Battle?

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Mike67

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I had a major conversion experince roughly 3 years ago. As a result of this experience, my “eyes were opened” in regards to the richness of our Catholic faith. Also, my “eyes were opened” as to how I had been living my life. I want desperately to live in accord with the teaching of Jesus Christ through his Church. My question is this, why does it feel at times that I am on a battlefield and getting frequently wounded in this conflict? Shouldn’t it be easier than this? To those who feel compelled, please come to my aid with your advice as to how to you deal with your DAILY battles. Thank you in advance!
 
Yes, it is spiritual warfare. Even St. John of the Cross and blessèd Mother Teresa – as holy as they were – experienced dark nights of the soul, when everything felt hopeless and futile. But it is perseverance, precisely at those moments, that makes for victory.

May these inspirational quotations help you at these times of trial:

“Your temptations are from the devil and from Hell; but your sufferings and afflictions are from God and Heaven. The mothers are from Babylon but the daughters are from Jerusalem. Despise temptations and embrace tribulations. No, my child, let the wind blow and do not think that the noise of the leaves is the clash of arms.” - St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina

“Temptations, discouragement and unrest are the wares offered by the enemy. Remember this: if the devil makes noise it is a sign that he is still outside and not yet within. That which must terrify us is his peace and concord with the human soul.” - St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina

“Virtue is nothing without the trial of temptation, for there is no conflict without an enemy, no victory without strife.” - Pope St. Leo the Great

“Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but rather we have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.” - Aristotle

“Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point.” - C.S. Lewis

“Prayer is the oxygen of the soul.” - St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina

Keep praying!
 
Mike67 said:
I had a major conversion experince roughly 3 years ago. As a result of this experience, my “eyes were opened” in regards to the richness of our Catholic faith. Also, my “eyes were opened” as to how I had been living my life. I want desperately to live in accord with the teaching of Jesus Christ through his Church. My question is this, why does it feel at times that I am on a battlefield and getting frequently wounded in this conflict? Shouldn’t it be easier than this? To those who feel compelled, please come to my aid with your advice as to how to you deal with your DAILY battles. Thank you in advance!
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I keep getting back up after being knocked down. Confession every few weeks, even if I have to drag myself there. I had an experience over 2 years ago and find it can be tough when you haven’t had a slow process to build on, but are thrust into believing. Everything changes so quickly, it seems I learn after the fact, by my mistakes. We have to trust Jesus all the more as a result. Trust that He is teaching us, even with our mistakes. In battle, don’t take on the enemy by yourself, but give it up for the Lord to take care of it. It seems the more I try to fight by my own wits and will, the more ground I lose. Rely on the Lord and the intervention of the angels and Saints to get you through the fights. Obedience, humility in battle are your weapons. Pray for help and keep the Sacraments close. Tim
 
My question is this, why does it feel at times that I am on a battlefield and getting frequently wounded in this conflict? Shouldn’t it be easier than this?

It IS a battlefield. Do you think it’s for nothing when St. Paul says to “put on the whole armor of God” in Ephesians 6?

And no, it’s not easier at all. In fact, the holier you become, the more difficult it is.
 
Mike67 said:
I had a major conversion experince roughly 3 years ago. As a result of this experience, my “eyes were opened” in regards to the richness of our Catholic faith. Also, my “eyes were opened” as to how I had been living my life. I want desperately to live in accord with the teaching of Jesus Christ through his Church. My question is this, why does it feel at times that I am on a battlefield and getting frequently wounded in this conflict? Shouldn’t it be easier than this? To those who feel compelled, please come to my aid with your advice as to how to you deal with your DAILY battles. Thank you in advance!
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It is a battle. Not just daily - but at every moment of the day. It will not get easier, not for you, not for me…not for anyone who picks up their cross and doesn’t look back.
These are heroic times we live in my friend. The prophecies that have been fullfilled thus far, and the ones that will soon come to pass - will polarize humanity to join the spiritual battle or surrender to the forces of Lucifer, the influence of the world or to our own concupiscence.
I recommend you listen to the sermons of Father Corapi. You will bring from them a sense of mission and allegiance with the militae celestis.

