The subtle forms of self-indulgence

WE have to be most careful with the many subtle forms of

self-indulgence that take us away from our real home-base who is God.

These subtle forms of self-indulgence usually spring from the many

blessings and good things God has given us, but which we misuse or

abuse. Instead of glorifying God as we should, we use them to indulge

ourselves simply.

            These forms of self-indulgence can be so tricky that we

may not be very aware that we are falling into them. In fact, we can

even think that with them we are doing right, that we are making good

use of our time and our talents, that we are simply exercising our

freedom, that we are affirming who we are, etc. It’s a very insidious

type of self-deception.

            Aside from alienating us from God, they alienate us also

from others. We may not even realize that we are building an

impenetrable wall around ourselves. We become insensitive to our

responsibilities toward God. We become deaf and blind to the needs of

others.

            They usually start as something like fine, flimsy threads,

similar to the sticky, silky ones produced by spiders that easily trap

little insects, and once trapped these insects are immediately wrapped

with them and devoured.

            They usually start as something legitimate, but somehow

the intention with which we use them is not quite right. Instead of

leading us to God and to others, they simply feed our egos and give

free rein to our curiosities, love for comfort and bodily pleasure,

etc. Before we know it, we would find ourselves wallowing in the mud

of self-absorption, unable or at least finding it hard to extricate

ourselves from that condition.

            Thus, we are now having a high incidence of all forms of

addiction—from alcohol to drugs, and even to very legitimate things

like our work, our hobbies, sports, games and other forms of

recreation. We are now very familiar with workaholism, but there are

now many other forms of addiction as in that of pornography, gambling,

etc.

            These subtle forms of self-indulgence can even enter into

the area of religion and spirituality when we get hooked on to some

superstitious beliefs and practices, leading us to such anomalies as

hypocrisy, self-righteousness, rash judgments, gossiping, spiritual

lukewarmness and the like.

            We really have to make conscious effort to protect

ourselves from these dangers. For this purpose, we need to constantly

rectify our intention. Sometimes, it is God who takes the initiative

of prompting us what to do, and in this case, we should try our best

to be very docile and faithful. At other times, we are the ones who

initiate a plan, and we should always refer it first to God before

acting on it.

            We need to develop a strong ability to say no to certain

things that we know can already invite us to self-indulgence. Thus,

Christ told us to learn how to deny ourselves and carry the cross.

(cfr. Lk 9,23) This skill is so indispensable in our life. Everyday,

we should be conscious that there is something at least, no matter how

legitimate, that we manage to say no to.

            We have to develop the fine art of self-discipline and

self-control. It may just be matter of putting away the cellphone when

we already are in bed, or making the resolution to look at the

cellphone only once every hour or every thirty minutes, etc.

            We have to be wary of the many conveniences and amenities

we enjoy these days, because they can easily spoil us. The powerful

gadgets and useful modern technologies would really need not only

technical expertise in using them, but more importantly, a strong

discerning moral and prudential sense.

            In this, we have to help one another by giving good

examples of prudence and sobriety, timely and regular reminders and

even corrections.