POWERLESSNESS LEADS to LUST Seek to Medicate That Pain with Pleasure Or Relationships Outside of God
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Friday of 3rd Week of Lent The deadly wound of powerlessness leads to the deadly sin of lust. When we feel overwhelmed or don’t know what to do then we can POWERLESSNESS LEADS TO LUST seek to medicate that pain with pleasure or relationships outside of God. The false god of lust is pleasure or relationship outside of God. “Above all, deep and true humility is needed, without which one will When we are overwhelmed then we experience pain and can seek to never attain victory over any passion. Victory over this passion is a cover it up with pleasure but eventually the pleasure will fade and the freeing for the perfect purifying of the heart, from which, according to pain remains. We can start to go to certain people when we do not the words of the Lord, flow forth poison and grave ills: 'For out of the know what to do and look to them to tell us what to do. The problem heart proceed evil thoughts, ... adulteries, fornications' and so forth.” with this is we start to treat that person like a god rather than asking – St. John Cassian the one true God for guidance. How have you allowed feelings of powerlessness to lead you into the deadly sin of lust? ST MOSES THE ETHIOPIAN For your prayer St. Moses prayed with Matthew 12: 28-34. Use your imagination as Moses was the leader of a band of murderers and robbers who you read Matthew 12: 28-34. Please reflect on how the great rampaged through Egypt in the early fifth century. He learned that commandant of love is rooted in our relationship with God being the when he felt powerless that he could go to lust and blot out his pain primary relationship in our lives. How can you go to your relationship with pleasure. When he was turned to repentance by St. Isidore, he with God when you feel powerless rather than going to lust? struggled for many years with lust since whenever he felt powerless his instinct was to turn to lust rather than turning to God. In his struggle, he became incredibly humble, and never judged another since he saw how their sense of powerlessness was leading them to lust. One day Moses was engaged in a war against fornication, and felt so powerless against the struggle that he could not endure being in his cell. He went and informed Abba Isidore of his powerlessness and the old man entreated him to return to his cell, but Moses would not agree. And having said, “Father I cannot bear it,” the old man took him up to the roof of his cell and said unto him, “Look to the west,” and when he looked he saw multitudes of devils with troubled and terrified aspects and they showed themselves in the forms of phantoms with fighting attitudes. Abba Isidore said to him, “Look to the east,” and when he looked he saw innumerable holy angels standing there, and they were in a state of great glory. Then Abba Isidore said unto him, “Behold those who are in the west are those who are fighting with the holy ones; and those whom you have seen in the east are those who are sent by God to the help of the saints, for those who are with us are many.” And having seen the power of God, Abba Moses took courage and returned to his cell without any more sense of powerlessness. .