Heroic times my friend…you are not alone.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum.
 
Yes we are in a spiritual battle but the main thing to remember is that Jesus through His death and resurection has already won the battle and so if we are on His side we have nothing to lose.

He has given us a fortress (His church) and soldiers (His saints) and all the weapons we could possibly need to protect ourselves. Call on St Michael the archangel to help you when you feel overwhelmed. Learn this prayer. “St Michael the Archangel defend us in battle…”

Know that you are not alone and be at peace.
 
Just to add to the excellent advice you received from the previous posters: stay close to our Lord through the sacraments, receive them often and as humbly as possible. Prayer, and sacramentals are some of the most powerful weapons our Church has provided for us, too.
 
Alessandro, TOP, bpbasilphx, Mangy Dog, St. Gabriel, mommyof4, thank you all for taking the time to respond to my question. I realize it takes time, effort, and thought to respond in the supportive way that you did. Your advice is very comforting and helpful to me, as I was feeling a bit overwhelmed. With the help of Jesus Christ and his Catholic Church, I will fight on!
God Bless you and stay strong!
 
Let me tell you that the Blessed Sacrament is perhaps the greatest gift that we could have received from our Lord. The strength I get from sitting in the radiance of the tabernacle was indescribable, and until recently, i was not aware of it’s power.

You see, i am on Christmas break from school now, so I no longer have my morning holy half hour. Guess what happened? After 10 weeks of being the best I could, bam! right back into the filth of sin. For me, first it started with serious doubt of God, and that no one could guarantee my salvation. It was pure despair. On top of it i stopped praying. I was too tired by the end of the day. It has happened to me twice, but the second time i recognized it for what it was.

The target of the enemy is our resolve and our spirit, and you always have to be on guard of the thoughts in your head. All sin is born of the mind, and what you put in there. This is my own medicine as I must heal myself, but never stop praying, and visit with our Lord. I cannot receive Him yet, but I look forward to it with all my heart.

There is indeed a war going on, the likes of which we cannot fathom. The value of each of our souls is so great, so much so that Christ would endure the pains and suffering of crucifixion for only ONE OF US! How valuable we must be! We are all at battle, so Mike my friend, do not worry, you are not the only one out there.

I am on week 11 of my journey to Christ, I have gone full throttle since the beginning and the changes have been great. As such, there will be large aftershocks because of my inexperience, but I am prepared to weather them.

Remember our weapons:
  1. Eucharist (if you can receive)
  2. Confession!
  3. Prayer! (rosary, divine mercy, person devotions)
  4. Sacramentals!
The war is over, but the individual battles must be won!

Fellow spiritual combatant,

-revelations
 
Hebrews Chapter 12 is inspiring. usccb.org/nab/bible/hebrews/hebrews12.htm

The Lord loves each one of us more than we love ourselves. He permits suffering, for the sake of discipline, to brings about our salvation. This seems painful rather than pleasant, but it brings the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

Peace,

Ryan 🙂
 
Mike67 said:
I had a major conversion experince roughly 3 years ago. To those who feel compelled, please come to my aid with your advice as to how to you deal with your DAILY battles. Thank you in advance!
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If you do not already, try saying the Lord’s prayer before getting up in the morning. It sets the mood for the entire day. You might follow it with the act of contrition, since it calls to mind how we offend God when we sin. It also expresses sorrow, and a determination to avoid sin and that which leads us to sin. It will bring graces.

Fasting is a constant reminder of how much Christ sacrificed for us. Let the hunger be a penance. Make it serious and the Lord will seriously return graces to you.

Prayer. Pray at home, at work, while on the way, always. Small prayers. Soon, you will not be able to say everything in small prayers and will expand them.

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. This is one of the most underutilized of all devotions. If Christ in the flesh was seated in prayer at your parish, you could find time to spend with him, correct? He is there. Go and just adore Him. Be still and know He is God. Read scripture, intercede, say a rosary or divine mercy chaplet.

