Increasing One’s Spiritual Zeal

Spiritual life consists of seeking the face of God. The psalmist says in Psalm 27:8: ‘I seek your face, O Lord’. This is what we do when we take part in retreats: we seek the face of God. In our search for God, we will discover something ever new in our encounter with him. For any love to retain its fervour, it must always include elements of renewal. One of the greatest dangers of the Christian life is lukewarmness, because those who have been converted often lose their spiritual momentum and fall back into old ways. This is why Pope Francis emphasises parrhesia and urges the faithful to maintain their spiritual fervour.

From those to whom much has been given, much will be asked. God grants us so many graces through the sacraments, the reading of the Holy Scriptures, catechesis, retreats, and so on. But am I living up to what I have learnt? Do I put into practice what I have received? Do I live up to what I know? What have I done with my gifts?

Lack of spiritual fervour

Pope Paul VI says that one of the greatest dangers in our friendship with God is a lack of fervour, a lack of zeal and enthusiasm. We might think of this in terms of a lamp running low on oil, which consequently gradually dims. This lack of fervour is far more dangerous because it comes from within, says the Holy Father. It is a broken engine, a sick heart. Sometimes the problem is so subtle that we do not realise it straight away. After the moments of euphoria during the retreat, we risk feeling a sense of heaviness when it comes to honouring our spiritual promises, a spiritual laziness, even laziness in prayer itself because we prayed so much a while ago, and a proliferation of reasons not to pray, or to put it off, or even to cut it short. One thus runs the risk of beginning to make excuses for sin, of lacking commitment and effort to live out the Word of God and to seek holiness.

Taking every day seriously

Sometimes there are days that we put on hold. Tasks to be done that we put off until later. Yet every day is an ideal opportunity to love Jesus. Every moment is a chance to grow in holiness. It is not when a situation has changed that we will make an effort to live more holily. In our present circumstances, now is the right time to seek to grow in holiness. We cannot wait for circumstances to improve before we can feel a fervent love for God. God wants me to love him right here and now, in the very situation I am living through.

Faithfulness in fervour

No one easily overlooks the unfaithfulness of the one they love. In the face of all our unfaithfulness, let us ask God for forgiveness once again. Let us make a fresh commitment to be more faithful and more fervent every day. The Song of Songs says: ‘I seek my beloved.’ When we feel that Jesus is far away, let us seek Him with all our hearts. The Word of God promises that if we seek Him, we will find Him. Let us seek Him in prayer, in taking part in the church’s community activities, in sharing, in reading, in adoration, and so on.

Suffering in order to seek Him

We suffer so much to obtain the things of this world. Do we suffer in the same way to seek the face of God? One of the devil’s favourite temptations is to discourage and demoralise the fervent; then, they can no longer be good witnesses. ‘Make every effort to confirm your calling and your election’ (2 Peter 1:10). Hence the need, every morning, to immerse ourselves once more in our vocation and mission. If we were told that we were going to die tomorrow, it is clear that our scale of values would change immediately. Our behaviour today would be different; our zeal to please Christ would be more intense. ‘You are a vapour: today you are here, tomorrow you are gone’ (Jas 4:14). ‘Make the most of the present time’ (Col 4:5; Eph 5:16). Every day, let us renew our zeal, our friendship with Jesus, and our love for Jesus. Let us preserve the graces we have received, particularly through faithful, intimate prayer each day.

Henri Bayemi