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Surabaya Sharing
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 RESISTING
THE EVIL ONE
- By Bombet Malinao
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Evil
spirits...it took me a while to start this sharing because I thought
I have not had an encounter with evil spirits. Lucky me?
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The only
instances I can remember when I came close to having an encounter with
evil spirits are the times when I was feeling unusually BAD and I would
pick a fight with anybody at the
slightest provocation. Evil spirits must have played with my emotions
and caused me to be fussy and irritable. Then, I also remember the time
when my friends and I were working so hard on refurbishing our church
and some people spread words like we were after popularity or we wanted
to usurp the leadership of the pastoral council. Aren't those evil
spirits directing their malicious thoughts? Then, there was also this
time... Oh my, why can't I stop now?
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The
truth of the matter is that EVIL SPIRITS ARE REAL. We read about them
in the Holy Scripture from Genesis to Apocalypse. In the Parable
of the Weeds, our Lord said that “the enemy sowed weeds among
the wheat” (Matthew 13:25). In the Parable of the Sower, “the
evil one comes and snatches away what is sown…" (Matthew 13:19).
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Francis
Fernandez in In Conversation with God wrote that the devil's activity
is mysterious but at the same time real and effective. St. Irenaeus
wrote, "the devil will try to reduce the human spirit and lead it to
violate God's precepts, little by little darkening the hearts of those
who try to serve him." To this, St. Peter has a sound advice: "Be
sober, be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a
lion, seeking someone to devour. RESIST HIM FIRM IN YOUR FAITH"
(1 Peter 5:8-9).
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God has
given us several means to overcome evil. One of them is our guardian
angel who is around to help and protect us. Don't you sometimes feel
your guardian angel protecting you against the evil one? One time I was
already in bed, when I remembered I forgot to thaw the chicken for my
husband’s lunch in the office the following day. The devil actually
made me so lazy to get up and take the chicken out of the freezer, never
mind if my husband goes hungry. Did you know what happened that night?
The electricity went off and all the ice melted in the ref! And there
was the mighty chicken…ready to be cooked the following morning. Who
else would have done it but my guardian angel, preventing me from
turning into a thoughtless wife!
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This one
a friend told me several years ago, and which I find most effective -
the use of HOLY WATER. St. Teresa of Avila wrote, "From nothing do evil
spirits flee more precipitately, never to return, than from holy
water." My husband once complained that he was feeling a "certain
presence" every time he was alone in our previous house. I sprinkled
holy water all over the place - in the rooms, in the garden…and he never
had that feeling again. I still do it even if we don't feel
any "presence."
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And lastly, let us not
forget that we will not be able to overcome the power of the evil one
without PRAYER. Let us give more attention to the last petition when we
recite the Our Father...lead us not into temptation...deliver us from
evil. AMEN.
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- TELL US LIKE IT IS!
- Has something
wonderful and unique happened in your life lately? Did God answer your
prayer in a very unexpected way? Did you, like Isaiah, meet God’s
whisper?
- Have you felt His
powerful hand working in your life recently?
- Everyday, people are
experiencing God’s mighty Word in their lives and it is a pity that very
few know about it. Do you have a story to tell? Some Good News to
share?
- E-mail us (genesis@catholic.org) or fax us
(021-6627384), and tell us about it. That’s right! You don’t have to be
a great writer to do this. We can help you write it – just tell us like
it is!
- Don’t forget to write
the subject: “Let Me Tell You A
Story”
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IN THIS ISSUE:
HIS Servant
by Bro. Pete Lapid
Our Faith
By Fr. KJ Veeger, MSC
Place of Refuge
By Philip Yuson
Surabaya Corner
By Ramon Martillano
Inspirational
Community Life ~ Here's the Latest
By Beth Manibog
Genesis Chronicles
By Chen Manabat
Surabaya Sharing
By Bombet Malinao
Straight from the Heart
By Carolle Bautista
On Focus
By Sansu Garin
Saint for the Month
Source: Catholic Online
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