Evil Can’t Be Understood

Tags

Abuse survivors, evil, france attacks, Genesis 1:27, matthew 6:44, pray for france, praying for enemies, proverbs 4:23, survivors of abuse, survivors of tragedy, terrorism, undertanding evil

To understand the force that ignites a need to destroy is difficult.

This morning I was watching coverage on the terrorism in France and they posted a picture of a smiling, decent looking, young man who allegedly was the ‘mastermind’ to the coordinated bombings and shootings in France Friday. The news anchor made the comment that in the face of this man’s belief he, and those who followed him, believe they are martyrs.

In another segment of the report one eye witness heard a shooter proclaim ‘For God!’.

Being a Christian it is difficult for me to grasp this concept of terror in the name of my God. But if I am to look at it through the experience I’ve had with the ‘enemy’ in my life (devil, satan, Lucifer…whichever you wish to call him) I can see his hand at work. Was the man who smiled at the camera and later led a bloody massacre across the French border once a little boy who was inherently good? Or was the evil at work within him from the moment of conception?

Ah, the age old debate.

Well, I’m not here to debate. This is my personal forum so I am going to say what I believe (or rather, what helps me sleep at night).

I saw that picture of the young man and immediately felt a pang of despair, the same despair a parent might have for a child that somehow along the way got lost and tangled in the thicket of the enemy’s deception. Because I have dealt with such evil in my life I can’t help but believe the greatest tool the enemy uses on any forum (terrorism, pedophilia, narcissism, addiction, etc) is to deplete the ability to have compassion. By taking away compassion from one person the enemy can use that person to do whatever form of harm he wills because there is no care for the effect.

That summation is quite obvious I’d imagine, but for some reason it helps me to try to understand how there is such evil in this world. For those of us who believe in God, (love), then we acknowledge there is the existence of the counterpart which is evil.

Matthew Kelly made a comment this weekend at a Passion & Purpose conference I attended with our church group that struck me. He quoted from the bible:

He then stated, “Why then, when we are in Mass are we not praying for [Isis]?” (He used Osama Bin Laden as the example.)

It is difficult to imagine praying for such evil, however, it is not the work of the enemy you are praying for, it is the creation of God (in His likeness and in His image that was once ‘good’) that deserves the prayer.

I will never fully understand why or how evil can take hold of someone and cause such havoc within another person’s life but I do know because what I have gone through in my past and having stared at the purest of evil face to face I will make an extra effort to walk even closer to my Lord each and every day, putting on the armor of His word, and guard my heart for the love of the Lord.

Heavenly Father, I pray for those who lost loved ones in the face of evil in France. May they know your grace and mercy in this time of heartache and despair. Instill within them the fire of your love to ignite their ability to persevere and carry on. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Blessings

Shannon

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Toe to Toe (Day 229)

Tags

evil, Faith, God, overcoming addiction, porn addiction, prayer, spirituality, St. Michael prayer

Half the day has passed with enough work that I no longer feel guilty for my ‘lazy day’ yesterday. I took phone calls and heard about the various ways evil creeps into our lives. As I work with survivors and hear about the ways in which others have hurt and are hurting them I see the common factor.

Our battle is not with God’s beloved…it’s with the enemy that deceives, conives and perpetuates the evil warping the free will.

I spoke to a young woman today who had been through a similar situation as myself and found herself in an abusive relationship. Through the help of counseling she began to recognize her worth and got out of the abusive relationship. For another year or two she continued to get help, went deeper into her faith and accepted the grace of redemption.

Now she is in a relationship that is blessed on so many levels. They share in their faith and pray daily together. In almost every aspect he respects and upholds her the way she should be upheld. Almost. He suffers from a porn addiction.

This young woman is now toe to toe with the enemy and she isn’t backing down. She realizes she deserves to enter into a marriage with a man who will not be looking at or thinking of another woman or sexual images, especially in the sanctity of their bedroom. Together they are fighting this battle and she is adamant about winning before vows are spoken.

Overcoming any addiction is tough but what makes overcoming a porn addiction even more arduous is because this particular temptation is everywhere. An alcoholic would avoid walking into bars, stores that sell alcohol and any situations that could lead to offering a drink. A porn addict has the pictures seared in their memory and the temptation is all around, on daily television shows, commercials, all media outlets, highway billboards, etc.

My prayers are with this survivor and her boyfriend as they go through this delicate process of getting the proper help he needs to overcome this addiction. I’m grateful she understands that it’s not something to overlook within the relationship, especially when a possible marriage is in the horizon.

I think about her and the other calls I took today and the many ways the enemy is trying so hard to keep them in the dark with empty arguments. And I think about myself and the internal struggles I endure now recognizing in many ways the enemy sneaking in to trip me up.

So today I feel a special call to say the prayer to St. Michael the Arch Angel. To offer this prayer to all of you as well as we stand toe to toe with the enemy and courageously proclaim, “I’m saved by the blood of Christ get behind me satan.”

Blessings

Shannon