapon, to try to control or fix someone, or to feed our own ego by showing how right we are. In pride or impatience we end up moving before the Holy Spirit. We go ahead of the Lord instead of following.

It is good to ponder what we have received. It is good to practice the virtues of patience and meekness. It is good to humble ourselves before the Lord, seeing ourselves in comparison to God and recognizing our weakness. This brilliant way of Mary shows us what it means to be a handmaid of the Lord, to let the Lord lead, to wait for the Holy Spirit and to participate more fully in the divine life.