Bad Flesh Days II

“Desolation is when we are bogged down in spirit, in mental darkness or turmoil, inclined to earthly things, restless and agitated in temptation. This leads to loss of faith, hope and love. One is completely listless, tepid, and unhappy and feels separated from our Creator and Lord…. One should never make a change during a time of desolation… For just as the good spirit guides and counsels us in times of consolation, so it is the evil spirit who guides and counsels us in times of desolation. We will never reach the right decision by following his counsels.”
-Ignatius of Loyola

Desire and Will

“O my God, if through ignorance or self-will I should ever desire anything but Your will, may I always be confounded and punished, not because of Your justice, but because of your pity and great mercy.”
-Jean-Pierre de Caussade

Spiritual Enslavement

“Do you know what makes people really spiritual? It is when they become enslaved to God and are branded with his sign, the sign of the cross, signifying that they have surrendered their freedom to Him. Then He can sell them as slaves to the entire world, as He himself was sold.”
-Teresa of Avila

"We Are Not Our Own..."

“...therefore let neither our will nor our reason determine what we plan and do. We are not our own: therefore let us, as much as we can, forget ourselves and everything that is ours. On the contrary, we are God’s: therefore let his wisdom and will rule all that we do.”
-John Calvin

Telling the Truth, the Whole Truth

Always tell the truth. Rarely tell all the truth. Almost no one can be trusted with the whole truth.

People In A Box

Don’t trust any ideology. If anyone thinks that they have a system of thought that explains everything, they’re wrong. Life is just too complex to be put in a box. Even God, when he was teaching us reality, gave us a bunch of stories without a tidy end. So anyone who says, “I know just what God is like” or “This is the philosophy of life you should live”—they have had to ignore so much of reality so they could fit what was left in their box, that the box is worthless.

Relliant Q

Don’t completely depend on other people. Every single one of us will fail another at any moment. Thus, always have a back up plan for when someone’s weakness becomes evident. And never be irrationally angry at others when they display their weakness. One day, you will want them to be forgiving of yours.