Many of the lectionary readings for Lent warn of sin’s unfortunate consequences. One its more insidious consequences is the attenuation of emotional vitality, the displacement of a person’s faith, hope, and charity by feelings of worry, frustration, and boredom. God warns against sin but exhorts us as well to spiritual maturity, promising that we will “reap with cries of joy” (Ps 126:5, today’s lectionary). The link between sin and the attenuation of vitality is often obscure, however, which makes God’s revelation of vital importance. God reveals to us, first, the goal of our life as “love, joy, peace, ….” (Gal 5:22); second, the path to that goal, “be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am holy” (Lv 20:7); and third, the divine guarantee of success, “for everyone who asks (seeks, knocks) receives” (Mt 7:8). We enter God’s path first and foremost by seeking to understanding his way of holiness, and by striving to bring our own thoughts, words, and actions into conformity with it. Essential to success is a regular “examination of conscience”, through which I clarify the specific ways in which I still fall short of holiness. Guidelines for an examination include the Ten Commandments, the Seven Capital Sins, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5-7), the Imitation of Christ (by Thomas a Kempis), and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Regular examination guides my actions, heightens my desire for holiness, and prepares me to receive the special graces made available by God through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.