Hubby and I went alone to Sunday evening Mass at our parish last night. This is an exceptionally rare occurrence occasioned by the fact that too many children were throwing up on Sunday morning for us to get out. My oldest (who is 18 and has not yet succumbed to the "creeping crud") had gone to Mass earlier, so we were able to leave the sickies home with him as the vomiting had subsided by that evening.
It was so wonderful to sit by my sweetie and listen to the Gospel (as oppossed to stopping the 2 yo from running to the choir to greet siblings) and hold hands during the Homily!
It is amazing what spiritual insights can come when one is not picking up Cheerios while Father explains the readings!
The point he made was that the evil one knows where to tempt us for maximum effect...
I am well aware of that fact as previous posts have attested to...
But what struck me yesterday was the willingness of Eve to listen to and believe the serpent DESPITE her close loving relationship with God.
Think about it, the serpent told her that God LIED! And she believed that ugly reptile INSTEAD of the awesome Creator who gave her and Adam a whole beautiful life and garden and (almost) everything in it! She and Adam walked with and talked with God on a regular basis and she STILL believed the devil over her divine Father!!
What's up with that?!
The power of temptation.
Father reminded us yesterday that temptation itself is NOT a sin.
Thank goodness!
But temptation is SO powerful that Jesus himself taught us that we NEED to pray "Lead us not into temptation" because it is so very powerful...and we can be very weak...
Few of us are really confused about the "right" things to do, but still we don't do them (St. Paul included)!
Why?
Laziness, fear, the intense desire for immediate gratification and pleasure, pride, selfishness...
The list goes on.
But so does the grace that can be poured on us in moments of temptation through our cooperation with the infinite merits earned by Jesus' suffering and death.
Eve did not have that in her defensive arsenal, but we do!
While we strengthen up our "spiritual muscles" this Lent, let's remember that we cannot do it alone (which JPII notes was Adam's sin, leaving Eve to deal with the serpent alone)...
Let us call on Christ without ceasing, and remember that the glitter of temptation is but a momentary and counterfeit dross...
The real gold is found at the foot of the cross.
Showing posts with label spiritual warfare. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spiritual warfare. Show all posts
Monday, March 14, 2011
Monday, February 7, 2011
The Realities of Spiritual Warfare - Part Deux
I have a killer crazy busy week or two coming up... I will be a full-time working downtowm mom on a temporary legal project. This should bring in some good money which I have been praying for to show DH that I am serious about wiping out a few pesky debts so we can pursue adoption....
that was the great blessing of the last week.
I will even add to that the blessing of being able to put together family care for my little ones at home (almost-2 yo girl and 4 yo boy) while "heigh-ho heigh-ho, its off to work I go" for about 2 weeks.
But now, let me get to the little traumas of the last two weeks that "you-know-who" keeps throwing out in order to cause my hubby to fear and worry (and for me to just be incredibly annoyed).....
1) heater on hot tub breaks completely unexpectedly (just put a new one in less than 3 years ago).... we have to fix because leaving cold water to freeze up in a hot tub during the Chicago winter is not a good thing...
2) pipe breaks in our laundry room causing flood in laundry room and sending WATERFALLS cascading through the basement celing, necessitating emergency plumber visit, can you say "KA-CHING"?????
3) dryer stops working...in the middle of Friday mega-loads of laundry (after the flood we used every bath towel in our house)....internal switch had shorted out....another repair bill...
4) my 11 yo daughter got an orthodontic device placed on Tuesday afternoon that on Wednesday morning (when we were snowed in by 20+ inches) caused her mouth to become STUCK OPEN SO WIDE that she began to choke and vomit uncontrollably and could not breathe...after a minute or so of incredible panic, the appliance broke and she was OK.... we are going to the ortho Wednesday, 'nuff said....
5) on Saturday, right before probably the busiest work week I have had in over 5 years, our microwave CAUGHT ON FIRE!!!! Something caused a hole in the internal wall and SPARKS and FLAMES preceded the total shut-down of the incredibly expensive microwave/convection oven combo we just put in during our kitchen remodel in June! Repair guy coming Monday to see if repairable/covered by warranty (it had better be)! But I have no microwave the week I will be leaving teenagers home to get afternoon snacks ready and start dinner...
