Let Go Of All The Bad

20 Jul

“You can’t defeat your demons if you’re still enjoying their company.”  ~ Unknown

I should really just leave today’s reflection without any other text than the quote and the Faith Action.  They pretty much say it all.  But, for those who need a little reinforcement, let’s talk.  We cannot defeat our demons if we’re still enjoying their company.

It is no surprise to anyone who knows me that one of my demons is food.  I like it.  I like it way too much.  I have diabetes.  I also have congestive heart failure because of a virus that affected my heart long ago.  It would do me a world of good to be able to take off a considerable amount of weight and keep it off.  That is one demon that I keep pretty close to my side, though.  I love food and I am also a nervous eater.  I know what I need to do.  I just cannot seem to summon up enough will to get it done.

There are many who suffer my affliction.  There are many who suffer others as well dealing with anger, aggression, avarice, pride, sensuality, and a whole host of other ills.  They know that what they are doing is wrong.  They lament that they are doing wrong.  However, they keep those demons close and never seem willing or able to shake them.

St. Paul wrote about this in his letter to the Romans:  “For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want.”

We are in nothing less than a war.  It is a war against the darkness of sin and death.  It is a war against the very enemy himself, the devil.  When we embrace the many temptations that he sends our way, we lose the battle.  Only when we reject the temptation and quit participating in the evil will we be able to be free of him.  But, we cannot rest on our laurels because a new, different, and stronger temptation awaits us when we defeat our other temptations.

They tell people in sports to keep their head in the game and that is exactly what we need to do.  The moment that we take our eyes off of the goal, the moment that we turn from the path that leads to the Kingdom, that is the moment that sin wins another round.

As much as we might enjoy the company of our temptations and sins, they are not going to get us to eternal life.  They are presented to us for the very opposite: to keep us from eternal life.  The question we need to ask ourselves is, “Do we want a brief moment of happiness and contentment and to reject eternity or do we want to spend our lives with God?”  Our answer will determine whether we choose to cozy up with our demons.

FAITH ACTION:  Make a good examination of conscience today and consider going to confession this afternoon.