At Home – by Rudy Gray

Rudy Gray

Temptation is something that we all face. It is an attraction we feel externally and a choice we make internally. Temptations are human. They are real. They can strengthen us or damage us.

First Corinthians 10:13 is an important verse worth memorizing when it comes to dealing with temptation. James 1:14 says, “Each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lusts.” In Luke 4, Jesus gave us the example for dealing with temptation when He met each challenge of the devil with a specific and applicable verse from God’s word.

We can overcome temptation, but we must be grounded in truth and morally alert so we can rightly apply the truth. Too often it seems we actually want to be tempted. Instead of moving out of harm’s way, we move into harm’s way.

Many years ago, an 8-year-old boy lived on a farm. On that farm was a great “swimming hole” (the country equivalent of a modern-day swimming pool). He loved to swim. However, the rule was that he could only go swimming when someone was with him.

One day his mom had to go to shopping for a couple of hours. She sternly warned him not to go swimming. He promised her he wouldn’t. When she returned home and walked out the back door, she saw him coming up the path with wet swimming trunks.

“Where have you been?” Her son bravely replied, “Mama, I am not going to lie to you. I have been to the swimming hole. I was just walking by it when that old devil told me to jump in.”

The mom listened patiently to him and then said, “But, son, why did you wear your swimming trunks?” He promptly responded, “Well, I knew if I walked by that swimming hole, the devil would tempt me.”

Far too often, that story is like us. Temptation is serious. It can lead to blessing or it can lead to wrong. But temptation itself is not our biggest problem. What we do with temptation is the key. Preparation precedes blessing. When we take the time to learn God’s truth and hide it away in our hearts as a great treasure, we can be prepared for the temptations that catch us by surprise. For all the other temptations, we may simply need to be honest with ourselves about ourselves.