In the case of such “besetting” evil thoughts, our natural reaction is often suppression: to push the offending idea back down, deep into our subconscious, in order to rid ourselves of it quickly. But that never works.The most effective way to truly rid our mind of a suppressed thought is to face it squarely and reject it.

Many things enter our minds as undeveloped thought-seeds which continue to work in our subconscious long after we have dismissed them from our attention. One need only think of the unwanted fantasies, especially sexual ones, that beset every person at one time or another. Often such a fantasy develops from an image that originally held one’s attention for only a brief moment.

If we really desire God’s help, we should not look to ourselves, but to him... The more we are able to look outward and forget ourselves, the more easily our mind can be freed and healed by God.

The cause of an attack by an evil spirit is often found in the subconscious. How important it is to find detachment every evening before falling asleep. Whatever we give room to in our heart may work on in us all night long.

As long as we deliberately steel even a small part of our hearts against God’s intervention in our lives, we cut ourselves off from the mercy he offers us through Jesus.