WE should beg God that we be given a steadfast spirit, not a wavering, flickering one. We have to be realistic with our weakened, wounded human condition that often finds us good only in the beginning of an endeavor but cannot hold on to that state to the end. And so with great humility, we should go to God asking that we be given a spirit that can remain faithful and true all the way to the end.
Perhaps what can help us in this regard is to make as our own prayer the words of Psalm 51 10-11: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Cast me not from your presence and take not your holy Spirit from me.” Let’s use these words and really mean them. These are inspired words and can really move the heart of God.
Of course, we have to be humble so as to have a living faith in these words. Our usual problem is that even if we do not say it openly, we actually consider biblical passages as too mushy for us to use. This is actually quite a wrong attitude to have. The words in the Bible are no ordinary words. If approached and used properly, they can effectively bring us to God. They teach us what to say and how to speak with God.
But, yes, we need to have a steadfast spirit. That’s simply because our human condition in this world often finds us unstable and unfaithful. We may be good at the beginning and in our intentions and words, but our good intentions often do not last. Along the way, we get tripped by a variety of causes — laziness, complacency, treachery, pride, envy, greed, etc.
We just have to look at the case of our first parents who enjoyed the best of things in the beginning. And yet, in spite of all their privileges, they managed to fall. Our case is much worse than theirs.
We already are born with a certain attraction to evil, the so-called concupiscence, and so even if we managed to be good and faithful for a time, even for a long time, we should not be surprised that at any given moment, we fall. This is the common experience of practically all of us.
A steadfast spirit is what we should be begging from God all the time. We have to be humble enough to acknowledge and to feel the urge of that need. Everyday, let’s try to find ways to be constantly aware of this need. We actually cannot afford to take this matter for granted.
The good thing about this need of begging for a steadfast spirit from God is that it would help us to always relate things to God, to get engaged with him. Whether these things are good or bad, humanly speaking, we would be led to God.
And that is the proper state for our life to be in. Our life would not be in its proper state and would get exposed to all sorts of dangers if it would not be lived with God. We need to be clear about this basic, completely indispensable truth about our life.
We many times dare to be on our own, thinking that with our own powers and resources, we can hack all the challenges and tests in life. That simply is not true. We always need God. We need him more than we need air, water and food. It is when we are with him that we satisfy our innermost longing for life everlasting and for a joy without end.
So, let us importune God to give us a steadfast spirit!
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Fr. Roy Cimagala is the Chaplain of the Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise, Talamban, Cebu City (roycimagala@gmail.com)/PN
