Where do the wars and where do the conflicts among you come from? Is it not from your passions that make war within your members?
You covet but do not possess. You kill and envy but you cannot obtain; you fight and wage war. You do not possess because you do not ask.
You ask but do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. (James 4:1-3 NABRE)
James is concerned with the origin of conflicts within the Christian community. In today's passage, he describes several dispositions of heart we should eliminate. We should eliminate them because they are the often-hidden root causes of conflict within the Church. First, James tells us not to love the world. Second, he tells us to pray properly, asking God for his help and seeking his kindness for more than personal pleasure.*
James goes on to instruct us that instead of loving this world and praying selfishly, the right dispositions of heart for the Christian are:
- Submission to God
- Repentance
- Humility
- Resistance to evil
Holy Spirit, help me personalize today's passage and endure the uncomfortable self-awareness that it brings. Lord God, if I am honest, I know I want what others have, and at times I even go to extremes trying to get what I cannot obtain. Despite this, rarely do I turn to you for help; and when I do, I ask selfishly. Lord Jesus, there are times when I cause painful conflicts among my people because of my selfish motivations. Please teach me your wisdom and guard my heart from selfishness. Fill me with humility, a desire to submit to your will, sorrow for what I have done wrong, and resistance to all evil whether or not I recognize it.
Today, I will examine my heart for things of this world I want too much.
Saints Andrew Kim Taegon, Paul Chong Hasang and Companions, Korean martyrs, pray for us.
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