Doing the right thing does not always feel good. You might take a stand for what you believe. You might go out of your way to assist someone in need. But even in these circumstances, something can still go wrong. Others do not appreciate your sacrifice. You suffer ridicule. You experience loss. You know it is right to do good, but unfairly you do not always feel good.

The first letter of Peter says, “If you are patient when you suffer for doing what is good, this is a grace before God. For to this you have been called.”

The good we do is already a sign of our progress in the spiritual life, even if it does not feel that way. In the past, we may have avoided what is good if it seemed to threaten peace. We might have kept quiet about injustice in the workplace, the offenses of a neighbor, or the inappropriateness of derisive humor. Our silence gave consent. We were like sheep going astray.

But in Christ we know better. We do what is right even if it is unpopular. We speak up for the oppressed. We take time to defend human rights. We act with boldness we did not know before. We obtain this strength for doing good from the Shepherd of sheep, who guides and protests the flock.

Faith in Christ brings comfort and courage. It makes us feel loved, confident, and strong to suffer for doing what is good, even when it is unpopular.

Written by Paul Turner. Liturgy Training Publications
Copyright 2004, Archdiocese of Chicago