Dealing with Temptations – the Small Things
“Why didn’t I just say no?”
I tell you, as many times as I have berated myself with this question, never once has it been helpful. The aftermath of shame after giving in to a desire has never been pleasant, yet it can seem so ineffective in keeping sin at bay (on it’s own, anyway). In the face of real temptation, we forget pain, shame, and misery; we only see what it is we want.
My glaring weak spot at this time in my life is sugar. It’s like I can’t stay out of it. The will power required for me to stay out of the constantly-stocked candy jars at work is astronomical. The strength of the cravings when you’re coming down off of sugar is insane – I’ve never craved anything like I do sweet stuff when I’m on day two or three of going sugar-free. (Sugar is insane, people.) I’ve tried so many things to keep from indulging, and yet I break. I try to keep better snacks stocked so I don’t feel the need for it when I’m munchy or bored; if I think about it, I’ll remind myself how the corn-syrup laden stuff will sap me of my energy and, sometimes, will severely affect my health. Why can’t I just not do it? Is my will not strong enough?
Well…
Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” I’m reminded of Paul’s discussion of the battle between spirit and flesh within man in Romans 7 – the constant back and forth, the desire to do what is right but still desiring to satiate the flesh. “For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice… O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” The answer to his question, and oddly enough to my own, is in the next verse. “I thank God – through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
I have had temptations before that feel more serious than a sugar craving. It seems like sugar should be no big deal compared to sexual desire, jealousy, self-pity, etc. But here’s the reality – sugar cravings are a big deal for me. They are a struggle for me. So, time to stop treating it like it shouldn’t be a problem (which is always so effective, don’t ya know?) and time to treat it the way God has told me to.
I felt silly the first time I prayed for help to stay out of the candy jar. I did. The stupid candy jar? Really? Should it be such a big deal that I have to ask for God’s help to withstand it?
1 Peter 5:6-7 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon him, for he cares for you.” God cares about it because it is a struggle for me. He has directed me to bring it to him, no matter how silly it seems. Who am I to decide my temptation is small enough to withstand on my own when God has taught me otherwise? 1 Corinthians 10:12-13 “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”
You know what I discovered? When I prayed for strength, the temptation that had tripped me up at every previous instance was suddenly manageable. The urge I felt was less – still present, still strong, but not overwhelming. I still wanted the sugar. But I had addressed it, and I leaned on God to give me the strength that I did not have inside myself. I took the way of escape offered to me. Jeremiah 10:23 “O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.” As Paul said about his struggle between flesh and spirit, the only way to find success is through Jesus Christ. We have access to limitless reservoirs of strength because Christ has paved the way for us with his blood. That beautiful truth extends to every corner of concern man will face, even candy jars.
With the knowledge of God’s care and provision in my struggle, I also have to remember why the thing is bad for me in the first place. Excess amounts of sugar have contributed to constant aches and pains, inflammation, hormonal and mental health issues, and chronic fatigue in my life. I would do to remember where I was before I started making the changes in my lifestyle that have markedly improved my day-to-day functionality. I think of passages like Psalm 32, where David is contemplating the change when he confessed to God versus when he kept it to himself. Verse 7 says, “You are my hiding place; you shall preserve me from trouble; you shall surround me with songs of deliverance.” The sugar impedes my ability to serve my God, my husband, and my fellow man. It makes my mind and body ill, and encourages darker thoughts and moods as a result, which are heavy to bear and live in. It absolutely is a worthwhile adjustment to strive for, and one that I would be foolish to throw aside on a whim. Colossians 3:17 “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” 2 Peter 3:14 “Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.” James 4:17 “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.”
What “small” thing have you kept from God? He wants to hear about it. I’d encourage you to let him into it. There is relief, even from all the little things, because little things snowball into big things when left to themselves. God’s care in the small things gives me more confidence that he is certainly there for the big things.
Some final thoughts I’d like to leave you with today: Luke 12:6-7 “Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. But the very hairs of your head are numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.” Psalm 139 (just some excerpts – the whole thing is pretty spot-on) “O Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; you understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways… Where can I go from your spirit, or where can I flee from your presence?… For you formed my inward parts; you covered me in my mother’s womb… Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
In Christian love, Jo.
