Heart to Heart Chat
† Heart to Heart Chat – May 28, 2023
In 2014, I went with 35 people to Italy for a pilgrimage cum tour. I completed my studies in Rome in 1996. It was such a long gap in practicing my spoken Italian. To my great surprise, when I started conversing with our tour guide, I got my language back. She was so surprised that a priest coming from USA could be fluent in Italian. Language is just a skill that stays with you once you learn it well. However, can you claim the same about our faith?
The Apostles had an earth-shaking God experience when the Holy Spirit anointed them on the day of Pentecost. Did they contain the whole experience to themselves? Not at all. They became restless in their souls and hearts. The spirit impelled them to share that powerful experience with everybody. Thus, they determined to bring the good news to the whole world that Jesus is alive, and he continues to transform our lives. If we stay connected with Him, we can become agents of His transformative love. We all may have similar convictions with our faith. How far does this faith take us? It is so human that we receive some special deep encounters with our Lord at some parts of our life. Does that deep intimacy with Him continue? It does with a few and does not with many. When we explore the reasons for the lack of interest in our relationship with the Lord happens through our engagement with the world and our daily life. Interacting with different kinds of people and engaging with their problems can drain quite a bit of our energy and spirit. Dealing with our own self and how we seek fulfillment in life can also distract us from the Lord. Thus, what we experienced once spiritually which had a strong impact in our heart and life can disappear eventually if we are unwilling to keep it alive. The best way to keep our spiritual self active and vibrant is to lend ourselves to be formed by God and His servants constantly. Attending a Retreat or a Cursillo or a Spiritual Renewal Program brings life changing experience in our life. Those who had such an experience are not the same anymore. Committing oneself to become an Intentional Disciple is another way of keeping our faith and spiritual life very vibrant. The spiritual struggles we face today need greater vigor and energy. Unless we surrender our heart and soul to the Lord and constant spiritual formation, we may lose our battle very easily. Let us keep our Spirit within us alive so that our journey with the Lord as good disciples may also stay alive.
Your Brother in Christ,
Fr. Xavier Ilango