The Spirit Helps Us in Our Weakness

In a novena to the Holy Spirit given in the prayer booklet, "Devotions to the Holy Spirit", compiled by Brian Moore, S.J., the ninth day of the novena begins with a passage from the letter of St. Paul to the Romans:

"We know that, even now, the whole creation is still groaning in travail -and not only it, but we, too, even though we have the first fruits of the Spirit - we, too, groan within ourselves as we await our adoption as children of God, and the redemption of our bodies. But the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought; but the Spirit prays on our behalf with inexpressible sighs of longing. For the Spirit, who looks deep into hearts, knows what to ask for; for the Spirit prays for the saints according to the will of God." (Romans 8:22-23; 26-27)

This passage from St. Paul reminds us that the mission of building the Kingdom, which Jesus began in His earthly ministry, is to be continued by the Church as she is empowered by the Spirit. And by our own experience, we know that fidelity to Christ in the Church is not always smooth-sailing. This happens when we experience only the "will" to commitment, instead of the "joy" of commitment. That is why St. Paul makes us aware that the Spirit helps us in this weakness. As the Spirit prays on our behalf, He supplies us with the joy of commitment (and all other spiritual gifts besides) necessary to make us strong in our faithfulness.

If therefore we experience a lack of joy in what we are, and what we are called to do by Christ through the Church, we only need to seek the help of the Holy Spirit. For there will be times when we even do not know what to pray for, nor what we are to do. Usually, this happens during a crisis in our life - something that destabilizes our world of meaning and radically uproots us from values we have always known to be true. In these uncertain times of big change in our environment (as "the whole creation is also groaning in travail") can even bring more turmoil and chaos - causing us to be tempted easily to commit rash actions. What can anchor us well so that we may not be swamped by the great tides of change, is to invoke the Holy Spirit and ask for the gift of prayer. When the Holy Spirit prays within us, our soul will be firmly anchored to God.

There is another prayer in this "Devotions to the Holy Spirit" that aptly expresses how we can overcome the temptation to give up, because of the many crises we all have to go through in the journey of faith.

In Every Need

Holy Spirit,
my Light, my Life, my Love, my Strength,
be with me now, and always;
in all my doubts, perplexities and trials,
come, Holy Spirit;
in hours of loneliness, weariness and grief,
come, Holy Spirit;
in failure and in loss, in disappointment,
come, Holy Spirit;
when I am ill, unable to work, depressed,
come, Holy Spirit;
now, and for ever, and in all things,
come, Holy Spirit.