No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:37-39
We want …no, we expect others to behave in certain ways. The truth is that we, ourselves, don’t often behave the way we should. In our thoughts, in our words, and in our actions there is definite room for improvement.
We are sinners, and to conquer our sin, we must conquer ourselves. We must learn to control the impulses that cause us to sin.
The first line of battle is our thoughts. To force ourselves to pause, to think before we speak or act, is the best immediate way to begin the process. Longer term results require more effort on our part. To conquer ourselves we must know ourselves. Know your enemy!
How much time do we spend in negative thought? Are we continually comparing ourselves to others? Are we continually judging others? Do we wish others ill fortune or even harm? Do we continually do what we know to be wrong, unethical, or immoral? Do we continually focus on our own short comings and misfortunes? If so, these are the things that will be reflected in our words and actions. It is easier to sin in a negative environment because we easily feel justified. Answering these questions honestly is a first step in knowing ourselves, and knowing ourselves is an important weapon in conquering ourselves.
Another weapon in our spiritual self conquest is penance. When we say or do that which we know to be wrong and sinful, we must not only recognize our guilt but also repent. We must own it, and we must make reparation for it. Although this does greatly pertain to our more serious offenses, mortal sins, here we are focusing on the conquering of self in our daily routine, our habitual sins. If we pay great attention to the smaller things, the bigger will also fall into place.
In order to do penance on our own we force ourselves to do something as a way of paying our debt to the Lord. Little sacrifices throughout our day, such as denying ourselves something we would enjoy, or performing a work of charity, and offering it up to Our Lord as penance for our failures. In other words, we hold ourselves accountable. We conquer ourselves.
Viewed as a serious battle for our soul, self conquest can actually be thrilling and greatly rewarding. When we have success at conquering one of our sinful behaviors, it is exhilarating to know we are growing even more in His image and likeness through our own efforts and through the help of His Grace.
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