Faith Filled Family Magazine November 2016 | Page 48

having such emotion amidst a
community of joy-filled and faithful believers. The Psalms come
to mind as a great starting point,
there is also something very consoling about sharing a personal
testimony of a time when similar
feelings were experienced and
how we overcame the situation.
Often the best spiritual counsel
we can provide for a person in a
pessimistic state is our presence.
We can make known that we
pray for them, and offer to pray
with them, but we should not be
too over-zealous or forceful toward them, we must allow room
for our Lord to act and move us
in the right direction. We cannot be God; we must serve out
of love for God and gently lead
them to the Lord, through whom
all good things come.

The Power of the Gospel message exceeds the confines of
language. There is much depth
found in our simple and silent witness that allows the Holy Spirit
to shine forth through us. When
we take the time to pray and be
present in fellowship during difficult times we can trust that even
our speech will be infused with
the grace of our Lord.
By remaining humbly surrendered we have the assurance
of knowing when to speak and
when to listen. Being an attentive prayerful listener can also
be extremely comforting. It is an
act of love and service when we
listen well, void of judgment, and
gently remind another that we
are there for them. It is all by the
grace of God that we can share
the Good News and help bring

another to the light of Christ in
their moment of despair.
”Take my yoke upon you, let me
teach you, because I am humble
and gentle at heart, and you will
find rest for your souls. For my
yoke is easy to bear, and the
burden I give you is light. “(Matthew 11:29-30)
Catherine Spada is a Public
Middle School educator and is
currently loving her new role as
a full-time mom. She enjoys giving presentations and sharing
the beauty of the faith. Catherine
resides outside of Toronto with
her husband and beautiful baby
girl. Feel free to contact her with
any comments, questions, or
requests for speaking engagements at ciarallo_c@hotmail.
com