Sunday, March 27, 2011

Are you tempted?

Aren't we all?  For most of us temptation starts about the time our feet hit the floor in the morning.  Maybe it is temptation to curse because you kicked the bed post, to be angry with your spouse or parent from a disagreement the night before.  Maybe you are tempted to take a sick day even though you feel fine.  Maybe you are tempted to ignore God today, skip your quiet time in favor of watching TV, look at something on the Internet you shouldn't... The list is long of things that tempt us isn't it.  Are we weak because we are tempted?  No, absolutely not.  We are strong because we are tempted.  You know one way to tell if you are not walking with Jesus?  If Satan is not trying to trip you up, you may not be a threat to him.  But... If you are battling every day, feeling opposed, struggling to love God through tough times, maybe you are winning fro Christ.  I heard in a men;s conference one time that if we do not run into the devil in our daily running, that we may be running in the same direction as him. 
So how do we deal with this temptation?  Psh, that's the easy part- Jesus showed us in Matthew 4.  Verse one tells us he was led by the Holy Spirit.  Well, as followers of Christ we have the Holy Spirit within us right?  (Nod your head yes!)  We also see several times where Jesus when tempted used scripture to defend Himself, not His supernatural powers.  See, he was showing you and I how to do it.  What an awesome Savior!
Thank you Jesus for showing us how to be more like YOU and how to defend ourselves against the opposition!
Waiting on Him!
ML