My husband is seriously crazed, any one of these would cause him to lose sleep, the combination is close to doing him in....
We went out to a fun "trivia night" fundraiser with some friends on Saturday...just as we arrive our second son texts that the baby just "threw up gyros and fries all over"....
*sigh*
She ended up being OK so we did stay, I got to confide in a friend about my desire and conviction to adopt a special needs child...she and her husband (both over 50) just adopted 3 small children from Ethiopia to join the 2 bio boys (in their 20's) and their daughter who came from China (who is now 16).
Just when I was ready to throw in the towel...ready to say that "maybe I have enough on my plate and God wants me to just make hubby and children happy"...ready to fall prey to despair and worry....she told me -
"I can so see you adopting. You would be wonderful for those children. In fact, you should get 2!!"
I love P. She is just the most optimistic, energetic and loving woman!!
We are going to try and get together and and let her hubby "rub off " a bit on mine. He is a logical engineer (my hubby's type exactly) and tends to over-plan and worry himself but when he saw the poverty in Africa first hand on a mission trip they did two years ago he said,
"Retirement is overrated. Let's get some more kids."
So I soldier on....in the silence...waiting on the Lord and hoping a precious child from thousands of miles away becomes the next best thing I get to worry about.......
that was the great blessing of the last week.
I will even add to that the blessing of being able to put together family care for my little ones at home (almost-2 yo girl and 4 yo boy) while "heigh-ho heigh-ho, its off to work I go" for about 2 weeks.
But now, let me get to the little traumas of the last two weeks that "you-know-who" keeps throwing out in order to cause my hubby to fear and worry (and for me to just be incredibly annoyed).....
1) heater on hot tub breaks completely unexpectedly (just put a new one in less than 3 years ago).... we have to fix because leaving cold water to freeze up in a hot tub during the Chicago winter is not a good thing...
2) pipe breaks in our laundry room causing flood in laundry room and sending WATERFALLS cascading through the basement celing, necessitating emergency plumber visit, can you say "KA-CHING"?????
3) dryer stops working...in the middle of Friday mega-loads of laundry (after the flood we used every bath towel in our house)....internal switch had shorted out....another repair bill...
4) my 11 yo daughter got an orthodontic device placed on Tuesday afternoon that on Wednesday morning (when we were snowed in by 20+ inches) caused her mouth to become STUCK OPEN SO WIDE that she began to choke and vomit uncontrollably and could not breathe...after a minute or so of incredible panic, the appliance broke and she was OK.... we are going to the ortho Wednesday, 'nuff said....
5) on Saturday, right before probably the busiest work week I have had in over 5 years, our microwave CAUGHT ON FIRE!!!! Something caused a hole in the internal wall and SPARKS and FLAMES preceded the total shut-down of the incredibly expensive microwave/convection oven combo we just put in during our kitchen remodel in June! Repair guy coming Monday to see if repairable/covered by warranty (it had better be)! But I have no microwave the week I will be leaving teenagers home to get afternoon snacks ready and start dinner...
My husband is seriously crazed, any one of these would cause him to lose sleep, the combination is close to doing him in....
We went out to a fun "trivia night" fundraiser with some friends on Saturday...just as we arrive our second son texts that the baby just "threw up gyros and fries all over"....
*sigh*
She ended up being OK so we did stay, I got to confide in a friend about my desire and conviction to adopt a special needs child...she and her husband (both over 50) just adopted 3 small children from Ethiopia to join the 2 bio boys (in their 20's) and their daughter who came from China (who is now 16).
Just when I was ready to throw in the towel...ready to say that "maybe I have enough on my plate and God wants me to just make hubby and children happy"...ready to fall prey to despair and worry....she told me -
"I can so see you adopting. You would be wonderful for those children. In fact, you should get 2!!"
I love P. She is just the most optimistic, energetic and loving woman!!
We are going to try and get together and and let her hubby "rub off " a bit on mine. He is a logical engineer (my hubby's type exactly) and tends to over-plan and worry himself but when he saw the poverty in Africa first hand on a mission trip they did two years ago he said,
"Retirement is overrated. Let's get some more kids."
