Release Your Strengths

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. (Jesus, Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:8)

In a materialistic world that charms us with the promises of instant gratification and comfort, we can fall into the trap of becoming automatons, running in circles, losing our own identities and souls, in the pursuit of happiness.

How many times do we sit quietly in order to examine our own feelings and thoughts? Periodically evaluating our attitudes and what drives us emotionally can re-boot our courage, our fighting spirit, and our sense of success as human beings.

What is a successful life? Do we judge it by the titles we have accumulated or by how swiftly we have climbed the corporate ladder, regardless of the personal cost? Or, do we judge it by our sense of having done the right thing for our community, for our loved ones, and for the world? Instead of dreaming of inane applause and fame, we should appreciate what we, as professionals and human beings, contribute to a world in need of our gifts.

Jesus gives us a secure path to achieve the introspection we need to identify and prop up our inner strength. For us as Christians, this strength comes from our own spirit, infused into us and cleansed by our God, and energized and revved up by the abundant graces and power of the Holy Spirit.

Through introspection and prayer, we seek the graces of the Holy Spirit in order to visualize our internal treasures, the gifts we need to let shine to improve the world. These God-given gifts are jewels that make others happy and are also the weapons we use to fight adversity and tribulation. They give us our inner strength.

It is important to take the time for reflection and self-analysis so you can identify your spiritual gifts and learn how to best use them if you truly want to reach the spiritual altitude that could propel your life to a higher purpose.  Have you sought spiritual advice or have you avoided this advice, fearing that following it could limit your options for dealing with the “real world?”  Do you apply the same depth of analytic thinking you apply to solve issues at work, to untie the spiritual knots that prevent you from energizing your inner self?  Have you thought of ways to improve your communication style, so you can better deliver important spiritual messages to others?  Have you looked for the behaviors and attitudes that are preventing you from finding your inner strength and spreading the gospel efficiently? These are the questions to ponder more deeply.

Everyone needs a coach.  Make Jesus your coach.  Read the beatitudes and assimilate them. Read His parables and reflect on them.  Once you have done this, it will be crystal clear that all the self-help books in the world put together are feeble attempts to imitate the truth that Jesus taught.

It is time to make your heart pure and rev up your spirit’s engine.  Start from your core of feelings and behaviors.  Think of everything you have learned, how good your intentions are, and how you can design a package with these elements to let your best human attributes shine.  Is your purpose in life to move hearts with compassion?  Is it to make people laugh?  Is it to alleviate pain and suffering?  Is it to lay down the bricks to build a cathedral?  Is it to optimize products that improve quality of life?  Realize that your daily activities are simply vehicles to make yourself and others shine in a world that is often obscured by a lack of meaning and rattled by the noise of soulless automatons running endlessly in circles without a compass. Apply your prayer and analytic thinking to identify your true beliefs, values, identity, and sense of belonging so you can find your courage, armor up via the power of your faith in Jesus, and fight whatever the world throws at you.