In our pursuit of earthly wealth and power, it is often easy to fall into the company of and work in partnership with those whose intentions are far from righteous.
Evil rarely presents itself as evil. Evil never sleeps, always tempting us, masquerading as good by falsely communicating its intention to work in our favor. It blinds us to the evidence that in our association with it, we are slowly being stripped of our compassion for our fellow man and are more than willing to take advantage of, subjugate and even kill each other to advance our personal agenda. It corrupts us into pitting ourselves against each other by exploiting inherent fears and prejudices that reside in each of us. It persuades us to create division to protect our own power and wealth. As our association with evil advances our cachet in society and swells our bank accounts, it is easier for our faith to waiver and our relationship with the Lord to widen.
Avoiding this temptation is not easy. We are, after all, only human and to be humans is to be inherently flawed. Left alone, history has shown us our willingness to sin when we believe that sin would benefit our lot in life. We even have used our so called “religious” beliefs as an excuse to commit one of the most heinous of sins by waging war against and taking the lives of fellow humans whose views differ from ours.
How do we avoid this? It is only through the Lord that we can temper our innate desire to sin. Like with our physical bodies, we must commit to an exercise program to strengthen our faith. Through daily prayer, praise, and conversations with the Lord, our spirituality grows. We come to understand that no amount of wealth and power here on the Earth can compare to the eternal existence that awaits us in the Lord’s paradise. Through our strengthened spirituality, we are guided to the path of righteousness and blessed with the courage required to rebuke evil. Through our spirituality, we can recognize that we are weak, and it is ok to ask the Lord for help in overcoming our desire to sin. It is our faith that enables us to see that spiritual riches are far greater than physical ones. Only when we embrace these concepts and give our lives to the Lord will we truly become one with the Lord and reap all the blessings that association will rain down upon us.