Day 11 – Let Freedom Ring: Freedom from Lust
Let Freedom Ring: Freedom from Lust
My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
At a word from You, the devil and his minions flee in terror.
You are the source of all truth. You are the source of all strength.
By the power of Your Cross and Resurrection, we beseech You, O Lord
To extend Your saving arm and to send Your holy angels
To defend us as we do battle with Satan and his demonic forces.
Exorcise, we pray, that which oppresses Your Bride, The Church,
So that within ourselves, our families, our parishes, our dioceses, and our nation
We may turn fully back to You in all fidelity and trust.
Lord, we know if You will it, it will be done.
Give us the perseverance for this mission, we pray.
Amen.
Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception … pray for us
St. Joseph … pray for us
St. Michael the Archangel … pray for us
(the patron of your parish) … pray for us
(your confirmation saint) … pray for us
“Freedom From Lust” by Fr. Rick Heilman
One of the most effective weapons of the devil, today, is lust. Our Lady of Fatima revealed, “more souls go to Hell because of sins of the flesh than for any other reason.” It’s more than interesting to note that Margaret Sanger opened the first birth control clinic in 1916, just as the angel first appeared to the children in Fatima. The “roaring twenties” would then burst on to the scene shortly after Our Lady’s dire warning, which seemed to be “a leak in the dike,” of a more debased view of sexuality.
But, the dam would burst wide open with our modern-day sexual revolution. It was in the 1965 case of Griswold v. Connecticut, that the Supreme Court would strike down state laws prohibiting contraception. This would be quickly followed, in 1973, by the infamous Supreme Court case of Roe v. Wade, which legalized the killing of pre-born children in all states.
Once the “consequence of conception” seemed to be removed, or the legal right to kill pre-born babies was made available, the sexual revolution flooded into our culture. Now, we are seeing the “normalization” (socially acceptable) of sex-for-pleasure outside the bond of Holy Matrimony and the explosion of easy access pornography.
Fr. Robert Fromageot, F.S.S.P. writes …
“The leading lights of our age often claim to champion the rights of women, and in certain respects the claim is legitimate. At the same time, however, our age has clearly not sought to protect and foster the sacred dignity of women. On the contrary, society would have us remove our wedding garment, divest ourselves of Christ, and put on the “old man” and make ample provision for the flesh. Men are practically encouraged to treat women as mere objects of pleasure, and women are encouraged to seek this degrading form of attention and accept it as normal and compatible with their dignity.”
I began by writing that lust is one of Satan’s most effective weapons. Why? According to St. Thomas Aquinas, the daughters (consequences) of lust are “blindness of mind, thoughtlessness, inconstancy, rashness, self-love, hatred of God, love of this world and abhorrence or despair of a future world.” While mortal sin kills the life of grace within us, lust accomplishes this in a most effective way. In essence, it has taken men (especially) off of the battlefield of spiritual warfare. Instead, they lose any resolve to seek God and His will. They become, in essence, a lump of self-absorbed clay, easily manipulated by the devil. They are lifeless. Satan has managed to sideline countless men who would otherwise be mighty disciples and soldiers for Christ. Imagine how daunting Christ’s army would be if it weren’t for millions of souls who have, literally, no desire to enter the fray.
Many are caught in the vice of lust. “Vice” indicates the “habitual” nature of the sin. This “vice” reveals the “quality” of a man’s soul. Caught in the “vice” of lust, many confess the sin with little or no resolution to cease its repetition. Therefore, grace may not be given entrance to such a soul while the “daughters of lust” maintain their residence in such a soul.
I’m often asked what one can do who is caught in the vice of lust. Of course, there are organizations and support groups available. But, I often tell men that they need to change their perspective.
This is something I wrote that, I believe, gets to the heart of this proper perspective:
“God’s glorious creation began with things such as dirt, then vegetation, then animals, etc. … it just kept getting better and better. God then created His great love interest … His adopted children … human beings. Yet man was created only second to last. Woman is the crescendo … the last and greatest of all of God’s creation! More than a beautiful sunset or starry night or any cascading waterfalls or picturesque mountain range … God has created nothing more beautiful, more loving, more tender-hearted, more nurturing. That is why women are perfectly positioned to be wife and mother. And, because women are the pinnacle of all God’s creations, they too, like the Blessed Mother, should be esteemed as sacred. They have been given the special role of being the tabernacle of God’s next love interest.”
