Three things I have to guard against and work hard to resist: the works of the flesh, the ways of the world and the wiles of the devil. The works of the flesh are lust, sloth, gluttony, greed, anger, envy and pride. The ways of the world are the quest for material wealth, temporal power and fleeting fame. The wiles of the devil would have me believing in lies and dealing in untruth, not believing in the power of life and love and instead doing harm and havoc to others. These looks so obvious on paper that being good should be a cinch. Yet, even up to now I struggle to be free of my lustful desires, of my proud moments, of my selfish actuation, of my envious judgements of others and my unforgiving anger. I still struggle to suppress my secret wish for my one moment in time and my desire for vainglory. There are still times I deal in lies and give way to hating. And the ultimate struggle is to answer the question of why be good at all. There is no easy answer.
Lent begins next week. I will confront this question more vigorously through the time-honored practices of prayer, fasting and alms-giving. Through fasting, I shall free myself from the works of the flesh. Through alms-giving, I shall free myself from the ways of the world. And my prayers shall shield me from the wiles of the devil.
For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because Herod had married her. Mark 6:14-29