In today’s reading (Mark 1:21-28) we see an exchange between Jesus and an evil spirit that has found a home in a man in the synagogue. Clearly, the emphasis is on the power of Jesus over evil as he calls the evil spirit out of the man. It is a violent exorcism as the man convulses when the spirit is removed.
I think it is safe to say that most of us have never encountered an event where an evil spirit is excised out of someone, but that does not mean that we have never encountered the presence of evil.
Evil comes in many forms, and it is more likely that we have suffered much less dramatic encounters such as when we have given in to dangerous temptations, unhealthy worldly desires or embraced sin. There are so many ways that we cooperate with evil.
Because the presence of evil can be very subtle, if we are not paying attention, we may be seduced by it without even realizing it.
The best remedy we have for resisting and recognizing evil is staying close to God. It we center our lives on Jesus, truly loving others, doing what we can for the benefit of the poor and vulnerable, looking outward, and praying without ceasing, we will not leave a lot of space for evil to enter.
Sometimes we need to step back and re-evaluate our lives. We need to ask ourselves how we are spending our time and if our focus is mainly on the bubble of our own existence. We may discover it is time to make some changes.
Such an examination will help us to excise those things in our life that are not of God and not suited to the life of a Christian disciple.
Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.blogspot.com
No comments:
Post a Comment