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First Sunday of Lent – March 6, 2022

Welcome to the two hundred and sixth episode of By Your Life. Thank you for joining me. If you haven’t already, please subscribe via your favorite podcast app, or on the right side of this page so I can send you notifications when each new episode is posted. And please forward to a friend you think would benefit from By Your Life.

My goal is to inspire, empower, support, challenge, and encourage you to connect Sunday, with Monday-Friday, in a secular, business world. It is my desire to help you live our Catholic faith in the marketplace, and to trust that it is good for business. I hope to offer you practical ways to go forth and glorify the Lord by your life.

Removing Temptation

In this edition, we’ll reflect on the readings for the First Sunday of Lent (Year C). In Luke’s Gospel, we heard the story of The Temptation of Jesus. When I reflected on this Gospel, I thought about the quote from Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray when Lord Henry Wotton said, “The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.” I can relate to this a bit, can’t you? I have a weakness for ice cream. I know that if I push away the thought of ice cream, I can only do it for so long before I indulge in a great big hot fudge sundae. Then, the temptation is gone…for a while anyway.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. ~ Lord Henry Wotton, the amoral aristocrat from The Picture of Dorian Gray Click to Tweet

When speaking about temptation, the character Lord Henry continued: “Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself, with desire for what its monstrous laws have made monstrous and unlawful.”

Now we are talking about something a little more serious than satisfying your sweet tooth, because true temptation is the desire to do something that is especially wrong or unwise, and Lord Henry is suggesting that we are the ones who create the rules determining whether something is right or wrong.

Guard Against Moral Relativism

This is the foundation of moral relativism and the central belief of an “anything goes” culture. If I decide that there is nothing wrong with what I’m considering, then it will no longer be a temptation. It will simply be a decision to do something wrong, but I’ve decided that it is right. There is no need for self-restraint. There is no need for concern about how my choice impacts others. There is no need for worry about how it may be harming my soul. The Father of Lies wins. We lose.

To guard against “the wickedness and the snares of the devil,” we need to have a well-formed conscience because he is cunning, deceiving us to believe that there is nothing wrong with the sin he presents as something good for us. In the Gospel, Jesus was hungry after forty days in the desert because he ate nothing during those days. (Lk 4:2) Isn’t it just like the devil to come after us when we’re weak, when we’re tired, worn out, broken down. But three times the devil tempted Jesus and three times Jesus overcame him. Unfortunately, when we aren’t prepared and well-grounded in our faith to rebuke him, his offer can sound so appealing. It can even seem like the right choice.

WWJD

At a podcasters’ conference a few years ago, one of the keynote speakers, a king in the world of podcasting, shared his top 4 tactics for creating, launching and growing your podcast. One of the points he made was that it is important to know who your avatar is. In podcasting, your avatar is that one, single, perfect listener. The speaker named his avatar Jimmy.

The speaker shared that your journey as a podcaster will include 1,000 forks in the road…every month! You are continuously facing decisions. So, when trying to decide between the right and wrong path to take, you should let your avatar decide for you. He said, “I always ask, ‘WWJD?’ – or what would Jimmy do?” Great question, I thought, but you’ve got the wrong “J.”

It is true that in business and in life, we continuously are presented with choices. It is true that our journeys include thousands of forks in the road. Sometimes the choices are inconsequential like, “Would you like the chicken or the fish?” Sometimes, the choices are personally more important like, “Would you like the chicken or the fish?” and it is a Friday in Lent and you’re abstaining as a prayerful form of self-denial. And, sometimes, the choices have a moral significance like, “I’m really hungry and there are only two pieces of chicken left. I know others haven’t eaten yet, but I’m here first, so should I take that one last piece?”

In business, on a daily basis, we make more significant decisions that impact others—our employees, our customers, our vendors, our communities. The question is, what are the principles that guide your decisions? Do you ask, “What’s in it for me? What’s most profitable for the company?” Or, do you ask, “WWJD? – What would Jesus do?” What are the guiding principles for your life’s decisions? Do you allow modern culture’s relativism to guide you? Or, are you consciously choosing to follow the Truth of Jesus Christ?

Values-based Decision Making

When I interviewed CEOs for my book, The Value of Core Values, one of the practices I found to be consistently followed in each of these successful companies was that they constantly shared their core values so that every person knew what they were and how they were to be followed. Their core values were the guidelines for decision-making.

