The Gifts of the Holy Spirit and How to Use Them

There are seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. They are: wisdom, understanding, knowledge, counsel, fortitude, piety and fear of the Lord. In the Book of Isaiah 11:2-3, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are described. In the passage, the gifts are considered ones that the Messiah would have possessed. Through Jesus, we also receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Each gift perfects certain basic virtues. Four of them perfect the intellectual virtues. Understanding gives an intuitive look into truth. Wisdom perfects charity, in order to judge divine things. Knowledge perfects the virtue of hope. The gift of counsel perfects prudence. The other three gifts perfect virtues of will and appetites. The gift of piety perfects justice in giving to others what is their due. This is especially true of giving God what is His due. Fortitude perfects the virtue of fortitude, in facing dangers. Fear of the Lord perfects temperance in controlling disordered appetites. It’s important that we not only know what the gifts of the Holy Spirit are, but that we also know how to use them.

Fear of the Lord

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Fear of the Lord is the feeling of amazement before God, who is all-present, and whose friendship we do not want to lose. There are two kinds of fear: the fear of a servant and the fear of a child. Of the two, childlike fear of God is the more noble and beautiful. It urges the soul to avoid even the least sin in order not to displease God, our loving and caring Father. Fear of the Lord is that childlike fear which causes us to dread no misfortune so much as that of a displeasing God, making us flee from sin as the greatest evil. The Saints were animated by childlike fear and love for the Heavenly Father and were ready to die rather than break His holy law by willful sin.