This is the perspective we must recover. I tell men, “go ahead and notice the wonder of woman – it’s not dirty or sinful to do so – and give praise to God, but do that in a split second, and don’t entertain the base thoughts of the ‘old man.'” I recall when this perspective was prevalent, as I watched, in my childhood years, gentlemen stand when a lady entered the room. Oh, how I wish that practice would return!
Prayer of Reparation
My Lord and my God,
We have allowed the temptation of the devil to move our hearts to lust and sins of the flesh.
We have allowed the desire to deaden our hearts to You and Your will for our lives.
We have been too easily led by the accepted morals of the world that has given us supposed permission to indulge the flesh.
In our weakness, we have allowed the ancient foe to advance.
We turn to You Lord, in our sorrow and guilt, and beg Your forgiveness for our lack of resolve to put on the new man and curb our base desires to indulge the flesh.
We beg for the grace of Your goodness to build up within us the strength and endurance You exhibited on the Cross.
We know, Lord, if You will it, it will be done.
Trusting in You, we offer our prayer to You who live and reign forever.
Amen
Prayer of Exorcism
Lord God of Heaven and Earth,
In Your power and goodness, You created all things.
You set a path for us to walk on and a way to an eternal relationship.
By the strength of Your arm and Word of Your mouth
Cast from Your Holy Church every fearful deceit of the Devil
Drive from us manifestations of the demonic that oppress us and beckon us to lust and sins of the flesh.
Still the lying tongue of the devil and his forces so that we may act freely and faithfully to Your will.
Send Your holy angels to cast out all influence that the demonic entities in charge of lust have planted in Your church.
Free us, our families, our parish, our diocese, and our country from all trickery and deceit perpetrated by the Devil and his hellish legions. Amen.
Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us.
Christ graciously hear us
God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, etc.
Holy Trinity, One God,
Heart of Jesus, Son of the Eternal Father,
Heart of Jesus, formed in the womb of the Virgin Mother by the Holy Ghost,
Heart of Jesus, united substantially with the word of God,
Heart of Jesus, of infinite majesty,
Heart of Jesus, holy temple of God,
Heart of Jesus, tabernacle of the Most High,
Heart of Jesus, house of God and gate of heaven,
Heart of Jesus, glowing furnace of charity,
Heart of Jesus, vessel of justice and love,
Heart of Jesus, full of goodness and love,
Heart of Jesus, abyss of all virtues,
Heart of Jesus, most worthy of all praise,
Heart of Jesus, king and center of all hearts,
Heart of Jesus, in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,
Heart of Jesus, in whom dwelleth all the fullness of the Divinity,
Heart of Jesus, in whom the Father is well pleased,
Heart of Jesus, we have all received,
Heart of Jesus, desire of the everlasting hills,
Heart of Jesus, patient and rich in mercy,
Heart of Jesus, rich to all who invoke Thee,
Heart of Jesus, fount of life and holiness,
Heart of Jesus, propitiation for our sins,
Heart of Jesus, saturated with revilings,
Heart of Jesus, crushed for our iniquities,
Heart of Jesus, made obedient unto death,
Heart of Jesus, pierced with a lance,
Heart of Jesus, source of all consolation,
Heart of Jesus, our life and resurrection, .
Heart of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation,
Heart of Jesus, victim for our sins,
Heart of Jesus, salvation of those who hope in Thee,
Heart of Jesus, hope of those who die in Thee,
Heart of Jesus, delight of all saints,
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, oh Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
Christ graciously spare us.
Lamb of God who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us.
Jesus, meek and humble of Heart.
Make our hearts like unto Thine.
Let us pray.
Almighty and everlasting God, look upon the Heart of Thy well-beloved Son and upon the acts of praise and satisfaction which He renders unto Thee in the name of sinners; and do Thou, in Thy great goodness, grant pardon to them who seek Thy mercy, in the name of the same Thy Son, Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with Thee, world without end. Amen.
To see the Goals, Methods and Levels of “Let Freedom Ring,” go HERE.
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