Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
We like to be comfortable.
Change is hard for us, whether it comes in the form of relationships, possessions, locations, parishes, positions, habits, or anything else. Whether the change appears to be good or bad, it takes us out of our routine, makes us think
about activities that had become routine.
It’s hard on demons as well. They like things to be predictable. It gives them more room to work. If we pass the same beggar every day, we become inured to him or her, no longer offering even a smile. If we have friends who delight in gossip, we are all the more likely to pass along juicy tidbits and rumors. If we get into the habit of using food, alcohol, or other aids as self-medication, it’s easy to gradually increase our intake, never noticing the effect it’s having on us.
Small wonder, then that the unclean spirit of the man in Mark 1 cried out when he recognized Jesus. The unclean spirit spoke truth, perhaps for the first time: “Have you come to destroy us?” And of course Jesus had, to destroy the forces that keep us from the hope of salvation. The unclean spirit cried again as he exited the man.
And so, may we remember this as we seek to remove the unclean spirits within each of us with the Lord’s help. It won’t be easy. It may make us cry. But ultimately, the pain is worth what’s on the other side.
