"A SPECIAL GIFT"

The Lord ... always comes to sustain us in our weakness and He does this by a special gift: the gift of fortitude.

LIBERATION

Through the gift of fortitude, the Holy Spirit liberates the soil of our heart, He frees it from sluggishness, from uncertainty and from all the fears that can hinder it, so that the Lord's Word may be put into practice authentically and with joy.

"A TRUE HELP"

The gift of fortitude is a true help, it gives us strength, and it also frees us from so many obstacles.

AN EXTRAORDINARY HELP

There are also difficult moments and extreme situations in which the gift of fortitude manifests itself in an extraordinary, exemplary way... The Church shines with the testimony of so many brothers and sisters who have not hesitated to give their very lives in order to remain faithful to the Lord and His Gospel.

PERSISTENT WITNESS

Even today there is no shortage of Christians who in many parts of the world continue to celebrate and bear witness to their faith with deep conviction and serenity, and persist even when they know that this may involve them paying a higher price.

HELPED BY THE SPIRIT OF FORTITUDE

We too, all of us, know people who have experienced difficult situations and great suffering. Let us think of those men, of those women who have a difficult life, who fight to feed their family, to educate their children: they do all of this because the spirit of fortitude is helping them.

"THANK THE LORD"

Let us thank the Lord for these Christians who live in hidden holiness: the Holy Spirit is within them carrying them forward! ... It will benefit us to think about these people: if they do all of this, if they can do it, why can't I? And it will also do us good to ask the Lord to give us the gift of fortitude.

A GIFT FOR OUR ORDINARY LIFE

This gift must constitute the tenor of our Christian life, in the ordinary daily routine ... We need to be strong every day of our lives, to carry forward our life, our family, our faith.

DON'T LOSE HEART

... Sometimes we may be tempted to give in to laziness, or worse, to discouragement, especially when faced with the hardships and trials of life. In these cases, let us not lose heart, let us invoke the Holy Spirit so that through the gift of fortitude He may lift our heart and communicate new strength and enthusiasm to our life and to our following of Jesus.

(Source: General Audience, May 14, 2014)