Day 16 of Embracing Your Creative Gifts: The Gifts of the Spirit

 

And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom, and of understanding, the spirit of counsel, and of fortitude, the spirit of knowledge, and of godliness. And he shall be filled with the spirit of the fear of the Lord. – Isaiah 11:2-3

This passage from the book of Isaiah lists the gifts of the Holy Spirit conferred upon us at baptism and, in an even greater amount, in the Sacrament of Confirmation. My youngest child is adopted. As a result, she was baptized at age three-and-a-half. At that point, she was very three, exceptionally three – stubborn and full of attitude. I held out this great hope that after her baptism her behavior would suddenly improve. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. There was no overnight transformation. A few weeks later I joked with the priest who baptized her that the baptism didn’t take. He wisely remarked that grace drips slowly.

When my oldest son was confirmed, I held out great hope that the sacrament would make a dramatic difference. Once again, this was not the case, but maturity has developed over time. I know the grace is there, doing its work.

When it comes to these gifts of the Holy Spirit, we can be sure that they are there. They have been given to us. We need to tap into them, however. We need to ask the Holy Spirit for help. We need to cultivate these gifts and make good decisions.

In our creative life, these gifts can help us to impact the world in a positive way. We can ask the Holy Spirit to aid us in our decision making. The Holy Spirit can help us learn more and make the most of that knowledge. The Holy Spirit can give us the courage to do something that may be unpopular.

Prayer

Dear Holy Spirit, thank you for your great gifts. Please help me to remember to always ask for your help in my life. Please help me increase in wisdom and understanding. Please give me strength and courage when I am weak.

Action

Do you sometimes keep quiet or not take on a controversial project because you are afraid to offend others with your Christian beliefs? Today, ask the Holy Spirit to give you strength and wisdom and do one thing out of your comfort zone to use your creative gifts for the glory of God. 

This is an excerpt from The Work of Our Hands. (Amazon affiliate link)