Yesterday I had an unusually strong challenge in the form of a temptation. It came at a time when I was trying to relax and rest. It was a temptation I used to struggle with and fail often in younger days.
But God’s Spirit simply called my attention to the phony world I was entering, giving me the option to live in reality versus lying to myself as I used to do. Though I kept the door open to the temptation longer than necessary, Jesus’ love and truth sobered me, and I took God’s path to freedom rather than taking Satan’s bait.
It was as if I had begun to swallow the bait until I caught a hint of its rotten flavor and consequently I spit it out, choosing to “taste and see that the Lord is good”!( Psalm 34:8)
Rather than eat the unhealthy sweet-at-first morsel of a stale, moldy sin-cake, I chose to take in the healthy, not-so-sweet-at-first truth-cake made with the honey of God’s Word and other good ingredients that tasted better and better as I swallowed it, resulting in a benefit to my spirit and my emotions. It settled peacefully into my soul rather than resulting in the bitterness of a sin consumed.
Satan is still a cunning liar, but a liar nonetheless . Jesus is the truth and offers us a way out of sin and temptation, and we get to choose.
I Corinthians 10:12-13
12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! 13 No temptation[c]has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted[d] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,[e] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
For God’s sake, for our own sake, and for the benefit to others, may you and I choose life instead of death by exercising our power to respond to God’s invitation to live an abundant life that includes using His power and wisdom to stay out of sinful habits that start with one wrong choice followed by others. So let’s stop the sin-train in the mind early by applying truth from His Word and submission to His love by prayer.
Let’s choose life!