Category: Spiritual Health and Wellness

Health and wellness for the soul

Temptation

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I love a good candy bar, Caramello is probably my favorite. Or a nice cool York peppermint patty. I’m a bit ashamed to admit I had one of each yesterday :/

I love scrolling Facebook when I wind down for the evening. It’s a mindless way to chill.

I love shopping. Sometimes a trip to my favorite store is like a mini vacation. Other times I can do it right from the convenience of my couch in between those mindless Facebook scrolls. (Thanks Amazon)

What tempts you? Do your temptations feel impossible to resist? Maybe yours are a bit more serious, or maybe you also struggle with candy, shopping, and social media.

I came across a few verses I’ve probably read a dozen times, but today they struck me a little different.

“And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭4‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Here’s what I noticed this time around:

Jesus was full of the spirit. It is very hard to be full of the spirit when there’s no room! When we are emptied of ourselves, the spirit can enter.

Jesus was led by the spirit into the wilderness. He followed his calling. He followed the prompting. Have you ever felt a nudge and brushed it off or ignored it? Sadly, I have.

The last thing I noticed – “He ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry.” Hmm, was He not hungry day one? For me, it would have been about 3 hours in… did He not realize he was hungry until he was done? Did the spirit occupy him that well? I don’t know? Maybe that’s just my interpretation but I thought it was interesting and it stuck out to me.

When we are empty of ourselves and full of the spirit, we can resist temptation just like Jesus. Maybe we won’t go a full 40 days with no food, but we CAN resist picking up our phone for the 20th time, or running to Kohls for the latest trends (super cute Vera Wang spring line btw)

For every one of the devil’s temptation , Jesus fought back with the word of God.

“The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’””
‭‭Luke‬ ‭4‬:‭3‬-‭4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. And Jesus answered him, “It is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’””
‭‭Luke‬ ‭4‬:‭5‬-‭6‬, ‭8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, “‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’””
‭‭Luke‬ ‭4‬:‭9‬-‭12‬ ‭ESV‬‬

If you are feeling tempted, follow the example given to us by Jesus.

*Empty yourself. Make room for the Holy Spirit.

*Follow the spirit’s lead.

*Fight your temptations with scripture.

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭3‬:‭16‬-‭17‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Letting go of perfection…part 2

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Moses. David. Abraham. Paul.

These are some well known characters in the Bible! They must be pretty special right? Well, they did some pretty amazing things with God’s help, but they were definitely not perfect. God has never used perfect people!

MOSES

Moses killed a man. He told God he couldn’t do what he wanted because he was not good at speaking. He actually told God to send someone else. Despite all these things, Moses led his people out of Egypt.

“But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.””
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭4‬:‭10‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.””
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭4‬:‭13‬ ‭ESV‬‬

DAVID

David had a baby with Bathsheba and ordered her husband to be killed in war. Despite this, he is still known as “a man after God’s own heart”

“In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.””
‭‭2 Samuel‬ ‭11‬:‭15‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’”
‭‭Acts‬ ‭13‬:‭22‬ ‭ESV‬‬

ABRAHAM

Abraham told God he was too old. God gave him a son anyway… at age 100.

“I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?””
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭17‬:‭16‬-‭17‬ ‭ESV‬‬

PAUL

Paul (aka Saul) persecuted Christians. God turned him around and he wrote several books of the Bible and helped many churches and people.

“But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.”
‭‭Acts‬ ‭8‬:‭3‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?””
‭‭Acts‬ ‭9‬:‭20‬-‭21‬ ‭ESV‬‬

A lot can change in 1 chapter! It really doesn’t matter how imperfect you are! God can still use you. Put aside your need for perfection and let God work in you!

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭1‬, ‭38‬-‭39‬ ‭ESV‬‬