As I went through the readings of today, I was reminded of an anecdote involving an old Cherokee imparting wisdom to his grandchild regarding an ongoing internal struggle individuals experience. He said, "My son, the battle is between two "wolves" inside us all. One is Evil, which represents anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other is good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith." The grandson, listening to the story intently, thought about it briefly and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?" The old Cherokee replied, "The one you feed."

In his letter to the Romans, St. Paul gives us an impression of a similar battle taking place in the hearts of believers between good and evil and urges them to lean towards and choose what is good because God’s grace has saved them. We know from our experience that this is easier said than done. All of us struggle to do the right thing. We have good intentions for our family, or perhaps we wish to work honestly, or we want to get rid of a bad habit, or maybe we decide to pray every day, but we get carried away. Even Paul, in his letter to the Romans, echoes a similar predicament when he states, “For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing” (Rm 7:19).

In the Gospel, the master of the house confides in his servant with all the duties and responsibilities, trusting the servant to take care of his house. However, the servant goes rogue. He mistreats his fellow servants and abuses their power and position. Eventually, when the master returns and finds him disobedient, he punishes him for not doing what was expected of him.

Two important themes emerge from the readings. Firstly, we recognize the need for God’s grace to help us overcome the temptations of sin. Secondly, we understand that God’s grace should not diminish our efforts in working towards our salvation. By combining our actions with God’s grace, we can experience transformative change and continuously choose what is right while seeking guidance from God. It is crucial to self-reflect on our thoughts, intentions, and actions to determine our direction. Let us be proactive in avoiding situations that make us vulnerable to sin and always strive to be committed to God and ourselves.