We Are All in a Spiritual Battle

Is this battle winnable? Not only is it winnable, Jesus Christ has already won it on the Cross, through his death and resurrection. And He has left us the weapons to fight and win this battle as well. We have the truths of the Gospel, and all of Scriptures, that are truer than any of our thoughts; we have the power of the Cross where the strongholds in our minds can be crucified (sometimes slowly); and we have the power of the Sacraments with all the graces that flow from them. We also have the power of the Holy Spirit and the power of prayer. We have many weapons to defeat evil, but it is a battle we cannot win alone. We need other Catholic men willing to stand shoulder to shoulder with us.

Have you ever seen a one-man army attack an enemy? No. Have you ever seen a war movie where a soldier in a foxhole gets so frustrated that he jumps out of the foxhole and attacks the enemy with his weapon blazing? What always happens to him? We all need to stop thinking that we can fight this battle alone. Why would we want to fight evil alone?

Evil never fights us alone. Their army includes the Evil one and his fallen angels, the philosophy of the fallen world, and the influence of the flesh. All these work in a concerted and coordinated fashion to cause confusion, hopelessness, and lack of faith in God’s people. If the forces of evil fight together, shouldn’t we fight together?

Have you ever noticed that it is often during the battles that we get isolated? We all do that. We are going through a struggle and the last thing that we want to do is to talk to another man. Where do you think that comes from? Certainly, not from God. On the contrary, the Scriptures have a lot to say about the importance of men supporting other men.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10)

Where a lone man may be overcome, two together can resist. A three-ply cord is not easily broken (Ecclesiastes 4:12)

As iron sharpens iron so one man sharpens another (Proverbs 27:17)

How good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

A friend loves at all times. A brother is there to help in times of adversity (Proverbs 17:17)

Are you part of a Catholic men’s fellowship group, where men pray and support one another, grow in their faith together, and yes, stand shoulder-to-shoulder with you? There are Catholic men’s fellowship groups in parishes all over the country. If there isn’t one in your parish, consider starting one. If you need some ideas on how to start a men’s group or resources to use in a men’s group, come to the National Fellowship of Catholic Men website.

Do you remember the movie, The Patriot, with Mel Gibson, which took place during the Revolutionary War? He did not want any part of the war, but the war was waging all around him. Eventually, he had no choice but to become part of it when his son was murdered. Christians in Europe during World War II may have wanted to ignore the war, even as Jews were being transported to concentration camps, but soon the war came to them. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran pastor in Germany, couldn’t avoid the war either, even when he visited the USA. Eventually, he was sent to prison and executed by the Nazis

“I don’t care about a spiritual battle; I am just trying to survive and juggle all of the balls that I have in my life.” As an over-committed and stressed-out Catholic man you may not want to be in a battle, but you are in one whether you want to be or not. Every day, the evil one attacks us — sometimes lulling us to sleep, other times tempting us to lose our peace, getting us discouraged, overwhelming us with our kids or problems at work, trying to drive wedges between us and our spouses or others, etc. He knows our weakness and attacks the weak part of our lives as often as possible. The evil one doesn’t take a day off in the spiritual battle against us.

We are in a battle for our minds, a battle for our children and families, battle for souls who don’t know the Lord, battle against a philosophy that is defined by the values of this world. The evil one is assaulting every part of God’s kingdom. We need to recognize that we are in a battle every day, like it or not. But this battle is a winnable one. Listen to these words from 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.

For although we are in the flesh, we do not battle according to the flesh, for the weapons of our battle are not of flesh, but are enormously powerful, capable of destroying fortresses. We destroy arguments and every pretension raising itself against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive in obedience to Christ.

What strongholds are in us that set themselves up against the knowledge of Jesus Christ? Discouragement, cynicism, fear and anxiety, worldliness, isolation, judging others, problems at work, problems with the kids, problems with the other men? What way of thinking or situation do you feel: “I just can’t change this situation or way of thinking.” These strongholds and thoughts rise up against the knowledge of God and are at war against the life of the Holy Spirit in us. However, Scriptures give us the proper response. Here is Romans 8:37-39 (with some paraphrasing).

No, in all these things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither thoughts of discouragement or cynicism, fear or anxiety, worldly values or tendencies to become isolated, problems at work or at home, nor any attack that stands against the knowledge of God shall be able to separate us from the love of God that is found in Christ Jesus.

And that is the battle that we face every day — whatever tries to separate ourselves from the love of God is the major battle.

Victory is not only for us, but also for others.

But we are not only in the midst of a battle for our thoughts and minds; we are also battling for others. We are battling for the souls of our friends. We are battling for our children and grandchildren. Don’t we sometimes feel helpless regarding our kids, especially if they have moved out and are going through tough times? We are battling so that others will be set free from evil and come into the Kingdom of God. We may not see the benefits, but others will, and that will be worth it. It may seem helpless, but it’s not — but that is how the devil wants us to feel.

If we belong to Christ, then our lives are not for us. We are in a battle that will benefit our wives, our kids or grandkids, our friends, and many others. But we don’t belong to ourselves anymore. It’s going to cost us our lives, and others will benefit. But isn’t that worth it? Our lives belong not to us, but to God. If we are to sacrifice our lives to God, it will cost us, just like Jesus.

2 Samuel 24:21-24 says: “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”

“To buy your threshing floor so I can build an altar to the Lord, that the plague may be stopped.”

Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take whatever pleases him…”

But the king replied, “No, I insist on paying for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God offerings that cost me nothing.”

Why fight alone?