August 16, 2026: The Devil Made Me Do It

The Devil Made Me Do It

Here are some questions for you . . .How long, how wide is the love of Christ? How deep, how high is the love of Christ? 

The woman in the gospel found out with Jesus healing her daughter. Her daughter was possessed by a demon. Now, at the time nearly every illness or physical deformity was considered a demonic possession. We don’t think that anymore, but I experienced a demon once. 

You see, a woman from a neighboring town repeatedly asked me to come to her home and get rid of a demon living there. Yeah, yeah I thought. But from her persistence, I agreed. So I arrived in the afternoon, it was winter and there were toys and gardening equipment lying around in the snow. That’s odd. And in the house, wow it was a mess. You know papers and garbage all over. Cupboards open, half-eaten meals on the counter. The milk carton left open on the table. And the woman greeted me, but the house was filled with all these teenagers and young adults. Some were family, but some were friends of the family. Kids who were kicked out of their homes, teens who are in recovery or dealing with sexual identity issues.  

It was all quite chaotic. So we started and I (and the whole crowd) went through the house with incense as we reset the energy in the place for goodness. Collecting all the bad energy. But it was hard for I had to step over piles of clothes lying around and we blessed each area, including a couple of closets where some of the residents had a mattress for sleeping. It was all pretty dirty and cluttered. But I went through the house saying prayers and when I finished (with the second and third part of the ritual) I realized that indeed I encountered a demon.

 [Sing refrain: How long, how wide is the love of Christ? How deep, how high is the love of Christ?]

The demon I encountered was not in the walls or in the things . . . it was in me. Geez, since I arrived at the house all I did was criticize and judge. Heck this home was a refuge for people who had no where else to go. This place was a safe space for those who were in a bad living situation. I live in a big house; I have room. I haven’t invited anyone who is homeless to come stay with me.  

The demon was in me! And when you think about it, demons don’t show up in red capes and horns and pitchforks, they show up in us. Too often people claim that the bad that they experience is a demon. I think much of that is a cop out. It’s so easy to blame a bad thing on something (or someone) out there. There was a phrase that was popular years ago, “The devil made me do this.”  That’s nonsense. Own your stuff. There’s a sweatshirt that I received. It says on the front, “Own your sh…. uh, stuff.”  

You don’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to have it all together. But I think it is important to name what’s going on. Own up to what is occurring, that is what limits you have. For example, the bad things that you continue to do or say.  

I received a gift, a few years ago, the says, “Own your sh…” Own your stuff. In our Catholic tradition we have 

areas to be aware of: gluttony, lust, envy, pride, greed, lust, envy, out-of-control anger, and sloth.  

The first reading from Isaiah has God telling us, “Observe what is right. Do what is just.” We have a power that is greater than any bad energy, or bad demons. It is the presence of Christ.  

With whatever you are dealing with currently. Whatever is messy in your life, whatever you are struggling to name or to own, don’t be afraid of it. Bring it into the light. Bring it to Jesus.

Because the answer isn’t simply trying harder to be good. The answer is knowing that you are loved. Completely, even in the messiness. Even in the places you would rather nobody see. Even in the parts of yourself that you are still trying to figure out.

And maybe that’s what some of us need to hear today: You don’t have to have it all together for Christ to love you. You don’t have to clean up the house before you invite Jesus in.

The presence of Christ is greater than whatever demon you are facing—whether that demon is fear, anger, resentment, guilt, addiction, loneliness, or simply the voice inside you that keeps telling you that you are not enough. Christ is already there. And so the question isn’t, “Why is this bad thing happening to me?” The question is, “God, there is a bad thing happening, can I trust the depth of your love to help me through it? 

[Sing refrain: How long, how wide is the love of Christ? How deep, how high is the love of Christ?]