Fifth Monday of Lent

“I am completely trapped,” Susanna groaned. “If I yield, it will be my death; if I refuse, I cannot escape your power. Yet it is better for me to fall into your power without guilt than to sin before the Lord.”

Although we might never find ourselves in such a situation as Susanna, we have all been placed into positions where we must choose between doing the right thing and suffering greatly or doing the wrong thing and suffering less (or even escaping “unscathed”). However, if we are true followers of Christ, then the choice is clear. We will choose suffering and death over the compromising of our conscience. No violence done to our persons could ever warrant giving into sin. We always have the ability to say no to evil. It may not be easy, it may cost us dearly, but in the end it is what Jesus would do if faced with the same decision. It is when our faith is most difficult to live by that we discover whether we truly believe or if we are merely acting. Hopefully, we shall discover sincerity in our proclamation of love of God and neighbor. But if we do fail, then we must make every effort to seek reconciliation, amend our lives, and sin no more.

How can we prepare ourselves to make the right choice? How can we resist the temptation to give into sin? Are we willing to suffer like Christ in order to do good and avoid evil?

O Lord, free us from the traps that seek to ensnare us in sin.

Amen.