IN our spiritual life, we need to always go forward, to advance, to cover more area. In other words, we have to always go on the offensive. We cannot be all the time defensive, though that is also necessary, but as a complement to our efforts to reach our ultimate goal.
For our spiritual life to be truly alive and healthy, we should not just wait for things to happen. We have to make things happen. We cannot afford to be cold. We have to try our best to be as hot as possible and for always.
This is not going to be an easy task, of course. But we have been assured of God’s grace, and if we correspond to that grace as much as we can, somehow some progress can be made. More virtues can be acquired and developed. We can reach out to more and more people. We can do a lot of good.
Let us remember that in our spiritual life, that is, in our relation with God and with everybody else which is marked always by love, there is no such thing as a fixed position. Either we move forward or we slide backward. Let us not be deceived by the idea that we can be in some stable and fixed condition. The spiritual life is supposed to be always in a dynamic state.
So, everyday we should make some strategy that is realistic and doable. That way we would have a clear idea of how our day would go. Hardly anything would be worse if we do not know what we are supposed to accomplish for the day, putting ourselves completely at the mercy of the external factors.
Let’s be clear of the goals to reach, the resources to use, the circumstances to contend with, etc. In this, we should try to be experts, hopefully moving from the amateur level to that of a professional.
Truth is everyday we are always confronted with challenges. If we just care to take note of them, they will always be around. For example, we need to fight daily against laziness, sensuality, improper attachments to things. We need to improve our skill at praying and offering sacrifices. We need to do some tweaking and polishing of the virtues we already have.
Yes, our life here on earth is always in a state of war. Our heart is the battleground between the forces of good and evil. The Book of Job says it: “The life of man upon earth is a warfare…” (7,1) And Christ himself said: “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it.” (Mt 11,12)
To be sure, this spiritual warfare is always done in charity. It is waged without bitterness, hatred, but rather in peace and joy. For it, the primary armaments are the spiritual and supernatural means of prayer, sacrifice, the sacraments and the constant effort at ascetical struggle.
Going on the offensive in our spiritual life will make us always on the move, always trying our best to be in the best condition for the fighting, sharpening our combat skills and our ‘intelligence’ work, so to speak, etc.
Let’s remember that we are ranged against formidable enemies, first of whom would be our own selves who have been weakened by sin, and the world with its many deceptive allurements, and the devil himself who is so astute.
May it be that as early as possible, we are aware of this need and start to train ourselves for this purpose. Yes, the families should be the first training ground, and they should be helped by the schools, the parishes, and other entities.
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Fr. Roy Cimagala is the Chaplain of the Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise, Talamban, Cebu City (roycimagala@gmail.com)/PN