Please consider being “baptized” in the Holy Spirit. This is usually performed at charismatic functions, such as "Life in the Spirit’ seminars. All I can tell you is that my faith life exploded after the gifts of the Holy Spirit were released. I have seen minor miracles in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.

The Lord, as a blessing and test, has sent all sorts of fallen away Catholics my way. Your life of devotion and adoration will speak to seeking hearts by loving example.

Christ’s peace be always with you.
 
Hi Mike!

About a week ago, I was honored to meet and talk with a Russian Orthodox Priest (Fr. Michael) who is discerning coming into the Latin Rite. I met him at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville, AL. (Pray for him)

Anyway, our conversation was great. He said that he is in the process of writing a book for Laity on Prayers of Deliverence. When I started quizzing him on it all :rolleyes: I found out that he was an Exorcists. Cool huh?

So, he gave me some advice. He told me to everyday pray the Litany of The Holy Angels, which I found here. Then he told me to google Catholic Warrior Catalog, and look at some prayers of deliverence, and pray one of those every day…look here…

He told me that this would help my prayer life. He told me that we all need deliverence from evil because satan is everywhere, and satan loves to tempt, especially those who wish to be holy. He also told me to expect some influences to happen, to try to get me to stop praying so much…so I don’t know if I’m ready to do that…but…I have Jesus on my side!

(I"m really praying that he becomes a Brother at the Shrine, he would be a good Spiritual Director, ya know!)
 
Dear Mike… there is a reason that those of us still on earth… are called “The Church Militant”. Yes, we are indeed… in a battle. A spiritual battle. A very real battle. In addition to love of Our Lord and Our Lady… devotion to St. Michael can help. Here is the famous prayer to St. Michael:

“Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle,
be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil; may God rebuke him, we humbly pray and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into hell satan and all the evil spirits who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.”

Put on the armour of God, and remember… that we are His loved children. Hope this helps some.:knight1:
 
Hey my friend,
Unfortunately the temptations never stop. Its the desires you must put the reigns on. The only way to do that is to keep focused on Jesus and eventually you will lose the desire to give in to the temptations. Remember when Peter took off walking on the water to Jesus and he looked down…he took his eyes off Jesus and began sinking. Conversion of heart is an ongoing process. If and when you fall, reach your hand out to him and he will help you back up. Make regular examinations of conscience and go to confession. 👍
 
A resource I have found tremendously helpful are the spiritual warfare prayers found on this site:

saint-mike.org/spcdc/swprayers/default.asp

And the “self help” section of the website, found here:

saint-mike.org/spcdc/help.asp

The site is focused on helping those under demonic oppression, but the advice given there is appropriate for anyone experiencing a spiritual battle like you are describing. I found the prayers and seven steps personally helpful for me.
 
Mike67 said:
I had a major conversion experince roughly 3 years ago. As a result of this experience, my “eyes were opened” in regards to the richness of our Catholic faith. Also, my “eyes were opened” as to how I had been living my life. I want desperately to live in accord with the teaching of Jesus Christ through his Church. My question is this, why does it feel at times that I am on a battlefield and getting frequently wounded in this conflict? Shouldn’t it be easier than this? To those who feel compelled, please come to my aid with your advice as to how to you deal with your DAILY battles. Thank you in advance!
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Let me first say that I know how you feel. It can be very difficult sometimes. Just pray fervently. I know that it helps if I pray my own prayers and not the old prayers of the church (not that they ar bad). Prayer needs to come directly from your heart to God.
 
Rev. 12:17 “And the dragon (satan) was angry at the woman and declared war against the rest of her children-all who keep God’s commandments and maintain their testimony for Jesus.”

Suit up pal.

Peace,
Steve
 
"For, whether we desire it or not, we shall be tempted. If we do not struggle, we shall not be victorious, nor shall we merit the crown of immortal glory which God has prepared for those of us who are victorious and triumphant.

Let us fear neither the temptation nor the tempter, for if we make use of the shield of faith and the armor of truth, they will have no power whatsoever over us."

St. Francis de Sales - Oeuvres
 
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