This morning I drank three cups of tea, ate four mini muffins, three slices of Bacon, two fried eggs and two pieces of toast. Then another mini muffin. I put on pants that fit, that are two sizes bigger than most of my pants. I huffed a little as I bent down to put my boots on.
So when my Pastor started talking about temptation this morning. About that thing we crave after all of our needs have been met, I knew what that meant for me. Jesus prayed give us this day our daily bread, and then a mere sentence or two later, lead us not into temptation.
So I knew and I know, that for me, the saying no needs to start at the tip of my fork.
And then, oh then, a sweet wonderful friend brought me a note and a treat. A donut from none other that the holiest of holies, the holy Donut. The place of the dreams of weight watchers goals. But this gift, this gift was meant for good, and I was not about to let deception sneak in.
I carefully put the Donut in my bag. Not devouring it instantly. Not sneaking it crumb by crumb into my mouth, hiding it from the children in my care. No, I stashed it away, knowing that at some point this afternoon my dear, sweet husband would give me some time to myself, to write my poetry, to read the words, to pray the things, to drink a hot, beautiful cup of tea. And when that time came, I would savor that sweet gift from a sweet friend. It would not be gobbled down as temptation, but savored along with the words to be read.
Resisting temptation isn’t always about saying no, but as with everything this world has to offer, it’s about putting things in their proper place. Not letting them control you.
So that sweet gift, became even sweeter in the way it equipped me to battle my temptation. My Pastor preached that it is easy to break a promise to ourselves or to God with a rousing chorus of “I deserve this” and a refrain of “I’ve earned this.” I neither deserved nor earned that donut, it was a holy gift in a moment of peace, and it was good.
smallwordsBigGod 