The practice of freedom: Leaning to live the virtues part 5

Part 5 Faithfulness: Staying True in Small Things

Faithfulness seldom draws much attention. Faithfulness is found in promises kept after the enthusiasm has faded;
in prayers offered when nothing seems to be happening; in care given when no one notices; and in ordinary responsibilities carried day after day.
Faithfulness is not glamorous, but without faithfulness love cannot endure. Holy Scripture reveals faithfulness as one of the great characteristics of God.
God keeps His covenant, remembers His promises, and does not abandon His people—even when they wander from Him.
As St Paul writes: If we are faithless, He remains faithful—for He cannot deny Himself. (2 Timothy 2:13)
This does not mean that our choices don’t matter!
The preceding words contain a sober warning: “If we deny him, he also will deny us.” God’s faithfulness is not permission to be faithless.
This warning means that God remains true to who He is: merciful and just, steadfast in love, and unwavering in truth. Our faithfulness begins as a response to His.

To be faithful is to:  remain true to God, to our word, and to the people and responsibilities entrusted to us.
And, means continuing in truth and love when doing so becomes inconvenient, costly, or unnoticed.
Yet faithfulness is not sinless perfection.
We may stumble, become discouraged, or discover that our motives have become confused.
Faithfulness doesn’t mean never falling; but means returning to God when we do.
Repentance is an act of faithfulness because our repentance refuses to make peace with falsehood.
Nor does faithfulness mean clinging stubbornly to every decision we have ever made.
Stubbornness says, “I will not change.” Faithfulness says, “I will remain true to God, even when He requires me to change!”
Sometimes remaining faithful means staying. Sometimes means leaving behind something harmful, dishonest, or no longer ours to carry.
The question isn’t simply, “Did I remain in the same place?” but, “Did I remain true to Christ?”

St Paul includes faithfulness among the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Faithfulness grows as we allow the Spirit to make the faithfulness of Christ visible in us.
Christ remains faithful to the Father and to those He came to save.
He didn’t abandon His mission when misunderstood, rejected, or threatened.  At the end of His earthly ministry, he could pray:
I glorified You on earth by finishing the work that You gave me to do. (John 17:4)
The Book of Revelation names Him “the faithful witness” and “Faithful and True” (Revelation 1:5; 19:11).

For the Church, faithfulness therefore, is not produced by gritting our teeth and refusing to move.
Faithfulness grows through communion with the One Who is faithful! We learn to keep faith because Christ keeps faith with us.
Mother Teresa is often remembered as saying: God has not called me to be successful; He has called me to be faithful.
The distinction matters.
Success is usually measured by visible results: numbers, recognition, influence, or achievement.
Faithfulness is measured by whether we have loved and served with what God has placed in our hands.
We cannot always control the results of our work.
We can offer God our attention, honesty, courage, labour, repentance, and love.
In the parable of the talents, the master doesn’t ask each servant to produce the same result. Each is responsible for what has been entrusted to him.
The commendation is not, “Well done, impressive and successful servant,” but:
Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master. (Matthew 25:21)
This releases us from comparing our life with someone else’s.
One person may possess gifts that are public and easily recognized.
Another may practise faithfulness quietly in caring for a spouse, raising a child, visiting someone who’s lonely, keeping a confidence, offering daily prayer,
or bearing illness without allowing suffering to extinguish love.
Not everyone is given the same work, strength, health, opportunities, or length of life.
God does not ask us to live someone else’s calling.
He asks us to receive faithfully the life and gifts entrusted to us.
As we have heard before, the medicine is common; the prescription is personal.
One Spirit but a variety of gifts and situations in life to bring healing to our souls.

Faithlessness doesn’t always begin with a dramatic rejection of God. More often, begins quietly.
We become envious of another person’s gifts.
We grow tired of serving where no one notices.
We abandon a responsibility because something new appears more exciting.
We confuse recognition with fruitfulness.
We become afraid that what we have to offer is too small to matter. Pride asks, “Why am I not receiving more?”
Envy asks, “Why was that given to someone else?” Fear asks, “What if my offering is not enough?”
Faithfulness asks, “What has God placed before me today, and how may I offer it in love?”
There are times when God calls us into a different season, place, or form of service. Discernment is therefore essential.
Stability is a virtue when it keeps us from restlessness, envy, and self-seeking.
It becomes a distortion when it is used to keep someone trapped in abuse, falsehood, or a responsibility that properly belongs to another.
Faithfulness is not immobility but is steadfastness of heart.

Most faithfulness is built from very small acts. We say the prayer. We make the telephone call. We keep the promise.
We tell the truth. We apologize and begin again. We remain beside someone who is suffering.
We do today’s work without demanding to see tomorrow’s results. None of these may appear remarkable.
Yet, offered to God, they become part of the healing and sanctification of the world.
Faithfulness is love that has learned to remain.

Questions for Reflection

What person, promise, or responsibility has God placed particularly before me at this time?

Where am I tempted to give up because my efforts seem unnoticed or unsuccessful?

Is my present stability an expression of faithful love, or am I remaining somewhere because of fear, pride, guilt, or habit?

Am I comparing my gifts or calling with those of someone else?

Is there a promise I need to keep, a responsibility I need to resume, or a wrong turn from which I need to repent?

What small act of faithfulness can I offer to God today?

A Prayer for Faithfulness
Faithful God, You remember Your promises and do not abandon the work of Your hands.
Forgive us when we become restless, when we envy the gifts of others, or when we seek recognition more than faithfulness.
Teach us to recognize what You have entrusted to us.
Give us courage to remain when love requires us to remain, humility to change when truth requires us to change, and wisdom to know the difference.
When our work seems small, keep us from discouragement. When our efforts go unnoticed, remind us that nothing offered in love is lost.
By Your Holy Spirit, make us faithful in prayer, faithful in friendship, faithful in our promises, and faithful in the ordinary duties of each day.
When we fall, lead us to repentance. When we grow weary, renew our strength.
Keep us close to Christ Jesus, the faithful and true witness, that His steadfast love may take living form in us.
And at the end of our days, by Your mercy, bring us into the joy of our Master. Amen.