What I worry about is this: if something I perceive as bad is going on in my life, is this God standing in the way of a bad path for me, or is it Satan interfering in my life, or is it my own stupidity and sinfulness keeping me from receiving God’s perfect will for my life? Half the time I don’t know. I just pray that His will be done, but I still go through all kinds of anxiety wondering.
I mean, if it’s His will that I lose my home and end up sleeping on a steam grate and getting my dinner out of a dumpster because He knows I need more humility, then fine, I’ll take that beat-down and thank Him for it. But if it’s the Adversary acting in this, which does happen in our lives, I need to resist it and pray against it. Or am I preventing His grace from working in my life?
eh.
When we don’t know what to pray for, “Thy will be done” or “Fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum” or “Nevertheless, not my will but thine be done,” is ALWAYS Correct.
Both our Lord and our Lady prayed in that way. How could it ever be wrong?
I’ll attempt this briefly and from my own experience.
Bad things happen in our lives because we are subject to the “human” condition; we get sick; we have accidents; loved ones die; children go astray. God doesn’t cause any of this but rather, God made us human and thus subject to the human condition. Making us human, He knew we’d be subject to the human condition. What matters to God is how we handle the problems. In many respects this life is a test; we’re constantly being tested and subjected to the trials and tribulations of the human condition. And its that way because without suffering and hardship there is no learning and no growth; God loves us and wants us to turn to Him in times of trouble the result of the Human condition. The following points are from my experience:
1) If there’s a secondary cause for bad stuff in my life, it’s almost always the result of my own stupidity and sinfulness; I’m really super great at shooting myself in my own foot. Dead on straight aim at that. The lesson I’ve taken from this is STOP IT! or just........STOP! Stop and pray and quit doing it; turn away, go another path. Go to confession and avoid the near occasion of such sin. Let it go!
2) I don’t often find God standing in the way of a bad path for me very often; God gave us Free Will, to choose between the good and the bad. In many respects, we’re like children; tell a kid not to touch the hot stove; they will! Ouch; they don’t do that again. I’ve come to believe that the bad paths are there for a reason; another one of God’s learning tools. As I’ve grown older, I’ve learned the more I pray, the more the “little” voice operates in my life and, I’ve learned to listen to the little voice. God? Maybe. God working through my Guardian Angel? (GA). Most likely. Interesting thing about the GA; mostly its a tiny, hushed whisper to NOT do something; sometimes it’s a HEY YA’ DUMMY, DO THIS NOW. Unlike Rush Limbaugh who is only correct 99% of the time, my GA has proven to be spot-on 100% accurate! Great guy.....he’s weary of me, but great guy!
3) I’ve found Satan interfering in my life quite infrequently, but having said that I will admit that I’ve personally experienced his presence and he’s “called me out” on two occasions. Both times, I walked without arguing. You can’t win an argument with the Evil; he wants to engage you in an argument. The hard thing I’ve come to understand is that there’s a little bit of Satan in all of us and the only answer to that is to turn our backs on that side of our lives. The best way to do that is to abandon the worry and pray.
God wants whats best for you; he doesn’t “want” you to lose your home, but because of unforseen calamity, it could happen. Sometimes, the message I get is to “let it go”, meaining that if I have to make a choice between losing something or turning to friends or family for a solution, I’m better off losing the something today such that I might have a different and often times better something tomorrow. Humility for me usually involves letting go of my independence, and pride and seeking help from others. God works through other people. Seek them out. That’s how you let His grace work in your life.
The Adversary doesn’t want your home; he wants your soul. He’s looking to influence how you handle this “test”, this situation. He’d like to see you lash out and do something hateful to another human being, or better yet, see you turn your back on God. Laugh at him and turn him over to your GA!
Jesus Loves you; Trust in Him!