12/22/2023 0 Comments Catapult actingGod’s choice is always the better good choice Satan’s the lesser good choice. Instead, he will offer us a choice that seems good and we must decide between two good choices. Look at the path again: by stopping us in that very first step, he keeps us from the entire path to holiness! For the Christian pursuing God, Satan knows he can’t easily tempt us with mortal sin. Those motes, swamps and pitfalls have two sources: either our own trauma and pain, or the enemy’s wiles. That one takes a real purging of ourselves to ‘lighten the load’ of our souls. With God’s grace, however, we persevere straight through the Ice Cream Floats and can see King Kandy’s Castle ahead, only to get stuck in the Molasses Swamp. Just as we see the Lollipop Forest ahead of us, we take an easier choice and land in the cherry pitfall for a while. Filled with peppermint sticks, gumdrops and Grandma Nutt’s peanut brittle (all God’s grace), we forge ahead growing in prudence, moderation, steadfastness and desire for good of others (justice). Now, in the “Candyland” game of life, we know this path has its pitfalls. We do this hand-in-hand with God it is where relationship is built and healing is given. Our ‘effort’ is to identify it with God’s help, admit it fully and honestly to Him, and rectify it by choosing the virtuous act instead (as directed by His Spirit). Not to undermine the need to stay out of mortal sin, it is our effort to be rid of our venial sins, vices and weaknesses that are the turning point in the spiritual life. This is precisely how the saints became saints, and we are too! And it all begins with our choice to do good. This is the path of our growth in God and the growth of God’s presence in us. It becomes your everyday lived experience, in this very moment today! This is known as sanctifying or habitual grace. The more frequent our virtuous choices, the more often we have His eyes to see and understand. The saints say Jesus imprints His own intellect and will upon ours. If we continue to respond to God’s inspiration, which includes the Holy Spirit’s conviction of those times we aren’t acting virtuous, He perfects our soul. Each of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit associate to these three supernatural virtues.This means that our virtuous acts for others actually perfect us in the process! We cannot instigate these we dispose ourselves to it and He does the rest. However, these three supernatural virtues come solely from God. In our natural ‘good deeds’, we choose to act virtuously. Now they begin to become more active, perfecting our ‘habits’ and our soul. The supernatural (theological) virtues of Faith, Hope and Love were infused in our soul at baptism.Those virtuous ways become our habits.He animates it and gives us the actual grace to persevere, but we must will to do it. It is our part in the harmony of creation. God created each of us with ability to do some good by our own human nature. We act in ways that are naturally ‘virtuous’.We say “yes” and accept that desire to do good for others.God gives us desire for Him and the good of others.It is given to us by revelation in Sacred Scripture and explained further through the teachings of our saints: With God, there is a clearly defined path for our relationship. This brings us to the square on the game board that says “Start”. Something incites us with a desire to be in relation with the other person. If we let God have His way, it can become His resurrection in us, bringing us new life.Īny relationship is like the game Candyland and so is our relationship with God. ![]() The purpose of Lent is to prepare us for Easter, the Resurrection. With Lent right around the corner, many of us are taking to heart how we can let this special season be a catapult to change in our life.
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