December 9th Temptation

I was standing forlornly on the scales the other day remembering that this time last year I had absolutely promised myself that I was going to lose the weight Id put on the previous year before christmas 2016.   And of course I didnt.  And now here I am saying the same thing to myself again.  Only from the position of being half a stone heavier than I was this time last year.   So depressing.

And then a bit later on I was thinking about the Lord's prayer and those words ' lead me not into temptation' and I had a bit of a penny dropping moment.   I suppose over many years of hearing those words I had somehow always thought of the ' temptation' as being a something specific.  Don't let me stray into sin Lord - break a commandment - steal or lie or covet or murder.   Lord don't let me wander off into error.   But today I suddenly realised that temptation lies not so much in the ' big' things but in the tiny moments of daily life - like the sweets and buns which cause me to put on half a stone a year.  Like the temptation to lie in and not get up when it is cold outside and there is housework to do.   Like breaking the speed limit when Im late.   Like being mean and cross when I speak to my kids.   So many tiny ' temptations' every day.  And I fall down on them all the time.

Funnily enough, having been thinking about this today I then went on Facebook to find a friend had posted a link to the Pope who is suggesting a change in that line of the Lord's prayer.   He says that ' lead us not into temptation'  is not a good translation from the original as it gives the impression that it is somehow possible for God to place us in harms way.  He suggests a better wording might be something like  ' do not let us fall into temptation'  ( which is what I have always taken it to mean anyway)  God doesnt push us into sin...... we choose it, we do the falling, we have to deal with the consequences.

I have to confess that I don't pray the Lord's prayer every day.  Now that Im no longer attending an Anglican church I don't even pray it once a week.   But I probably should.  Because I clearly need God's help in the little things.  Every time I open the fridge.  Or get offered a biscuit I dont need. 
                                                      
One of the verses in the Bible which most amazes me is Hebrews 4;15 

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet he did not sin.

Jesus knows all about temptation - and He didnt just understand the theory He experienced the pain of it.  

Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.  Heb 2 :18      

Temptation tears us in two.  It produces a war in our souls - we know what we should do but the desire to do the opposite can be excruciating.  Im pretty sure none of us will ever go through the sort of temptations which faced Jesus in the desert and in the garden, let alone those which most assuredly leered at him and lured him every one of His days on earth.   But most of us at some point will struggle with the temptation to cheat or lie or steal.  We might lust after something or someone which we can't have.  We might be tempted to join in with the office gossip or not be entirely righteous in our finances.   And what about how we spend our time and what we watch on television?  The more I look at it the more I realise that temptation is everywhere , in the little things we can so easily excuse or ignore.  But God says  BE HOLY.  What sets us apart as Christians should be the fruit of the Spirit in our lives......  one of which is self control.

So as I look forward to a couple of weeks of gluttony and over indulgence I think I need to be praying harder than ever before '  Lord don't allow me to succumb to temptation.  Give me the same iron will that You had to turn your face from everything which was unhelpful, shadowy, impure.  Help me to set my face like flint towards the prize and run with confidence, not tripping up over the small obstacles on the road'

There's nothing wrong with the odd mince pie.  It's just that I find it so hard to stop at one.  Lord help me!!