ACCRM’s 40 Days With Christ For Lent: Day Eight

The Voice of Conscience

[exerpts from “My Daily Bread” by Anthony J. Paone, S.J. [1954]

CHRIST:

MY CHILD, refuse to do wrong for anything in the world.

1. It is better to have the whole world against you rather than have Me against you. Whoever loses Me, is losing more than the entire world. Whatever you love on earth is but a reflection of My goodness. If you fix your attention and interest only on worldly things or people, you will soon shut Me out and lose My grace.

2. As soon as you become too interested in worldly pleasure and ease, your conscience objects. You are your own worst enemy when you act against your conscience. The wrong which you do becomes worse when you try to excuse yourself or justify your actions.

3. No man can safely enjoy life except the man whose conscience is clear. The wicked never have true joy nor real interior peace. They may say that they have peace and that they neither expect nor fear any harm from above either they are lying or they are fools. My justice will suddenly strike them and put an end to their deeds. They will think differently then.

4. A bad conscience is afraid and disturbed. A good conscience has peace even in time of hardship. The good man’s glory lies in the testimony of a good conscience.

5. There is no true freedom nor profitable joy without a clear conscience and a holy fear of all sin. Blessed is the man whose eyes are on Me and who keeps his earthly desires within My law. A good life follows My wisdom and brings a deeper appreciation of this earthly existence.

THINK:
God made man intelligent enough to see that he should do what is right. And so the sinner knows that he is a sinner. He knows that his life is not going well. If he wants to cling to sins, he will try to excuse himself in some way, but he cannot fool himself for long. Either he loses his peace of soul or he succeeds in dulling his conscience. The man with a dull conscience will find distractions and interests in many things, but he has not the abiding peace of those who live for Heaven.

PRAY:
Dear Lord, grant that I may never be insincere in my daily life. Let me always have the strength, the courage and the loyalty to follow what is right. I do not want to choose any temporary satisfaction or relief which is displeasing to You. Let me live for eternity by always choosing what You want me to choose. May death never catch me by surprise. I hope to live each hour of the day in loyalty to Your holy Will and at peace with You. Amen.