Now Is The Time

Now is the perfect time to call on God, and ask him to send his Spirit

The song "Now Is The Time" by Tom Kendzia is an interesting song written from the perspective of a discussion with God. Of course, conversations with God are held frequently in the Bible. God first spoke with Adam and Eve in the garden. He spoke with Noah, warning him of the flood. He spoke with Abraham and Moses. God called Samuel so that Samuel could call David. God called on Isaiah and told him to preach. This song reminds us of these discussions and calls us to follow their examples.

The song begins at the refrain, with the speaker calling on God, using language from the Bible (Is 49:15) to remind us that God is ever faithful. This first exhortation is followed by another biblical text, "do not be afraid" (Is 41:10, more). God is asked to come into our hearts, we are ready now. In this writer's opinion, this is the key to the song - come to us God, and send your Spirit upon us.

The three different verses call on the Spirit to send us his grace. The first part of each phrase is a request to strengthen our virtues - human and theological. Tom then uses the second half of the phrase to describe the effect of each of the virtues. Thus, in the first verse, the virtue of love will be used to crush hatred. Love is the first, because God himself is love; all he does is love his creation, with us being uppermost since we were made in his image and likeness. As St. Paul has stated, "So faith, hope, love remain, these three; but the greatest of these is love" (1 Cor 13:13).

The Spirit of hope is called to stand before our eyes. As described in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, hope reflects our desire for eternal life and the kingdom of heaven as our happiness, trusting in Christ's promises. As children, we were not afraid when our parents were with us, even in fearful situations. What better way to foster and encourage hope than to have the Spirit standing in front of us as a guide?

The Spirit of peace is one desperately needed in the world today; the Spirit of peace will silence the tongues of anger, which throughout history have fomented so many problems. The Spirit of life will break the chains of death; not physical death, but the death due to sin. We need the grace that flows from the Spirit to strengthen us in our times of temptation. The final gift listed in the second verse is joy. Again, our true joy will not come from satisfying our earthly desires; it will only come with the beatific vision with God.

The final three gifts again return us to God. Faith is that gift so many have rejected, but one of the three most important as described by St. Paul (1 Cor 13:13). Faith is that belief in God that drives us forward and gives us hope. As imperfect humans, our faith can wax and wane. We ask the Spirit to increase our faith, helping us through those times of weakness. The next is truth. How easy is it for us to lie - even, or especially, the little white lies? All are sins in the eyes of God.

And finally, most importantly, we ask for the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God encompasses all of the above gifts and, most importantly, the gift of love. Without us loving others as God loves us - that is, unconditionally - we cannot truly shine God's light on this world.

So, Father, we ask you to send us these gifts. Send the Spirit down upon us so that we can show the world who and what you truly are and we can bring all nations to you.

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