So I soldier on....in the silence...waiting on the Lord and hoping a precious child from thousands of miles away becomes the next best thing I get to worry about.......
Friday, January 28, 2011
The Realities of Spiritual Warfare
Well, I had my 7 Quick Takes Friday #2 all ready to go, but my experiences yesterday and today urged me to table that one until next week in favor of a more serious subject....
Now I am not one to look for the boogy-man around every shadowy corner, but our Holy Mother Church makes it clear that the devil and his minions are REAL and that they roam the earth seeking the ruin of souls...
While our Lord Jesus Christ has won the war on our behalf, there are skirmishes still to be fought. And since the devil knows that he is ultimately the loser for all eternity, he works more desperately in the present moment to grasp at whatever smaller victory he can...
which is the damnation of individual souls.
We have free will. We can accept or reject Satan the same way we can accept or reject God.
But what I think people today do not realize is that the opportunities for acceptance or rejection come every single day in a hundred little ways. C.S. Lewis realized and expounded upon this in The Screwtape Letters. I saw an amazing theatre performance of the book in the Winter of 2008, when I was pregnant with #6. The Senior Tempter and the demonic minion who delivered his correspondence were the only characters and all the dialogue was straight from the book. It was very powerful to SEE and HEAR the sneering "Uncle Screwtape" giving advice to his "nephew demon" Wormwood on how to lead and tempt and seduce a soul closer and closer to hell.... bit by bit.... using the soul's own desires and yearnings (even the good ones!)... always seeking to capitalize on those sins that particular soul is most inclined to (pride, vanity, gluttony, etc.)
So I had decided earlier in the week that I was going to bring up the subject of Special Needs adoption to my dear hubby on Saturday. I would take him out to lunch after our morning Marriage Retreat at the parish (requred of parents whose children are in Religious Ed) and give him the picture of the little one I am feeling called to bring into our family.
I was getting more and more nervous as the week went on. This is the man I have been married to for almost 22 years and have had 6 children with, yet I was becoming overly concerned about his reaction, about if he would think I am crazy, about him rejecting the idea out-of-hand....
so on Thursday morning, while I was working my way through a mountain of laundry, I decided to call in the "big guns" - my own personal spiritual warriors, 5 very good and holy women who I can always count on for serious support and guidance.
I sent out an urgent email missive to my friends asking for their prayers for a matter I would be discussing with Paul on Saturday, and told them that I would be praying and fasting on Friday for this intention and asked if they would join me. They all replied in a short time with enthusiastic support and obvious curiosity for the subject of their petitions, but they graciously accepted that I would be able to share in the near future.
So I went back to "re-boot" the laundry - i.e. fold what was in the dryer, take out from the washer and put in dryer and then start dryer....
but the dryer just would would not start (even after calls to the company hotline and various troubleshooting tactics were tried).
It had been working all morning as I had gotten through about 3 or 4 loads, but it would no longer start at all.
And I knew.
I knew that when I sought and received the spirtual support of my holy friends before the altar of God, the devil decided to go for the jugular....and today the jugular was my dryer.
I knew that the evil one was hitting my dear hubby where he was most vulnerable,
In the "Oh my gosh we have so many unexpected expenditures we will never have enough money for all the kids we have now!!!" place where my so-responsible hubby goes when he is staring at a large and unplanned for repair (or replacement) bill.
Oh yes, he knows where he can get us.
He can get me in the "but I am a good person already, better than most really, I love God and my husband and family and mankind in general and isn't that enough so I deserve a cup of coffee and to sit and read a magazine" place.
The reality of Spiritual Warfare is that he can get us in so many places, places of our deepest sins, places of our silliest little habits, places of our ingrained vices....places where we don't let Jesus go.
So I let Jesus in. I opened the floodgates to prayer and fasting on Friday. Oh, and I threw in a little physical pain for good measure (offering up a really bad sore throat)!
I gave it all up to God today.
I now know that how I present the adoption doesn't matter, nor does it matter what the repair bill on the dryer is, or whether the atmosphere at the restaurant I pick for lunch is appropriate.
I now know that if it is God's will that we adopt that God will move my husband's heart.
