Temptation

TITLE: Temptation
DATE:  August 19, 2019
TEXT: James 1:12 – ESV- Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.
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When was the last time you were tempted?

Understand, I’m not talking about being tempted here. I’m speaking about being TEMPTED. I’m not referring to a mild inclination to do  the wrong thing, a yearning or a gentle longing to maybe do a little misbehavin’.

No, I’m referring to the kind of temptation experienced by the two-year old boy in Minnesota.

The nameless lad lives in Rush City, just a block away from the County Fair. Now he has been to the fair with his family and they had an outstanding time. The animals, the food, the games, the rides left a lasting impression on him.  

His folks may have taken him home, but his heart was still at the fair... and he knew he had to go back.

Goodness he could see the sights, he could hear the music, and if the wind was right he could smell all the wonderful things being deep-friend. But the hardest temptation of all was the intermittent, repetitious tune of his favorite ride, the Tilt-A-Whirl. As I said, this boy was being subjected to TEMPTATIONS which  were designed specifically for him.  

Sometime later his parents called the police to report a missing two-year-old.

To make a long story short, that boy gave into his temptation;. He hopped on his battery-powered John Deere tractor and drove down the sidewalk to the back entrance of the Fair. When one of the Sheriff’s Deputy’s spotted him, he was standing near the Tilt-a-whirl.

Now this story turns out all right. Father and son were reunited and life continued on as before except dad grounded the lad by removing the battery from his tractor.

My friends, what do you think of that story?

Do you think it is highly unlikely that temptation could exert such an over-powering influence...
... or do you understand everything that two-year-old was feeling because you, yourself have felt all the feelings the two-year-old felt.?

No, a County Fair and a Tilt-a-whirl might not be the temptation that the world and Satan use on you. You have probably moved beyond much things. No your temptation is probably a bit more sophisticated.

Truth is, you can be sure that the devil who has spent a lot of centuries perfecting his craft has set aside a very special temptation which has your name on it...and you’ve got about as much chance of resisting that temptation as did Adam and Eve did theirs.

Which is why we need to come to the Lord in prayer...to ask for forgiveness when our feet have slipped and to ask for wisdom and strength to stand and  resist temptation in the future.

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, we come to You today in weakness asking You to help us resist temptation and to forgive us when we stumble and fall. This we ask in the Name of our perfect Savior. Amen.

The devotion for today was inspired by various recent news articles. For further reading you may wish to go to this address: https://www.newser.com/story/278088/missing-toddler-found-at-county-fair-drove-there-himself.html and the article written by Robb Quinn.
The music which introduces and concludes our devotions was written by Guy Baumann. He along with three of his brothers perform on the album: The Baumann Brothers which may be ordered here: http://thebaumannbrothers.com/index.html