Day 26: Growing Through Temptation

I was thankful when I read this chapter. I’m gonna bounce around it for a bit, begin in the middle and then come back. I know I’ve been taking them pretty much in order so that if anyone doesn’t have the book, they could still get the meat. But today I feel a different approach coming on. As you may have noticed over the past few posts, my format has become less structured. I still want to make sure I hit on the Bible verse, the Question, and leave you with a reminder that loosely sums up the whole chapter. But I also want to write more as I feel led.

Many Christians are frightened and demoralized by tempting thoughts, feeling guilty that they aren’t “beyond” temptation. They feel ashamed just for being tempted.

Stand up if that statement describes you. Ok, sit back down, this will be easier for me to write sitting down and for you to read too. I soooo get this. I live this on a regular basis! I am tempted and ashamed to talk about it at the same time. But here I am writing about it. Why, because God uses something that Satan plans for evil in my life as an way for me to please Him. When I refuse to give into temptation, I make God smile.

I also know that I am not alone in my temptations. And that every one of them comes at me the same way. You may not have the weaknesses I have; you may be tempted by things that don’t affect me. But at its core, we are all tempted with the same steps. We desire, we doubt, we are deceived, and we disobey. It worked with Eve, and every man that has ever walked the earth except Jesus. But even Jesus was tempted in the desert.

I desire to provide for my family, that’s a legitimate normal desire, but let me tell you where Satan tries to take it. To provide for my family, I am always looking at ways to make more money. At my work there is usually a chance to work overtime on the weekends, but it involves a Sunday commitment. Satan whispers that God will understand if I put work before church on Sunday. (That’s the doubt) “Did God really say you can’t work on Sunday? Didn’t Jesus tell a man to work on Sunday, He told the Pharisees that they worked on the Sabbath and called them hypocrites.” (Satan knows the Bible better than anyone I’ve ever met) “It’s ok to work on Sunday if Jesus did it.” (That’s a deception) The Bible always has to be taken in context, but Satan will just give us half the story at best. And when I go into to work on Sunday for double time, I’ve become disobedient.

Yesterday I told you about how I almost lost my house. I was working a ton of hours and not paying attention to the little clues God was giving me. My bike needed major work, the van kept breaking down, the A/C stopped working, etc. All that double time money wasn’t going towards the stuff I wanted it to go to. It wasn’t even going to the stuff God wanted it to, like Church. God was trying to get my attention. I am always tempted to put making money at the top of my ‘to do’ list. But, I don’t work every Sunday or overtime day that is available if I have plans with the family.

So I can and will be tempted; but this chapter gives me some great advice on how to turn a temptation in to a good thing; a God thing. There was the first thing I mentioned about not being intimidated by it. If I accept that I will be tempted, it’s not a crushing blow when it happens. The next part was recognizing when I get tempted, for me it’s when I’m stress about money. It’s just so easy to say, I’m going to go to work instead of Church. But, if I can come up with a budget and stick to it, then I won’t be as stressed over finances and I can be less tempted by the lure of double time pay.

The last way to turn temptation into a good thing is to ask God to help me with it. God loves when we come to Him with our problems. In fact not turning to God for help is a sin. When you refuse to seek God’s help with your problem, your temptation, you are telling God ‘I can figure this out, I don’t need you.’ Maybe your temptation is beer and you have to drive past six bars on the way home from work. Ask God to help you go straight home. If your temptation is lust, ask God to give you the strength to avoid the beach, and the late night movies/internet.

There was something promising in this chapter directly related to that, but can be applied across the board of temptation. Attraction and arousal are the natural, spontaneous, God-given responses to physical beauty, while lust ‘is a deliberate act of the will.’ . . . attraction is not lust until you begin to dwell on it.

It is not a sin to be tempted. Temptation only becomes sin when you give into it. I wish I could engrave that in my own brain. When I give into temptation, I make a choice to go against what God wants me to do. I can’t wait to get to tomorrow’s chapter on defeating temptation!

The Bible verse comes from the Book of James. This is one of my favorite books in the New Testament because James, like John, never seems to sugar coat anything. I like that.

God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
James 1:12(NLT)

The question is: What Christlike character quality can I develop by defeating the most common temptation I face? I didn’t go over the 9 Fruits of the Spirit in my blog so if you don’t have the book, Google that phrase to better understand this question. In the temptations I face daily I can develop my faithfulness and self control most by defeating them.

Remember: Every temptation is an opportunity to do good.