God’s will for us

Mike Langlois is the Grand Knight of St. Augustine Knights of Columbus Council 7273 in Peru, N.Y. He is also the Upstate Conference Coordinator for Evangelization and Faith Formation for the New York State Knights of Columbus. (Courtesy photo of JASON WYSONG)

When I began writing this column, I thought it important to give it a fitting title. I sent ideas to trusted people and it became “A Knight’s Reflection.”

The title fits well because, as a Knight of Columbus with a deep interest in history and Catholicism, it reflects my commitment to offering a personal viewpoint on an ongoing journey of faith. Since 2023, I have expanded my commitment to continuous learning by serving as the leader of a men’s faith group at our local parish. Interestingly the more I study the Catholic faith, the more questions arise on how to fully apply this knowledge into my daily life. It is not the faith’s tenets — one God, the Trinity, Jesus’ divinity and salvation through his death and resurrection, Scripture and Tradition, and the sacraments — which are critical for spiritual success. Instead, the central issue is how my foundation of faith connects to God’s intentions for my life, and how I can fulfil as much of His will as possible while I am still living in this world.  

What a grace from God that the Church gives us the saints, holy individuals to whom we seek examples of heroic Christian virtue. St. Teresa of Ávila, a 16th century Spanish Carmelite nun and the first woman Doctor of the Church, is one such saint. In her work “The Way of the Perfection,” she offers guidance to the nuns of her Discalced Carmelite order writing, “It seems to me ... that everything passes so quickly that we should be thinking more about how to die than how to live.” St. Teresa’s words remind us of the need to prioritize our spiritual preparation for eternal life over temporary earthly comforts, to detach from worldly pursuits and to focus on virtue, love and union with God.

To detach from the world — a continuous battle that requires giving up material objects that offer false security — we focus on the spiritual gifts given to us by God. Infused at baptism and sealed at confirmation, are the Holy Spirit’s gifts of wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and the fear of God. These gifts, generously given by God, serve as resources or instruments that can guide individuals toward returning to paradise. As Catholics, we have an obligation to first, acknowledge these innate gifts and, second, to nurture them with an eye toward perfection. We do this by cultivating a vibrant prayer life, attending Holy Mass (receiving the Eucharist as much as possible), and seeking true repentance in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Whether you are called to religious or married life, or if you are a doctor, lawyer, teacher, IT manager, artist, a trades person or whatever, the gifts bestowed by God can shine through and positively impact the people in your personal and professional worlds. What God wants is for each person to realize their full earthly potential to draw themselves, and others, closer to Him. We can do this by developing our God-given spiritual gifts.

Of course, anything worth having requires significant effort, dedication and perseverance. The same goes for God’s gifts which can be stymied by Satan (Lucifer, Beelzebub, the Serpent, The Tempter, and The Destroyer) whose only mission is to separate us from God. Pope Francis said the devil has used three “powerful poisons” to attack and divide Christian communities: attachment to material things, mistrust and the thirst for power. In our daily lives, Satan distracts by fostering excessive busyness, digital overstimulation and a fixation on material pursuits, which dulls the spiritual focus on eternity, prayer and the sacraments. These tactics aim to prevent us from cultivating God’s gifts and accomplishing His intended will for us in life.

We do have weapons to shield us from Satan’s continuous propagation of lies to separate us from God’s truth. We have spiritual weapons — adoration and communion, confession, charitable works, devotion to the rosary and sacramentals — to help protect against Satan’s attacks. We have Holy Scripture to reinforce the idea that positive thinking, rooted in faith, trust and divine grace, shapes reality by cultivating virtues that lead directly to loving, constructive actions. St. Paul writes, “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8). In other words, to focus our minds on virtues to live out Christ’s teachings, strengthen our moral character and resist temptation. Further, we have the saints to whom we pray to intercede on our behalf. We have the Blessed Virgin Mary, our Mother, our advocate, and whose God-given mission is to guide souls to Jesus, her beloved Son. If there is one person who can strike terror into the heart of Satan, it is Mary, who is our unwavering protectress. We need only to ask, “O Mary, Conceived without Sin, Pray for Us Who Have Recourse to You.”

We can, throughout our lives, practice the detachment of material things, and even ourselves, in this world. We can then be free to develop our God-given gifts — no matter our calling in life — to their fullest potential. The goal is to save our individual souls and to help others to save their souls. We have the faith tools to make this a reality.