How to stop justifying sins

[Upgrade25]

Please Move this if in wrong subforum.

I will sometimes commit various sins using various justifications. Never criticizing Church teaching, just finding a way to justify it. How do I stop.

 

[Trident_H]

Please Move this if in wrong subforum.

I will sometimes commit various sins using various justifications. Never criticizing Church teaching, just finding a way to justify it. How do I stop.

lol that’s the danger of being a smart guy. The brain can work for you and against you if you’re not careful.

Usually the key is to get in the habit of trying to imagine Jesus doing it. If you can’t figure him making the same excuses, you’re busted.

 

[Franciscan_Way]

Hi Upgrade!
Someone very recently asked a question and a priest answered it. It was regarding sin. Not sure of what exactly the question was. In his answer, the priest said that “A’s long as we continue to rationalize or make excuses for our sins, we will always be held hostage to the same sins.” The timing was perfect because I was wondering why I repeatedly confessed the same sins and this allowed me to see that rationalizing/justifying and making excuses for my sins is exactly what I have been doing.
As for how to stop, First, I would recommend staying in daily prayer; asking for the intercession of Our Lady and the Saints. Exercise your free will to stay in friendship with Christ by making decisions that are pleasing to Him. Second, do not commit the sin of presumption; which means when tempted to sin, you tell yourself it’s ok to go ahead and commit the sin because you will go to confession and confess it later. Third, avoid the occasion of sin. If lust is a problem, resolve to not watch certain tv programs, videos, movies, look pictures, websites, porn, etc, just as an alcoholic must avoid alcohol, bars, parties, partying friends or anything that would cause them to stumble. Fourth, during times of temptation, say the simple prayer, “Lord, I offer you this temptation for the conversion of sinners.” Lastly, If we apologize for something, it should be done without a “but”. For example: “I’m sorry I punched you in the face, but you made me really angry” is different than “I’m sorry I punched you in the face. I overreacted and I was wrong.” In confession, it should be a heartfelt apology without justifications.
I’m sorry this all over the place. I hope this helps a bit.

 

[Petaro]

We all can make excuses, but who are we really kidding? We know it is not ourselves. We know that God is not fooled. What a waste of time and an insult to ourselves as rational souls and to our Creator. When you start with the justifications before you sin, give yourself a good kick, apologise for the thought and as the wise post before me advised; keep away from occasions of sin. A quick prayer to your guardian angel would not go astray. What is he doing? A good relationship with a more powerful friend sent to assist is valuable. Anything else is a waste.

 

[Eichelbaum]

Taking responsibility for your actions is probably a habit. In order to form this habit, you simply have to be in the position to blame something other than yourself, but yet consistently refuse to do so. If the temptation to shirk responsibility isn’t there, then we can’t cultivate this good habit — so do keep in mind that such temptations can be incredibly useful and are, in point of fact, a good thing. They will shape you and help you to grow.

But we should also keep in mind that all of us excuse ourselves and find justification for our actions to one extent or another. That is always a temptation, because we want to see ourselves in as great a light as possible.

Therefore, accepting mortifcations of pride is another valuable tool here, as is cultivating humility, which is the virtue of seeing ourselves as we truly are.

For an example of a mortification of pride: when you find yourself in a situation where someone can think of you in a less than flattering light, offer this to God in love for Him without going out of your way to fix the misperception.

Or, when you’re asked to do something that you might think is a bit beneath you, accept this with a sincere desire to be given graces to overcome pride.