The Principles, the Penalties

We often know better than we do, and many of our difficulties come from ignoring what we know. We know the rules, the laws, the consequences in many cases but sometimes allow ourselves to be dared into doing, to be compromised, to be embarrassed by seeming to be different, to be persuaded by social pressures to go along with the crowd.

Or we may allow appetites or easy attitudes to drift us into difficulty, and fail to think enough about the principles or about the penalties for departing from principles.

“The most striking contradiction of our civilization,” said Vilhjalmur Stefansson, “is the fundamental reverence for truth which we profess and the thorough-going disregard for it which we practice.” Living with enslaving habits, with impaired health, with impaired capacity, with uneasiness and inner accusation is a heavy price to pay for ignoring the truth.

“There are two freedoms,” said Charles Kingsley, “the false where one is free to do what he likes, and the true where he is free to do what he ought.” “This much at least is clear,” said Alan Valentine. “Freedom is born of self-discipline. No individual, no nation, can achieve or maintain liberty without self-control. The undisciplined man is a slave to his own weaknesses . . . Self-expression of any real sort depends upon self-control . . .”

“There is a law, irrevocable decreed . . .”⎯a law of nature, of God, a law of health, a law of peace, a law of time-proved principles⎯a law on which all “blessings [and penalties] are predicated”⎯and simply knowing the truth is not enough. Simply saying the words is not enough. If we would only do as well as we know, we would save ourselves many headaches and many heartaches. “There is no true liberty nor real joy, save in the fear of God with a good conscience.”