“Although the difficulties, temptations, and different events that occur in the course of carrying out our plan may cause us some uncertainty as to whether we have chosen well, once our resolution has been made, we must never doubt the holiness of its execution.”
-St. Francis de Sales

For Reflection:
Another tactic the evil one uses to render us ineffective is to create trials and difficulties for us as we seek to conform to God’s will. His hope is that we will give up, convinced we have made a mistake. Am I willing to persevere and not fall victim to this ploy of the evil one – no matter what the cost?

Manual for Spiritual Warfare
Paul Thigpen (344 pgs)
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Part One:  Preparing for Battle
Page 5-6

1.  KNOW YOUR ENEMY

Evidence of the battle

Christ referred to demons on more than one occasion, and casting evil spirits out of those who were possessed was a striking and indispensable aspect of His mission. Of course, some interpreters have claimed that when Christ cast out evil spirits, He was simply healing a physical or mental disorder misunderstood as demonic possession.  But we need only reply that on at least one occasion, at Christ’s command, the demons left their human host to take possession of animals instead.