Whoever wants to make his ministry a real apostolate for the faith, needs to remember what the Lord Jesus said. “without me you can do nothing” (John 15.5) to ‘be with Jesus’ it is important to imitate what He lived. The Word assures us that, often, the Lord withdrew to pray. Prayer is the ‘secret weapon’ of Jesus. He has overcome the world (John 16:33) without using the nuclear warhead or heavily armed army. He Won because he prayed.

When Jesus prayed the Father manifested Himself powerfully. Here is what we should emulate. Whoever abandons prayer embraces the temptation. The musicians who wishes to persevere in their ministry need to pray and to pray a lot! And he or she must have not only the concern with the quantity but the quality of prayer.

By the grace of baptism in the Holy Spirit we are encouraged to cultivate the prayer of the rosary, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, confession, the Eucharist and the prayerful reading of the Bible to keep us in the grace of the Lord. However, the Catholic musician also has available a very useful thing for spiritual growth and maturation: the very mystique of the liturgical calendar. It is wonderful to find the anointing of ‘communion’ that we can live as we pray with the Church. Do not doubt: there is a particular grace reserved for you every in strong period of the Church!

In Lent, for example, the Lord assures the faithful the ‘spirit of repentance and prayer “(cf. Zac 12:10), united to the call of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. In the supplications of each Way of the Cross, we find strength to endure the setbacks of our lives. Who would not feel empowered to contemplate the face of Christ during His ultimate hours in this world? He ‘stood firm’ because he lived every trial in prayer!

At Easter, in preparation for Pentecost, we can deepen the spirituality of joy that generates witness and communion, and chastity and obedience. The certainty of victory generates resilience that the musician must have the hard evidence of everyday life!

In Advent we have gained the maturity of the virtue of faith and fortitude and experience increased hope. Know how to wait is a capability that did not get out of nothing; arises from a persistent pursuit of learning. And that the Church knows teach, as witness this joyful waiting for millennia: Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus!

At Christmas we can embrace the simplicity and poverty as a ‘life plan’ for imitation of Baby Jesus. The lesson of the crib can stimulate our sensitivity and insight. How many immortal melodies were born exactly thanks to this capacity. All divine inspiration presupposes contemplation and effort (= perspiration!).

Anyway, enjoying the great legacy that the Church offers us is like a large arsenal of where we can remove the ‘weapons’ needed to fight the good fight and keep the faith!

For those who speak Portuguese there is more information in the book “Musicians in Battle Order”