I refuse to be afraid.
I refuse to let Satan "get me" (and those I love) in ANY place, either in my heart or in my laundry room.
Game. Set. Match.
Take that Screwtape.
Now I am not one to look for the boogy-man around every shadowy corner, but our Holy Mother Church makes it clear that the devil and his minions are REAL and that they roam the earth seeking the ruin of souls...
While our Lord Jesus Christ has won the war on our behalf, there are skirmishes still to be fought. And since the devil knows that he is ultimately the loser for all eternity, he works more desperately in the present moment to grasp at whatever smaller victory he can...
which is the damnation of individual souls.
We have free will. We can accept or reject Satan the same way we can accept or reject God.
But what I think people today do not realize is that the opportunities for acceptance or rejection come every single day in a hundred little ways. C.S. Lewis realized and expounded upon this in The Screwtape Letters. I saw an amazing theatre performance of the book in the Winter of 2008, when I was pregnant with #6. The Senior Tempter and the demonic minion who delivered his correspondence were the only characters and all the dialogue was straight from the book. It was very powerful to SEE and HEAR the sneering "Uncle Screwtape" giving advice to his "nephew demon" Wormwood on how to lead and tempt and seduce a soul closer and closer to hell.... bit by bit.... using the soul's own desires and yearnings (even the good ones!)... always seeking to capitalize on those sins that particular soul is most inclined to (pride, vanity, gluttony, etc.)
So I had decided earlier in the week that I was going to bring up the subject of Special Needs adoption to my dear hubby on Saturday. I would take him out to lunch after our morning Marriage Retreat at the parish (requred of parents whose children are in Religious Ed) and give him the picture of the little one I am feeling called to bring into our family.
I was getting more and more nervous as the week went on. This is the man I have been married to for almost 22 years and have had 6 children with, yet I was becoming overly concerned about his reaction, about if he would think I am crazy, about him rejecting the idea out-of-hand....
so on Thursday morning, while I was working my way through a mountain of laundry, I decided to call in the "big guns" - my own personal spiritual warriors, 5 very good and holy women who I can always count on for serious support and guidance.
I sent out an urgent email missive to my friends asking for their prayers for a matter I would be discussing with Paul on Saturday, and told them that I would be praying and fasting on Friday for this intention and asked if they would join me. They all replied in a short time with enthusiastic support and obvious curiosity for the subject of their petitions, but they graciously accepted that I would be able to share in the near future.
So I went back to "re-boot" the laundry - i.e. fold what was in the dryer, take out from the washer and put in dryer and then start dryer....
but the dryer just would would not start (even after calls to the company hotline and various troubleshooting tactics were tried).
It had been working all morning as I had gotten through about 3 or 4 loads, but it would no longer start at all.
And I knew.
I knew that when I sought and received the spirtual support of my holy friends before the altar of God, the devil decided to go for the jugular....and today the jugular was my dryer.
I knew that the evil one was hitting my dear hubby where he was most vulnerable,
In the "Oh my gosh we have so many unexpected expenditures we will never have enough money for all the kids we have now!!!" place where my so-responsible hubby goes when he is staring at a large and unplanned for repair (or replacement) bill.
Oh yes, he knows where he can get us.
He can get me in the "but I am a good person already, better than most really, I love God and my husband and family and mankind in general and isn't that enough so I deserve a cup of coffee and to sit and read a magazine" place.
The reality of Spiritual Warfare is that he can get us in so many places, places of our deepest sins, places of our silliest little habits, places of our ingrained vices....places where we don't let Jesus go.
So I let Jesus in. I opened the floodgates to prayer and fasting on Friday. Oh, and I threw in a little physical pain for good measure (offering up a really bad sore throat)!
I gave it all up to God today.
I now know that how I present the adoption doesn't matter, nor does it matter what the repair bill on the dryer is, or whether the atmosphere at the restaurant I pick for lunch is appropriate.
I now know that if it is God's will that we adopt that God will move my husband's heart.
I refuse to be afraid.
I refuse to let Satan "get me" (and those I love) in ANY place, either in my heart or in my laundry room.
Game. Set. Match.
Take that Screwtape.
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