Hold On, Men!

One of my favorite “follows” on Twitter (@FiatLuxGenesis, who writes and operates the Educating Souls Substack) posted something yesterday that deeply intrigued me, which isn’t unusual for her and her tweets. What she posted expressed a deep frustration that is felt everywhere and concludes with an important question that is heavy and thought-provoking. In short, ‘Are there any strong men left?’. I wanted to share my response with you because it’s something I sincerely believe, and I think it’s something that men especially need to hear. Her tweet and a segment of my response are below, followed by the text of my full reply and additional thoughts and encouragement. Please share this with someone who may need to see it.

My Response:

“There will always be enough strong men left. God wills it. But I strongly believe they are hidden away in the forge of spiritual and temporal tribulation. To them it seems dark. But God is forging these saints for the battle. Most of them probably don’t even realize it yet. So they live hidden lives, probably believing they have found their destiny in solitude and quiet confusion. You wait and see. When God activates them this will turn out to be an era of saints the world and the Church have never seen before. I believe this with all my heart. Wait and see. Until that time, pray for the saints-in-the-making.”

My brothers and sisters, I believe what I wrote there with all my heart. To my brothers in the world, I want to add this bit of encouragement.

Right now, you are probably confused and searching for meaning and purpose. You may feel abandoned by God, or you may feel disengaged from Him. You may feel imprisoned by sins that you struggle with. You may see the world around you and feel discouraged or lost. You may see yourself and feel discouraged. I don’t know what form your “Catholic adventure” is taking, and I don’t know what roads God is bringing you down (or dragging you down). I don’t know what fire he’s subjecting you to. But you have to hold on and persevere. God is with you, even if you can’t see Him at work or walking ahead of you down the dark road you are traversing.

It’s hard to understand the journey when you don’t know the destination. But the destination is closer every day. You’re going to find yourself in it; everything you’re seeing, feeling, and thinking right now will make sense then. But you have to hold on!

The devil may have you thinking that hope is lost or even pointless, and he may have you believing that short-term failures are your whole story. But it’s a lie! Your whole story has yet to be told. Tribulation—even in the form of your spiritual struggles or struggle with sin—is the price for glory and victory because the light at the end of the tunnel becomes fully defined by the darkness of the tunnel. Hold on. Trust the process, believe in the journey, and believe in your destiny as saints. God does will it!

We are in an era of saints. You—man or woman—may very well be one of them. Don’t let the devil throw you off course through hopelessness or confusion. Hold on.

In closing, here’s something from St. Paul. And a little something from me:

“Put on the armor of God so that you may be able to stand firm against the tactics of the devil. For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens. Therefore, put on the armor of God, that you may be able to resist on the evil day and, having done everything, to hold your ground”

– Ephesians 6:12-13

Articles Related to this Twitter File:

• “Jesus Rescues Us From Our Prisons”
• “Be Still and Know that God is God”
• “Self Improvement, Confronting Weakness”
• See Video Below

The Twitter Files is a category of posts where I highlight important, or especially interesting activity on my Twitter feed that you may have missed. I include related blog posts/articles where relevant. Not following me on Twitter? Please consider it.