Virtues make possible ease, self-mastery and joy in leading a morally good life.
Their strength is measured in the ordinariness of our lives. However, as Christians we have a greater challenge. Within the Christian context virtues are combined with other graces from God. As a result, our lives are in greater harmony with the gospel. A person who practices virtue because it is the reasonable thing to do is different from a person who is motivated to practice the same virtue in order to fulfill gospel teachings and walk in the footsteps of Jesus.