The gospel this weekend presented the story of the temptation of our Lord in the desert. Jesus knew the reality of temptation. He chose what was pleasing to his heavenly Father, the narrow way, and received the grace to resist temptation. Having the gift of free will allows us to choose the high road, the narrow way, or the wide and easy way of pleasure and excess. Temptations abound in our lives whether to simple pleasures or formidable rejections of what our Lord has taught us. Sometimes we experience one kind of temptation or another multiple times a day.
Most temptations involve four steps. First, an idea/temptation presents itself. Secondly, we entertain the idea of giving in to what is tempting us. Thirdly, we make a resolution/decision on how we are going to act on what tempts us. Lastly, we carry out the decision. More practically, let’s use as an example the temptation to steal a candy bar from a convenience store. First the idea presents itself. Secondly, we then delight in the memory of what that specific kind of candy bar tastes like. Then, we rationalize why taking it really would be a good thing and thus we make the decision to take it. All that is left is for us to swiftly reach out, take it and slide it in our pocket. All this unfolds in a matter of seconds. This structure to a temptation happens with almost everything that tempts us.
Our lives are filled with temptations….in what we think about others, in our speech about people, in our behaviors and the actions we carry out, and in the duties we are tempted to omit. Temptations are always operating in our lives, multiple times a day. We must learn how to deal with them rather than succumb to their attraction. We have to develop strategies to help us resist their attraction and choose what pleases God instead. One of the key strategies for resisting temptations is simply to know yourself.
To know yourself means you have a familiarity with your weaknesses. As we notice the patterns in our sinfulness, the easier it is to see what precipitates our downfall. Actually, it’s pretty basic. If, for example, my weakness is ice cream (and for me, it is), then I ought not to purchase any when I buy groceries. To have it in the house is to put myself in the near occasion of going against what my conscience says. Now, if even going down the aisle of the supermarket where there is ice cream means I might likely be tempted to buy a carton, I should avoid that aisle all together. Knowing myself allows me to be honest and avoid the circumstances that present the temptation. We often struggle for years with some sin or fault because we don’t act on what we know about ourselves.
To know yourself is one of the first steps in the discipline it takes to avoid temptation. The second step is to catch yourself in the process of entertaining a temptation. Lust is a good example and certainly a great challenge. We live in an age where we have instant access to pornography. Smart phones, i-pads, and laptops all have features to safeguard access to pornographic sights. When personal discipline fails, we have to take the next step and install these safeguards for greater discipline. If the temptation is underway and I’m already enjoying the idea, then greater safeguards are needed.
The third step is making the decision to either engage in the temptation or renounce it. This is the moment of decision when we are about to give in or when we conquer the desire. In this moment, if we have not already done so, we need to cry out to the Lord and beg for his divine strength to resist the wrong we are tempted to carry out. What comes to me when I pray for the strength that I don’t have on my own is the image of “sticking it” to the devil, that is running a red-hot spear into his evil heart. If resisting some particular temptation means wounding the devil and sending him off vanquished, defeated and powerless over my weakness, I have learned to take great delight in such a victory. When we progress too far into some temptation, it’s time to beseech the Lord with great confidence and find great delight in thwarting the evil one.
The last of the four stages of a temptation is when we carry out our decision. If I have decided to call the devil out on his antics I have overcome the temptation. If my decision is to fall to the temptation, even in the process of whatever it is….revealing the faults of others, having too many drinks on a Saturday night, watching pornography, making the conversation all about myself….even while engaging in the temptation, we can also accept the grace of God to stop and forgo that in which we have now undertaken. Often in the middle of something sinful, our consciences are calling us to abandon the sin.
Temptations are ever present to our fallen human nature, but so is God’s amazing grace. In these days of Lent, let us come to know ourselves better and take the steps we need to avoid the near occasions of sin. As challenging as temptations may be, let us beg our Lord to help us choose the narrow way that leads to eternal life!
