Day 27: Defeating Temptation

WHERE DID JANUARY GO??

My school day was kind of a blah teaching day (which is sad, since we were playing the Rhythm Game. It would be more fun with pretzels and candy, but I'm not allowed to do that, and because I have carpet, I would be hesitant to do it even if I could), but when I got home, I looked up the full moon schedule; biggest full moon is tonight. It always makes me feel a little better when it's not my fault that teaching goes poorly (seriously, middle schooler's brains get sucked away by the full moon. I don't know why, but it's true).

I am truly exhausted (but 17 hours awake and mostly being active will do that to you). I want to reflect a little on this evening before going to bed. After finally getting back to my apartment at 5 (I had after school band, and then stopped by to see Ted Shistle. I am now playing for like. . . 12 students next weekend for S&E. It's just like college. . . but I'm glad that I can help out. Not every pianist is a good reader/accompanist, but I will say that role is definitely my strength). Then I walked back to Deland HS and got picked up by Nicki, our pastor's wife, so that we could ride together to what turned out to be a 2 hour concert put on by the Florida Worship Choir. It was really really good (and I was a little geeked about the pipe organ, although it didn't really get used since they had 380 MUSICIANS ON STAGE. Mostly singers, but a filled-out orchestra as well. I'm going to see if I can't put Gordon in touch with the people involved with this group (namely Reggie) and see if any of them are interested in publishing his Mass; I think that'd be amazing), and to me it didn't feel like 2 hours. I had a good time chatting on the ride up there, and afterwards the group of us went to Cracker Barrel (only my second experience there, both in the south; it's amazing the things you end up doing when you move halfway across the country). Good food, but I'm stuffed (which is contributing to the wanting to go to sleep). I had a nice talk with Dan on the way back too.

What I want to leave you with is this:



I had never heard it before tonight's concert. . . and Mandisa is great. The lyrics. . . oh, the lyrics. . .

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I started this entry with every intent of finishing it tonight, but it's 11 PM, and I've been up since 5 AM (I woke up twice this week before my alarm! I don't like it when I do that, because I can never fall back asleep very easily). I did read the chapter, and started my reflection on the three things at the end, so that'll have to do until tomorrow morning.

EDIT (the next day): So, I suppose I should actually start talking about the book rather than rambling.

PDL gives us four keys to defeating temptation. FIrst, we should refocus our attention on something else. It doesn't do us any good to fight the thought away; it's the same problem with telling someone "Don't think of a polar bear." By even naming the problem, we are bringing it back to our mind. Instead, we have to put our attention to something else; I think that's why Paul tells us to always think on "good things." Same idea here. It's also a great reason to memorize Bible verses; we can recall them when we need to shift our attention away from the world. "[R]epeating 'I must stop _____' is a self-defeating strategy. It keeps you focused on what you don't want." We need to move our minds away from things that get us into trouble. Go listen to this song.

Second, we should reveal our struggle to a godly friend/support group. That can be so tough, and the book says exactly why. We are either so shamed by our problem that we want to hide it, or we want people to think everything is under control, and that we don't need help. If you've ever been in the "repeating cycle of good intention->failure->guilt" then you know you can't do it alone. But guess what? All have sinned. If you find a supportive group of Christians, they will be able to relate (maybe not to the thing you're dealing with, but who knows? You won't until you open up).

Third, we have to resist the Devil. We all know the verse from James that this phrase comes from, and Paul gave us a list of the Armor of God. Our spiritual regalia is made up of truth, righteousness, readiness, faith, salvation, and the Word. I won't go into a whole discussion of this passage (being that I am not a theologian), but I think it's interesting that our salvation (helmet) protects our heads/minds, our faith (shield) extinguishes the Devil's arrows (and is a mobile thing; it goes with us, and we can put it in front of us when in battle), and the Word of God (sword) is our way to fight back! I love the whole warrior aspect of being a believer (if you haven't picked up on that yet). I imagine that is because I am only 21, and maybe don't always realize the seriousness of the attacks being made, but at the same time, I serve this guy, and it's hard not to be honored and excited to be part of His army on Earth!

Lastly, we must realize our vulnerability. We are good at fooling ourselves; "we lie best when we lie to ourselves." There is no reason for us to get ourselves into tempting situations. And we will never be beyond temptation (remember, temptations are used in the process of developing fruit of the Spirit- see the entry previous). Remember these verses.

Point to Ponder: There is always a way out.
I have found this true in my personal life. Everything from the phone ringing unexpectedly to a certain song coming on to just having someone's face pop up into view of my mental eye have all been doors for me to escape the clutches of temptation. Only recently have I realized that that's what all those things are and have been, and now being aware of them, I have been doing better. But I should also be careful, because if I'm getting better at resisting temptation, then the Devil will just try harder or new ways. As God builds strength in me, He will also allow more difficult trials.

Verse to Remember: 1 Corinthians 10:13b- "God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can't stand up against it. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you will not give in to it." New Living Translation
What I've said above is not just conjecture; it's Biblical. What a comforting verse! It implies action and choice on our part we have to stand up against it and follow the way out. God never says that He will do everything for us. Going back to yesterday, the teacher can only show the student the truth and give him tools to work with; eventually the student has to put effort in and do the homework.

Question to Consider: Who could I ask to be a spiritual partner to help me defeat a persistent temptation by praying for me?
This is something I have been thinking about for a little while now (maybe a couple months). Unfortunately (fortunately? it's hard to say) I won't really see my SS class tomorrow morning (One Lord, One Faith is being sung for both morning services, and then I have the YES concert so no evening church for me), but. . . well, we'll see what comes from this in the near future.