Fortitude in the Desert

Intercessors of the Lamb - 04-20-09 Desert Spirituality

"In the desert, in the times of waiting, of searching, fortitude, a gift of the Holy Spirit, works so powerfully within us because it gives us the power to change. It gives us the strength to allow God to change us. The Spirit is always saying, "That was okay then, but now I want you to do this or be this. Things have changed. Let this go. Let's do this.” There is always change. We are continuously in a growth process. And it takes courage to change. There will be tests; there will be dry times in prayer. There will be aridity. There will be real desert times. That takes courage. This is when we call on this gift of fortitude. This is when we find the Holy Spirit coming to us with this gift, as if to say, "Hang in there! Hang in there." Even the psalmist used to say, "Oh, Lord, how long? How long do I have to endure this?" Through fortitude, the Spirit tells us, “It is just a little while longer, just a little while. We are almost there." He knows how to give us hope, doesn't He? He knows how to keep us going. This is how the gift of fortitude works. We can persevere. We can stay faithful."