Once upon a time, an angel appeared to a hermit who was physically disabled, and pointing to a rock on the top of the mountain, the angel said to him: “God wants you to push that rock every day”. The hermit, a little bit perplexed about God’s request, obeyed the words of the angel.
He began to push the rock with all his strength every day. Day after day he went to the summit of the mountain and pushed the rock but he could not move it. He pushed as much as he could, but nothing happened; the rock remained in the same place.
After months of trying to move the rock, he began to feel frustrated and the Devil took the opportunity to tempt him. “Why are you pushing the rock? Why do you keep obeying God? You cannot move the rock and God knows that. God is laughing at you”.
The hermit realized that it was a temptation, so he kept pushing the rock. However, he continued talking with the temptation asking: “Why?” He tried to move the rock every day but without the peace he originally had when he began.
One day, as he was a little tired of trying to move the rock – tired in his body but especially in his spirit – he prayed to God with these words: “Lord you know that I tried to move the rock every day as you asked me, but you know I cannot move it, please give me another job, a job that I can do”.
At this moment the angel appeared again and said: “why do you feel frustrated? What did I ask you, to move the rock or to push the rock?” “To push the rock” –the hermit answered. “Exactly – said the angel – and you did that. God is happy with you and look, your health has improved because pushing the rock helped your body so your body is now healthier and stronger.”
Many times, we have the same problem as this hermit. Jesus asks us not only to do God’s will but also to listen to God. First of all, we have to hear God’s voice in order to know His will and then we have to act on His will: Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them (Mt 7:24).
It is important in our lives to understand well that our idea of God’s will could be different than what is actually God’s will. The Devil, the world and the flesh will always try to confuse us with their thoughts or temptations and because of this we end up forming our idea of God’s will with the thoughts that come from these three things rather than from God. So, we must work in order to purify our idea of God’s will.
We must constantly discern all the thoughts that come to our minds. If we do not do that, the three enemies that I just mentioned will sooner or later deceive us and we will not fulfill God’s will in our lives. In order to discern well it is also important to ask for advice, particularly from a wise person who is knowledgeable about the different spirits that move our soul.
