“A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good, but an evil person out of a store of evil produces evil; for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks” (Lk 6:45).
We can experience hardships, trials, and suffering. We may have experienced recurring anxieties, insecurities, fears, traumas, and even come face to face with evil. Yet, we are not evil because of what happens to us, nor how we are tempted. Neither are we defined by any trauma, suffering, or abuse. We have been created good by our loving God and Father.
Negativity, sin, hate, and even evil, can be seductive, can lure us to rationalize and decide that what we may think of as good in the moment, is in reality, just an apparent good, a disordered good, or not good at all. To encounter or experience a word or act of unkindness, negativity, or even violence, we may feel justified in retaliation, yet if we speak or act in this way, we perpetuate the negativity or evil we seek to stand up against. In The Strength to Love, a collection of Dr. Martin Luther King’s sermons he wrote:
“Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction.”
At the moment we can identify a thought in our mind, let us breathe and decide where and from whom this thought is coming from. Let us bring the thought to the Lord. Often times our emotions arise from unidentified thoughts. Once we are blessed to be identify the thought, then we decided with God what to do. Many thoughts come from ourselves. They arise from the past experiences as well as the anticipation of the future. Others come from external experiences, observations, and/or concupiscence – our tendency to sin, and yes even some from demonic influences.
What we listen to, read, and/or watch on a regular basis has more influence on us than we might believe. Discerning each thought or influence that comes our way is important. Being more attentive to what we are feeding on, literally and figuratively, honestly assessing our thoughts before we speak and act, thinking through and deciding on what we will say and do is different and more helpful than immediately or impulsively reacting.
Consuming the things of this world will lead to a different way of life than meditating and pondering on the things from above (cf. Colossians 3:1). Spending time in prayer and following Jesus’ commands will help us to bear the fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control”(Galatians 5:22-23). Honestly examining our conscience daily will help us to be purified from that which is deadening and renew and heal us.
Violence and the worst of our humanity continue through multiple media outlets, also, they horrifically materialize in real time, and ad nauseam on 24/7 cable coverage. One way to counter evil is to resist bringing it into our homes, resist returning evil for evil even with thoughts, and instead learning and putting into practice Jesus’ teachings, which will help to expose the darkness in our own hearts. We will see more precisely how to clear out the spiritual, plaque buildup of our own fears, wounds, frustrations, disruptions, and disordered affections. Doing so will allow more room for the love of the Holy Spirit to flow. With our hearts flowing with love, we will react less, listen, think, and speak better, and choose to act in ways that promote healing, understanding, forgiveness, reconciliation, and love.
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Photo: Main chapel at the Retreat and Conference Center of the Immaculate Conception, Huntington, NY.
Spiritual Stepping Stones 