Submit your ways to God, resist the devil and he will flee
James 4:7
I believe temptation is the single ingredient that is added to your life to either keep you from or propel you into your destiny. Faith, obedience, wisdom and love are necessary to reach your full potential but I believe temptation is the devil's antidote to either make or break you. If you take the time to think about it, we all have 'things' that cause us to make decisions based on our desires, our feelings and our will. For example, you could be in a relationship that is going well but then you feel something boiling up in you to wreck havoc over something 'insignificant'. You are tempted to 'rock the boat' for no other reason but to be right or be heard. And you know that you should keep your mouth shut or let it go. But that feeling or desire is overwhelming. So you give in. And before you know it, you have wasted valuable time, instigated getting your feelings and your partners feelings hurt and more than likely still didn't get your point across as you would have like. Another example - you are trying very hard to lose weight and you have been invited to an event and you know that all of your favourite and (fattening) foods will be there. Of course you're going to go, you wouldn't miss it for the world, but do you indulge yourself and completely sabotage your diet in one night or do you decide to be proactive and eat before you go to the evet or use self control and PLAN to eat only one of your favorites as oppose to all five.
Being proactive when dealing with temptation is one of the only ways to keep yourself from making poor choices and regretting it later. In any situation, we can 'mess up' and then suffer the consequences. But, tomorrow is never guaranteed and I believe that part of spiritual and physical maturity is learning to plan to succeed as oppose to accept the fail. The devil will put every type of temptation in your way to keep you stuck or in a position of dissatisfaction. Therefore, when you make choices based on temptation KNOWING that whatever is tempting you is playing on your weaknesses, you can not blame the devil or whatever trap you fell into. You failed to plan, therefore you planned to fail.
I'm going to give a couple more practical examples... for the ladies, you are in a relationship and you know that your anniversary is coming up. You know Mr. Man is not good at dates, you know that finances might be tight, you may even know that he's not very good at gift giving. So, with this knowledge, does it make sense to get upset/start a fight/stress yourself out/ruin the day when the anniversary comes and he has confirmed all of your prior knowledge? You fell into the temptation of letting anger, bitterness and unforgiveness ruin a day/moment that you can NEVER get back. For the men, you know yourself well enough to know that you 'enjoy' looking at pretty faces and fit bodies. Now you have a choice... either choose to remain single or train yourself to ONLY 'enjoy' looking at your significant other. According to the Word, lust in the mind is equivalent to adultery. One more example for everyone... we all have financial responsibilities. Again, you have choices. You can spend your rent/mortgage on a all-inclusive vacation and then stress about it when you return, you can spend your hydro bill money on a pair of shoes and cook over candle light until you have more money to pay the bill off OR you can take care of your responsibilities and wait until you have a surplus to spend your money without any adverse repercussions.
I know my definition of temptation may seem 'simple' and far fetched as temptation is often regarded as BIG, DEVIL-DESIGNED occurences but in reality, temptation is all around us, everyday. And if we can't handle the small temptations in our mind and everyday life, how are we supposed to handle the big temptations that face us and act as a catalyst for our destruction or success. It all starts within us. When Jesus was in the wilderness, the devil tried to play on Jesus' weaknesses to cause him to fail in His mission. The devil tried to get Jesus to turn rocks into bread because he knew Jesus was physical hungry. The devil tried to get Jesus to trade in His purpose for things of the world. But Jesus knew temptation would come and He planned to succeed and He knew exactly what to say when temptation came (Matthew 4:1-11) Plan to succeed. Plan to overcome. Be proactive and stop letting the devil catch you in the same trap over and over and over again. The desires of the heart will only come to those who can control the desires of their heart.
Be Blessed in RESISTING TEMPTATION
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. - 1 Corinthians 10:13
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. - Matthew 6:13
God is Love. Love is Life. Life is in The Word.
God is Love. Love is Life. Life is in The Word.
