Spiritual Warfare

In today’s first reading, Romans 7: 18-25a, St. Paul honestly expresses the spiritual struggles we all encounter as disciples of Christ.  We are inspired, passionate, in fact, about doing something good.  We are filled with good intentions only to see them evaporate in short order.  Guilt may even set in and we may even say to ourselves: “Lots of hot air but no action”; or, more painfully, others may say that of us.  Then, too, we may find ourselves doing what we do not want to do: judging another, complaining about another; even ranting and raving about this or that in the world, in the church, in our country, in our government; yes, even in our families, our parishes, and/or our religious communities.

Who, St. Paul asks, will free us from this mortal body with its weaknesses and its sinful inclinations? When will we, once and for all, stay on the path of holiness, seeds of which also exist within us?  When will we actually follow through with our good intentions more often than not?  If we are relying on ourselves alone, the answer is “Never.” If we are relying on Christ, the answer is “Now, in Christ Jesus”.
In faith, we know that we will accomplish the good to which we have set our minds, that which we are determined to accomplished because “God is with us.”  The truth is that we will always encounter difficulties that need to be overcome, weaknesses that need to be strengthened, “hot air” that needs to be dispelled.  Like any athlete, artist, writer, designer, musician; like anyone taking on a task worth doing, the “gold medal” will be won by strengthening our “weak muscles,” overcoming fatigue and meeting whatever obstacles are encountered along the way and do so with the help of Christ Jesus and  many other disciples on the same journey.