Day 2 – Let Freedom Ring: Freedom from Despair

by Fr Richard Heilman | July 8, 2020 12:05 AM

Let Freedom Ring: Freedom from Despair

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 Despair” by Fr. Rick Heilman

There is a stirring scene in the 6th chapter of John’s Gospel, a chapter referred to as the “Bread of Life Discourse.” Jesus had just told the crowd, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life.” The response by nearly all was, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” Jesus returns with, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.” And then, in the 66th verse of chapter 6 of John’s Gospel, or rather John 6:66, almost everyone leaves: “From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.”

The crowd who abandoned Jesus had abandoned hope. They despaired. So, what did they do? They “turned back” to the emptiness of “merely existing” in the flesh. This emptiness or “desolation” is the place the devil wants us to be. It is Satan’s kingdom.

I believe it is no accident that the chapter and verse of this act of despair in John’s Gospel is 666. We are given free will. We can choose God or not. In the Book of Revelation[1], 666 is the number of the beast, or the number of man. Once separated from God, Satan wants us to believe we are merely one animal (beast) among many; just part of the herd. So, like animals, we are left to scramble to fill this void with worldly wants and lusts; works of the flesh.

Make no mistake about it, the influencers of our culture (media, Hollywood, TV, universities, public schools, etc.) are, by and large, godless propagandists who are determined to instill in us the notion that we are “merely animals.” Therefore, women are objectified, men are just vulgar beasts, pre-born babies are a clump of cells, and the nuclear family – the bedrock of civilization – is outdated. As the Satanic bible proclaims: “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law.” Just be animals.

After the crowd abandoned Jesus in despair, He then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”

The Apostles were not buying the lie of the devil. No, we are not just animals, we are precious children of God, created in His image. Therefore, life in the Spirit is filled with the hope of a joyful and amazing journey of striving to please God in every way, especially by striving to become the very best version of ourselves we can possibly be. And, just as Jesus demonstrated on the cross, we are called to a total selfless love of neighbor.

The crowd abandoned Him in despair, but the Apostles stayed with Him in hope. If we want the hope of all meaning and purpose in life as a child of God, we simply must get near to Him, because “the Spirit gives life.” We must combat the temptation of allowing our faith to devolve into merely “punching the clock” by fulfilling basic obligations. Many avoid an intimate relationship with the Lord because, like the crowd, they believe, “This is a hard teaching.” In other words, if we “let God in,” He will ask “too much” from us. It’s better to keep God at arm’s length; a manageable distance.

It’s time to “make it personal.” It’s time to “get near” to Him before the Blessed Sacrament. Spend time Adoring Our Lord. This can be done by scheduling an hour at a local Adoration Chapel, or you can simply come early or stay after Mass. Be careful, though, because you may just find yourself crying out, “My Lord and my God!” … and then everything will change. Your life, filled with hope, will rise to new and exciting heights!

“Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” – Isaiah 40:31

Prayer of Reparation

My Lord and my God,
We have allowed the temptation of the devil to move our hearts to despair in Your Presence and Power.
We have kept ourselves distanced from You, so that we may be safe from Your plan for our lives.
We have been too fearful to trust in a personal relationship that may ask too much from us.
In our doubt and despair, we have allowed the ancient foe to advance.
We turn to You Lord, in our emptiness, and beg Your forgiveness for our despairing lack of trust.
We beg for the grace to draw near to You, even as we watch, as did the Apostles, so many who abandon You.
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 and ever.
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 doubt and despair.
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 despair 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.
Trusting in Your goodness Lord,
We know if You will it, it will be done in unity with Your Son and the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever.
Amen.

Litany of St. Joseph

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,
Have mercy on us. 
Holy Trinity, One God,
Have mercy on us. 
Holy Mary, pray for us. 
Saint Joseph, pray for us. 
Illustrious son of David, etc.
Light of the patriarchs,
Spouse of the Mother of God,
Chaste guardian of the Virgin,
Foster-father of the Son of God,
Watchful defender of Christ,
Head of the Holy Family,
Joseph most just,
Joseph most chaste,
Joseph most prudent,
Joseph most valiant,
Joseph most obedient,
Joseph most faithful,
Mirror of patience,
Lover of poverty,
Model of workmen,
Glory of domestic life,
Guardian of virgins,
Pillar of families,
Solace of the afflicted,
Hope of the sick,
Patron of the dying,
Terror of demons,
Protector of Holy Church,

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord. 
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us.

He made him the lord of His household,
And prince over all His possessions.

Let Us Pray.
O God, Who in Thine ineffable providence didst choose Blessed Joseph to be the spouse of Thy most Holy Mother, grant that as we venerate him as our protector on earth, we may deserve to have him as our intercessor in Heaven, Thou Who livest and reignest forever and ever. R. Amen.

 

To see the Goals, Methods and Levels of “Let Freedom Ring,” go HERE[2].

 

ENLIST IN THE UNITED STATES GRACE FORCE
(Please recruit family and friends to enlist!)

[3]

 

Source URL: https://usgraceforce.com/day-2-let-freedom-ring-freedom-from-despair/

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