“ Our spirits and faith should never get old. God should always see this in us.”
I’VE often wondered why we Filipinos have a great devotion to Santo Niño. And I’ve heard one thing: that praying to Santo Niño is effective (mabisa) and powerful.
For example, a friend shared with me that the people of Leyte believe that the plague in their province stopped when they prayed a novena to Santo Niño and processed its image around the region.
But is it the statue that is powerful and “mabisa” or our deep faith? I’d say that it’s our faith that is effective. Why? It’s because it is a faith that is childlike.
And what is childlike faith? It is pure, totally dependent on God, entrusting, humble, meek, and poor in spirit. That’s what God needs to see in us as we pray to him.
Haven’t we had this experience? It’s when we submit our will to God that we find help and healing. It’s this kind of faith that can move mountains as the Scriptures tell us.
I’ve shared with my readers that almost five years ago, my doctor found an unruptured aneurysm in my brain. This news shocked why whole existence and so I turned to God for healing and asked prayers from many people.
I’ve never prayed so hard in my whole life. I prayed like a child to God and submitted my entire being to him. I didn’t just pray like a child; I became a child in total dependence on God.
And as you know, the Lord answered my prayer. My doctor told me not to worry anymore. The aneurysm has healed. All I need to do is to take care of my health.
This childlike prayer is not only entrusting but is youthful.
Many of us would say that we’re aging. But we know that it’s only our bodies that get old. Our spirits and faith should never get old. God should always see this in us. He needs to see a faith that is youthful and hopeful, a “pananampalataya na sariwa sa pagasa, buhay na buhay at masigasig.”
I have a friend named Ricky. He is 50 years old. Recently, he discovered something new about himself: a beautiful voice that had been buried for years within his being.
One day, as he was sitting inside a bar in Hollywood, a man came to him. The man told him, “You know, I heard you pick up the microphone and sing. You have a great voice, and I want to work with you. I am a professional voice trainer.” Ricky could not believe that such a person would approach him to ask if he wanted training.
To keep the long story short, Ricky agreed. What he and the trainer discovered was astonishing. Hidden in a fifty-year-old body is the pure and original voice of his youth that had been trampled by frustrations and disappointments of life.
We need to uncover this youthful voice in us—this youthful and faith-filled spirit. It’s the faith that is “mabisa” and powerful, and that can heal and renew us.
So, let us ask God to grant us a childlike and youthful faith. Let’s not just pray to Santo Niño, but let’s also be like him: dependent on the will of his Father, entrusting, loving, and filled with awe and wonder. Amen.
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Fr. Rodel “Odey” Balagtas is the pastor of Incarnation Church in Glendale, California.
