Your Adversaries Will Be Powerless

Beads of Joy 11-25-09

Your Adversaries Will Be Powerless
©2009 James Dacey, Jr. SFO

Hello Everyone,

Today's gospel Luke 21:12-19 (Coming Persecutions) is very empowering. It is here that Jesus warns the disciples of coming persecutions. The real enemy here is satan, we all know he is a liar and murderer. Satan tries to use fear against those who live a life devoted to Jesus. He is hostile and fearful towards Jesus' love, truth and forgiveness and it so obvious that he to must know in the end Jesus shall reign for all eternity.

Let us have no fear only trust in the direction our Lord is leading our lives. Satan's objective is to deceive us, while the sins he leads us to blinds us. It is God's truth that sets us free from not only our sins; but from the blindness that the sins create. In this gospel in verse 19 Jesus says: "By your endurance you will gain your lives." By doing this you will certainly inherit eternal life. How do we gain this "endurance" He speaks of in our lives.

Endurance is a spiritual gift that comes from the Holy Spirit. This gift gives us strength during trials and temptations, and courage in times of persecution. In our endurance we must have hope in God's love, never fearing that the enemy will win. We know Jesus wins in the end, our endurance will build our faith and our character as Christians. Jesus willingly died for us, He shed His blood for our salvation. We are all called to also do like He has done for each other, while we take up our own crosses and go through this life.

I believe the question we are faced with in today's gospel is: Are we as Christians ready and willing to lay down our lives for Jesus? Not many people would come out yelling and screaming yes in today's times. I know I would. How can we live a life surrended to God, then in times of trials and persecution where we must stand for Jesus and what we believe, we don't. Satan and all his evil is powerless against us.

Jesus died for us so that in the end, satan shall be no more.

Your brother in Christ Jesus & His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr SFO