I have gone to prison many times – to share The Virtues Project with incarcerated people in New Zealand, Australia, the US, Canada and other countries. I usually say, “Today I’m going to introduce you to someone special who can change your life.”

They look around and then suspiciously at me, assuming I mean myself. “I’m going to introduce you to yourself. Do you know that you are full of virtues?”

One woman in a Western Australia prison said, “Miss, I don’t have any of those virtues,” pointing to the chart of virtues posted on the wall. “Actually, you do. It takes confidence to be the first one to speak up. I see your courage and confidence to be the first to speak up.” The look of awe on her face was priceless. “Well, if I have those, maybe I have other virtues too. I never knew.” Another woman said, “You have plenty! You’re peaceful when us fellas get into a fight, and you try to calm us down.”

We are all full of virtues. Sometimes they remain dormant – in potential. All we need to awaken them is to use them. Christian monk Tolbert McCarroll said, “Virtue is the muscle tone that develops from daily and hourly training of a spiritual warrior.” If you’ve ever spent a long time bedridden, your muscles atrophy. When you start using them again to walk, it takes time to develop renewed muscle tone, to develop new strength. It’s the same with virtues. If we never take risks, if we shy away from scary situations or things requiring courage, our courage virtue becomes weak. Likewise, if we step up to a challenge and believe, as motivational author and speaker Tony Robbins says, “Every setback is a setup for a comeback,” we thrive both emotionally and spiritually.

Baha’u’llah, founder of the Baha’i Faith, says, “Every atom in existence I have ordained for thy training.” Life is school and the virtues are the lesson plans in our teachable moments. Virtues are the fruits of our spirit, the very fruitage of our lives. The cultivation of love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control and other virtues is the very purpose of our lives. God gives us tests to help us grow and develop those fruits of the spirit. “My son despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he takes delight; Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.” (Proverbs 3:11 to 18)

Every test in our lives is an opportunity for spiritual growth. A powerful way to honour our own spirit is the use guilt only as a signal for change and to embrace the gifts in our tests. It is my hope that the women in that prison virtues workshop gained new hope for themselves when they realised that they were full of virtues, and they were much more than the worst thing they ever did. They still have an opportunity to tap into God’s delight by honouring their spiritual potential.