Source: https://www.bertha-dudde.org/en/proclamation/2802

2802 "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak...."

July 7, 1943: Book 37

The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.... for the flesh still belongs to God's opposing power because it still harbours many spiritual substances which are immature and therefore at the beginning of their higher development. And these substances are still too much in the power of the adversary, they push towards him and also try to pull the human soul along with them. And so the spirit in the human being wages a constant battle with all the immature entities that surround him. Although the soul has decided in its favour, it is also still surrounded by entities in need of purification and is constantly pressured by them to turn towards the world, which means everything that is beneficial, i.e. pleasant, for the body of flesh. The soul is very often weak and unable to offer sufficient resistance to these desires. And yet it must try to overcome this counter-current, it must wrestle with itself, it must only direct its will towards what the spirit imparts to it, it must desire to hear it and reject every temptation from outside by paying no attention to them and only desiring to hear the voice of the spirit. It must pray fervently for a supply of strength and must not tire, for God allows all these temptations in order to strengthen the will and faith so that it may prove itself in the face of greater opposition from outside. The human being is still fighting against purely physical desires and oppositions but a time will come when he will have to stand firm against external temptations, when he will have to prove himself before the world and when the body will not only have to renounce but also accept suffering in order to set an example of strong unshakeable faith to the world.... He will always and constantly be supplied with strength so that his will becomes strong.... And this will shall already now be strengthened by overcoming small resistances, the soul shall only ever remain united with the spirit in it, it shall learn to despise everything worldly, it shall pass it by unimpressively and by no means hold it back from spiritual striving, the weakness of the flesh shall be fought against and the result will be an ever stronger will which overcomes everything that opposes it. But this strong will cannot be achieved without a fight, otherwise it would be an undeservedly received grace which has to bring the human being to maturity without him striving for it. The supply of strength from God is indeed such a grace which, however, has to be requested time and again, and thus the prayer for increased will will provide him with strength and grace, his will will grow stronger, for then the human being will call upon God Himself for His help and this will also be available to him in abundance. Prayer is also a means of battle against the enemy's temptations, although even the will can be so weakened that it is incapable of prayer, for this also requires the will which, however, will then also find support. But the human being must not surrender to the temptations, the allurements of the world, without will; he must not become so weak that he is no longer able to pray, in every adversity of the soul he must take refuge in prayer, in God, Who will then truly not leave him without help. He must heed the subtle voice of the spirit, which will urge him to pray, to call upon God for strength and grace.... Only then will every weakness of the flesh be overcome, he will become strong in spirit, and his will will conquer all resistance....

amen

Translated by Doris Boekers