Lukewarmness is hateful to our Blessed Lord, “I wish that you were either hot or cold, but because you are lukewarm I will begin to vomit you out of my mouth.” (Apoc. 3:16)

St. Alphonsus Liguori (The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ) identifies this kind of lukewarmness as a willful spirit of complacency regarding venial sin which roots itself in the soul.  Willful lies, willful acts of disobedience – however small – are signs of this lukewarmness.  

To root-out “avoidable lukewarmness,” St. Alphonsus says we must first desire perfection; afterwards, we must make the resolution to give ourselves completely to God.

Previously, we spoke on the desire for perfection; today, we will speak on the resolve to attain perfection.

St. Alphonsus says many Catholics are called to perfection, but they fail to become perfect because they lack resolve to cast off lukewarmness. 

Many souls feel holy desires; they feel passing spurts of zeal to live for God… but they never attain holiness because they never make the firm resolution to please God regardless of feelings.   St. Alphonsus says these suffer from sloth.  Lazy people forever desire, but never resolve to live only for Christ.  St. Alphonsus says these excuse themselves, saying, “Oh, if only I could live in another monastery, I would then give myself to God.”  Meanwhile, they can not endure a certain companion, they pine away at every contradiction, they distract themselves with many useless cares; they commit a thousand faults of gluttony, curiosity, pride; these sigh continually, saying, “Oh, if only I had this or that...” or, “Oh, if only I had married someone else then I would have a chance at perfection” and so on.

This way of acting does more harm than good; it wastes time and fuels complacency.

If we really want to quit lukewarmness, St. Alphonsus says we must desire perfection and be resolute in carrying it forward… rain or shine.  St. Teresa of Avila says, “God asks for no more from us than a single resolution, afterwards He will do the rest Himself.  The devil has no fear of irresolute souls.”

St. Alphonsus says the practice of meditation will fuel the making of firm resolutions... “in my meditation a fire shall flame forth.” (Ps. 38:4)  But our meditations must end with practical resolutions e.g., I will stop watching such a T.V. program, I will avoid such a place or person, I will make a holy hour every Thursday, I will go to confession every week…   Some souls heap up prayers, but never make resolutions to overcome such and such a sin in this and that way; they spin their wheels but go nowhere.  St. Teresa says, “I prefer a short prayer that has great results to a prayer which lasts many years in which the soul never resolves to do something worthy for God.”

According to St. Alphonsus, the first resolution we should make to overcome complacency in venial sin is to prefer death rather than commit a deliberate sin, however small.   This resolution is possible only with God’s help; but as God desires our salvation so we can be certain He will help us quit even the most stubborn sin.

St. Francis de Sales writes, “the best guarantee we can have in this world of being in God’s friendship is not the feelings that we have of His love, but the pure and irrevocable abandonment of our whole being into His hands and in the firm resolution never to consent to any sin, either great or small.”

After resolving never to sin, St. Alphonsus says we need to develop a delicate conscience.  A delicate conscience is not a scrupulous conscience.  St. Alphonsus says all saints have a delicate conscience but a scrupulous conscience is harmful.  Moreover, he says obedience to a spiritual director is needed to overcome scruples which are simply vain and senseless apprehensions.

Forming a delicate conscience involves not just resolving to choose what will please God, but what will most please God and please Him most often.

St. Francis de Sales writes, “We must start with a strong and steady resolution to give ourselves completely to God, and proclaim to Him that in the future we want to be His without reserve; then we must renew this intention often.”

Finally, our resolution must not be delayed; we know not what time remains to us.

St. Alphonsus reminds us that after this life there will be no more time to work, to merit, or to carefully “think things over” because after death what is done is done.

St. Alphonsus speaks of a nun, Sr. Bonaventura who led a very lukewarm life in the convent.  One day, a priest came to give the Spiritual Exercises.  Bored, the sister listened to the exercises against her will.  Later, moved by divine spark, she said to the priest, “Father, I wish to become a saint and quickly.”  With God’s help she did; eight months later she died fervently in love with our Blessed Lord.

Let us not procrastinate. 

Every day, St. Charles Borromeo prayed, “Today, I begin to serve God.”   A swell motto.    

“Today, I begin to serve God.”  Let us make the daily resolve to attain perfection; to love God more and hate sin more, even the smallest sin.  Nor, St. Alphonsus warns us, should we heed what others may say about us.  Saints are few; saints are different.  St. Bernard says, “One cannot be perfect without being different.”  We must strive to be one of the perfect few.

The reward is great.  St. Alphonsus says if we give all to God, God will give all to us.  But if we do not give to God, He can not give to us.  St. Teresa made the lament, “It is because we do not give all our love to God, that He does not give us all His either.”  <>

To spur us on, we must consider what Jesus Christ has done for us.  “Whatever we can do is foulness in comparison with a single drop of blood shed for us by the Lord.”  Saints do not spare themselves for God; lovers do not hold back firm proofs of love to their beloved.

St. John Chrysostom writes, “He gave everything to you and kept nothing for Himself;” and St. Paul, “He died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died and was raised for them.” (II Cor. 5:15)

<>May God help us desire perfection; help us resolve to attain it.  After these means to root out lukewarmness, St. Alphonsus says we need to meditate – and this will be our next topic.