One of the CEOs I interviewed was Colleen Chappell, President and CEO of ChappellRoberts, a branding, advertising, marketing, and public relations agency. Their guiding principles are called The ChappellRoberts Manifesto, and they include, among others, the following core values:

• We value our long-term reputation more than short-term gain.
• How we achieve results is as important as the results themselves.
• We each take personal responsibility for our actions.
• We act with honesty and integrity as individuals and as an agency.

Colleen shared with me a story about an employee she had to terminate because he had willfully violated these core values. This employee held a prominent position in the agency and his termination would impact several of their client relationships. Colleen said, “This was not a decision we took lightly because people, their families and well-being were impacted. It was also a difficult decision because of the disruptive ripple effect the termination would have throughout the agency. However, it was not really that hard. Our core values were broken. It was the easiest tough decision we’ve ever made.”

To honor your core values is the easiest tough decision you’ll ever make. Click to Tweet

When you are clear about your guiding principles, your first reaction when faced with a decision is to turn to them.  Jesus rebuked the devil with the principles in Scripture. Colleen relied on her values to make the right decision, and then put her energy into how she would manage the consequences. Other CEOs who were faced with similar decisions knew that when you speak but don’t honor your core values, you lack integrity. When you allow profitability, not principle, to guide your decisions, it is a short-term gain with long-term consequences. And that, is a definition of giving into temptation.

Putting in the Reps

One other point the king in the world of podcasting shared with his audience at that conference was that if you want to have a good podcast, “you must put in the reps.” You must keep practicing if you want to become good at something – anything. Stephen Curry didn’t become the Leading Career Free Throw Percent Record Holder in the NBA without practicing at the free-throw line. You don’t make over 90% of your shots from the line without practicing. I’m sure that many of those shots were at times when the pressure was high, and the game was on the line. But to a record-holder, those are the easiest, difficult shots they’ve made, because they practiced. When you make it a practice to honor your core values, every decision, no matter how difficult, will be clear.

When you make it a practice to honor your core values, every decision, not matter how difficult, will be clear. Click to Tweet

As Catholics, we speak the words “Lead us not into temptation” at each Mass and again, on a daily basis, if not multiple times a day. As far as prayer is concerned, we certainly “put in the reps” with the Our Father. Prayer is an essential part of the battle against temptation. But beware of allowing these words to let you think you play no role in the matter. God doesn’t lead anyone into temptation. In fact, there was some controversy a while ago when Pope Francis suggested that the English language translation of these words of the Our Father should be changed. But as the Catechism says, “It is difficult to translate the Greek verb used into a single English word: the Greek means both ‘do not allow us to enter into temptation’ and ‘do not let us yield to temptation.’ Our sins result from our consenting to temptation; we therefore ask our Father not to “lead” us into temptation.” CCC 2846

In other words, this petition is asking the Spirit to guide us down the right path, “to unmask the lie of temptation, whose object appears to be good, when in reality, its fruit is death.” We still have a choice to make. “Lead us not into temptation” implies a decision of the heart: “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also… No one can serve two masters.” CCC 2848

The good Lord knows that we all need to make money to support our families, and our companies need profits to be able to stay in business, to serve our customers, and pay our employees. Profits are not a bad thing. However, when profits are the purpose, the reason for your existence, then you’ve sold your soul to the devil. “You cannot serve God and mammon.” (Mt. 6:24)

Surrounded by Right People

One final note, which is also a takeaway from that podcasters’ conference. One of the presenters said, “Your network = your net worth.” His point was that your network, the people you surround yourself with, are key to your success. So, surround yourself with the right people. Choose your friends, employees, and your business partners wisely. Surround yourself with people who will help you choose the right path when temptation comes your way. The evil one doesn’t give up, for Luke writes, “When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time.” (Lk 4:13) And only for a time. The prince of darkness waits and preys on the weak. In business and in life, surround yourself with people who will challenge and strengthen you and help you stay on the right course.

One CEO I interviewed in the process of writing my book shared a story about one of his employees who had told him about a company in their industry that had participated in an unethical activity. This CEO immediately condemned that company for what they had done. And then, the employee told him that the company he was talking about was their company. Embarrassed, the CEO made things right again.

Surround yourself with accountability partners who share your values—Gospel values—so that when you unwittingly go astray, you can get back on track. Because we all face temptation. We all give in and sin. But we all have a God of mercy who is waiting for us to turn back to Him.

Let us ask St Michael the Archangel to be at our side this week so that when we are faced with temptation, we choose the right path, and lead others to do the same.

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the wickedness and the snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray. And, do thou O Prince of the Heavenly Hosts, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls.

May God bless you abundantly this week and may you glorify the Lord by your life. Amen.

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