There are a variety of things we could do to have a healthy spiritual life, but there is one thing that many saints suggest we do first of all.
That first thing we need to do is renounce our past and current sins. We need to be detached from our sinful way of life in order to embrace a new life of grace.
Purifying the soul
St. Francis de Sales explains this first step in his Introduction to the Devout Life:
When the daughter of a strange land was about to espouse an Israelite, the law commanded her to put off the garment of her captivity, to pare her nails, and to shave her head; even so the soul which aims at the dignity of becoming the spouse of Christ, must put off the old man, and put on the new man, forsaking sin: moreover, it must pare and shave away every impediment which can hinder the Love of God.
He adds, “The very first step towards spiritual health is to be purged from our sinful humors.“
Furthermore, while sometimes a person can be purged of their former way of life in an instant, for most of us it is a long road:
The ordinary purification, whether of body or soul, is only accomplished by slow degrees, step by step, gradually and painfully. The angels on Jacob’s ladder had wings, yet nevertheless they did not fly, but went in due order up and down the steps of the ladder. The soul which rises from out of sin to a devout life has been compared to the dawn, which does not banish darkness suddenly, but by degrees.
This is good news for many of us, as it is difficult to detach ourselves from our sins. We may desire detachment, but practically speaking, we continually fall back into old habits.
We need to be patient with ourselves and to let God’s forgiveness flood our soul. The more open we are to God’s love, the more quickly we will be able to divorce ourselves from our life of sin.
If we ever feel stuck in the spiritual life, we should consider our primary sins and try to work on purifying them first, before trying to take on any extra kind of spiritual practice.
And today we celebrate...