Advice for what comes next
THE PRAYER OF OUTPOURING
The prayer you wrote is a treasure: in it, you expressed what you desire deep in your heart. Rereading it often will allow you to reconnect with this profound desire, to overcome the more difficult moments, and to move forward humbly in faithfulness.
In the coming months, don’t hesitate to revisit the seminar, focusing on what touched you in the teachings, the texts in the workbook, and so on. Whenever something resonates with you, it’s a sign that God is speaking to you. Take the time to truly savor and integrate all that the Lord has chosen to give you.
GIVE THANKS FOR THE GIFT RECEIVED
“Giving thanks attracts grace.” Immerse yourself in praise! Be certain in faith that God has heard your prayer: praise Him, confident that all this will unfold in time, if you are faithful, trusting, and selfless. God acts as He wills, when He wills: He knows you and leads you on the right path. Do your part, and trust Him: He will grant you more than the desires of your heart.
THE ROCK OF PRAYER
Don’t be surprised if prayer sometimes feels a little dry: the Lord awaits us in faithfulness, which bears much fruit, far beyond what we perceive. What is your bare minimum, the time you choose to always set aside for the Lord, every day of your life?
You can maintain as a minimum foundation the practice of beginning each day by turning to God and going to sleep by placing your entire life in His hands. Between these two key moments in life, how much time dedicated to God do you choose to set aside for a daily heart-to-heart encounter? We can speak of a life of prayer starting from 20 minutes a day… But if at any point you drift off, never forget to start again small, even 5 minutes, and gradually increase the time devoted, based on your desire to open the door of your life to the One who gives it weight and color.
FIDELITY TO THE WORD AND TO SPIRITUAL READING
It is vital to nourish our spiritual life. It is your responsibility to nurture your faith, according to your needs, through prayer with the Word of God and reading good books that will support your faith journey. This booklet can continue to nourish you: you probably haven’t yet prayed the seven suggested passages for each of the seven sessions! You can therefore use the texts you haven’t yet prayed, or revisit passages that particularly resonated with you.
THE GRACE OF BEING WITH OTHERS
“A Christian alone is a Christian in danger.” You will always be able to reconnect with members of your small group from the Outpouring of the Spirit, or with other parishioners for support—people the Lord will give you to help you move forward. When you’re feeling down, remember to reach out to those who live by the Spirit: we all support one another!
THE GRACE OF PERSONAL “GUIDESHIP”
It’s not uncommon that after a period of great grace, we experience drier times, times of desolation, when we lose our taste for the things of God. In this case, don’t hesitate to contact a member of the team that organized the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit program in your parish, or a priest, or another trusted resource person. It can be very helpful to better understand and to express the difficulties, or the joys!
SELF-GIVING
Finally, and most importantly, what allows a seminar of Outpouring to bear much fruit is giving of oneself! We embarked on this seminar for this very reason: to give of ourselves, to become a living stone of the Church. It is only to the extent that we give of ourselves that life in the Spirit, the life of Love, will unfold, to our greatest joy.
The parish, or any group you are involved in, will be a wonderful place to learn to give of yourself in a new way, with Christian brothers and sisters.
From then on, your whole life is called to be a gift, in the Church, for the life of the world. Give yourself wherever the Lord places you: at work, in the parish, in your family, with your friends, and with everyone you meet.
Come, Holy Spirit, grant us to be light and consolation for all who await this word, this gesture. Life in the Holy Spirit unfolds in daily life! And also in more specific acts of service, service within the Church, service to the poor, and so on. Let us ask the Lord to show us the very concrete places where we can live this new life, allowing ourselves to be guided, sent forth, and put down roots.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHARISMATIC LIFE
Once we have received some training in the charismatic life, we can be attentive to what the Lord places in our hearts for others…Now that we expect the Lord, the Living One, to act through us, we will see new shoots grow in our hearts. Let us therefore be vigilant, so that we may collaborate in God’s work.
If you are what you are meant to be, you will set the world on fire: let the Lord pour out His Love on the world, allowing ourselves to be transformed and moved by His Spirit of life.
You can tell the Holy Spirit that you are available to receive the gifts that He wants to give you for others:
- A renewed focus on the poorest?
- An image that prepares me for a meeting?
- A new grace to welcome the parishioners?
- To perceive the gift that each person represents to the entire parish?
- A movement in prayer, by opening my Bible, by giving an image?
- A motion in a discussion?
- To say a word that encourages, a word that enlightens, that consoles…?
Let us take the time to stop, to be attentive to the gift of God who wants to use us.
It is a great joy to be God’s little instrument!
May the Spirit reach others through you!
