Grappling With Divinity

In his fifth Rule for the Discernment of Spirits, St Ignatius of Loyola states, “In times of desolation, never make a change.” In other words, when you don’t feel God’s presence in your life, continue doing the things you did when you did feel his presence in your life. Don’t make rash or hasty decisions while you are in a place of spiritual darkness.

This reminds me of something a jiu-jitsu instructor friend of mine says to his students. That is, “You can’t quit on a bad day.” If you had a bad day of training and you feel like quitting, wait. Go home, shake it off, and come back tomorrow. Do this until you have a good day of training. Then, after that good day, if you still feel like quitting, we can have a conversation.

In jiu-jitsu like in life, you are going to have bad days. You will have days when it seems like the universe is conspiring against you and nothing is going right. You will have days that feel like all of your previous work has been for nothing and you are making no progress while the people around you are all getting better. You will have days when you want to give up.

Do not quit on those days. They will pass on their own. Keep showing up, Keep doing the work. Though the tunnel may seem dark and endless, there will be light on the other side. Even while you feel like you are getting nowhere and making no progress, as long as you keep putting in the work, something is happening.

I promise that you are changing for the better even if you cannot see it in this moment. In times of desolation, never make a change. Do not quit on a bad day.

~Robert Van Valkenburgh