Colleen Orchanian

Sometimes our brains seem to freeze up, like when we eat ice cream too quickly. I was once training a friend to facilitate team building for a non-profit. We had built a list of ideas on a flip chart, and I asked her to read the list to the group as a summary. She looked at the chart for a long time and could not read a word. It's not that she was illiterate. She just froze up and could not see the words on the chart. It looked like gibberish to her. She had brain freeze.

Confusion is the spiritual attack of brain freeze. We are in a situation and can't think straight. Our minds aren't working. Nothing makes sense. It is understandable for a young adult or teenager. The part of the brain that makes decisions doesn't fully mature until about age 25. But what's our excuse for those of us who are older (even much older)? The devil made me do it.

He can cloud our thinking, create a false sense of urgency, prevent us from seeing the big picture, stoke fear about our future, and hamper our work for God. We see minor things as life-changing and important issues as minor. Often, we are blind to our confusion, not realizing what's happening.

Confusion by itself may not be a spiritual attack. It's part of being human. I can be confused about a math problem, a job offer, or how to solve a problem in my life. But when it's a spiritual attack, there is something more going on.

The spiritual attack of confusion might fit one or more of these criteria:

• It is an obstacle to our work for God.

• It threatens a relationship that could draw me or another person closer to God.

• It causes me to doubt God or question His love and care for me.

• It leads me to sin by clouding my ability to discern right and wrong, even in minor things.

In a nutshell, this confusion has a spiritual element to it. Here are some examples of ways spiritual confusion is manifested in the world today.

Responsibility.

We can be confused about our responsibilities, either taking on duties that are not appropriate or abdicating those we should own. The parent of an addict wonders what she did that caused her child's addiction. She bails him out of jail, pays his bills, and brings him to rehab facilities multiple times. She thinks it's her job to fix the addiction when it is not. She is confused about her responsibility and might enable the addiction. The attack is designed to create guilt and despair, neither of which comes from God.

The other extreme is abdicating responsibility. Jesus criticized the Pharisees for permitting Korban (Mark 7:11) that excused people from caring for their parents, a violation of the fourth commandment. They appeared (falsely) to be honoring God when they should have been honoring their parents. They were confused, and the Pharisees encouraged that confusion.

We have clarity about responsibility when we do what we ought without going beyond. Paul expressed it well in Acts 20:26-27 when he said, Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all of you, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God. We have a responsibility to share the Good News with those God puts in our path, but we are not responsible for saving them. We tell the whole truth and leave the rest to God and them.

Life Decisions

Sometimes we have big decisions to make. The pressure to choose wisely is great. We fear making a mistake and ruining our lives. Sometimes we have a false sense of urgency, believing that we have to choose now.

A friend called me one night in a state of panic and discouragement. She wanted to divorce her husband. As we talked, she shared what was happening with her husband and also about her frustrations with her boss and colleagues. It was a terrible place to work. I suggested that maybe the problem was not her husband, but her job. She was so frustrated with the job that it carried over to her marriage. The confusion kept her from seeing the situation clearly. By the time we finished talking, she had decided to quit the job and keep the husband. The goal of the confusion attack was to destroy a marriage.

Value of Life

Confusion about the value of a human life is very strong in our world today. Selfishness wears the mask of compassion, and compassion is a good thing, but not at the expense of life. Confusion kills when it comes to life—my own life, the life of an unborn baby, or the life of an elderly or disabled person.

Research shows that most women who choose abortion are initially excited about the baby. There is a moment when they imagine holding the child in their arms and wondering what they might be when they grow up. But then they hear the voice of confusion, which overpowers the other voices. It's not a baby, just a clump of cells. You can't handle a child. This will mess up your life. They fall for the confusion that allows them to kill an innocent human being, their own flesh and blood. If they were to see the situation clearly, they would know that a human child was growing in their womb, a child who has a future. They would choose life. Pro-life pregnancy centers help women fight the attack of confusion so they can clearly see the situation and make a choice that they can live with.

A few years ago, Iceland celebrated that it had "cured" Down syndrome. In fact, there was no cure. They had simply aborted all babies who tested positive. They fell in their confusion.

Suicide is another way confusion attacks life. My life is a mess, and I can't see a positive future. I will never be happy. The world will be better without me. There is a darkness that prevents a person from seeing clearly. The confusion is about one's value as a human being. If I have no value, if I am only a burden, why not take my own life? No one will miss me.

In each case of confusion around life, the goal is to deny the dignity of a human person and to choose death. That is not God's way.

Sometimes we have a sense that something is not right. The spiritual attack of confusion keeps us in the dark about what exactly is not right. The confusion is more successful when I have different factors affecting the situation. For example, I am in a situation where I know it's not working as it should. There is a very big spiritual element. I am confused about what's bothering me. Is it their personality? Is it because I'm not enjoying the relationship? Is it because my expectations or hers are wrong? I can't see the situation clearly because I'm too close to it. It's a spiritual attack because it's a spiritual situation. So I know I am under attack, but I don't know how to clear my mind.

So, what do we do when we recognize that our confusion is a spiritual attack?

1. Pause. You can't have a conversation with a child who is pitching a fit. You have to wait for them to calm down. When we are confused, we are not thinking logically. We have to stop and breathe.

2. Pray. Be completely honest about what's happening. God, this is too much. I can't see the forest for the trees. I'm trying to figure this out, but I'm too upset/worried/afraid/angry. Help me see things clearly. Show me the lies and the truth.

3. Get help. Find a spiritually wise and trusted friend who can ask the right questions, help you explore the spiritual element of the confusion, and listen without pushing you in a particular direction. Pray about what you hear.

4. Wait. Don't make any decision until the confusion is lifted. St. Ignatius said in his Rule #5: In times of desolation, never make a change in spiritual proposals. Right decisions cannot be made with the enemy as a counselor.

Brain freeze happens. It isn't a reflection of our faith (or lack of faith). It's the confusion of the enemy who wants to steal our peace and lead us to bad decisions. Don't fall for that trap.

Questions for Prayer:

1. When have you experienced confusion as a spiritual attack? How did you recognize it, and what did you do?

2. What is the most helpful action you can take when attacked with confusion?