TEMPTATION

While I was a campus minister I filled in at two very small rural churches outside of Nacogdoches. One was faithfully supported by five mature women. The other church averaged 30 in worship. I enjoyed the preaching, the congregations, and with my late wife battling cancer, the extra income. On the first Sunday in Lent one year I placed a lunch sack filled with hard candy on the altar. I offered no explanation. At the end of the sermon I acknowledged the congregation’s curiosity. I gave them each a piece and told them the candy was a symbol of all the temptations they would have during Lent. They were to carry the candy in their purse, pocket or place it in their home where they would see it. As they resist the temptation to eat the candy remember the power they have to resist other temptations. It was a simple illustration that seemed to work. One woman brought her candy back on Easter to show me.

Lent begins with the Gospel reading of Jesus fasting in the wilderness and being tempted by Satan. Three times Satan tempts and three times Jesus resists. Satan waves food, power, and protection in front of Jesus. Each one tied to Jesus’ mission and yet each distorts the mission. How can we continue without nourishment? How can we continue without the ability to exert power and make change happen? How can we continue without a sense of safety?

In the wilderness we are confronted with temptation. The wilderness has no community or social support. In the wilderness we have only ourselves, our faith and our temptations. The Internet has become the wilderness for the 21st century. With a few clicks we can travel far into space, deep into the earth, or onto any city street in America. The whole world is available for viewing and purchase online. From the comfort of our home we can sit at a poker table, view X-rated movies or have illicit relationships. We can indulge fantasies or abuse an addiction. The Internet can promise a short cut to wealth and pleasure without the need for work or contact with others.

Jesus knew that what Satan offered him was a short cut to an imitation of what he already had. No need to take from Satan what had already been given by God. At the heart of the temptations is the promise of instant gratification. Satan’s way eliminates the wait. The natural processes are scoffed at for short cuts to quick bread, power and protection. Since most of us like short cuts it is safe to say we don’t mind being tempted. We want food on the table in 30 minutes. We want fat off our waist in 30 days. We want recognition that we are as talented as our personal cheerleaders say we are. We want the good life of meaning, purpose and joy. We want contentment.

Scripture tells us what is required (Micah 6:8; Matthew 22:34-40) and yet we look for short cuts to have the end result without the intended effort. Temptation wants us to pull back the curtain on the Wizard and get our heart, brain, and courage before we have dealt with the witch. Satan says to give in now gives you what you want and frees you from future temptation. There is nothing like selling out now so to avoid future moral dilemmas. Jesus resisted temptation by relying on scripture, putting himself behind the mission, and trusting that the food, power and protection he needed would be God given. There are no short cuts to the spiritual life. Growth requires investment and sacrifice.

I have had friends who were so gifted mathematically that they could solve complex problems in their minds. They could see answers to problems that would take me a half hour to solve. The skill was blessing and curse because the temptation was to not do the work and only present the answers. Math teachers want to see the work. Math is not answers as much as it is working problems correctly. Short cuts impoverish the education. From crib notes to Internet plagiarism there are many short cuts to explore. Each short cut taken makes the next temtation harder to resist. On the job, in marriages, and in any relationship, the temtation to get it all without the full effort calls to us.

Last night, over a dish of Hank’s Ice Cream I realized my depression was lifting. Apparently I had been in a funk for a long while because Kristi gave me one of those welcome back smiles. I am not always aware how the PD is changing me. The physical symptoms are obvious. Personality changes are not so obvious to me. Kristi says she misses my sparkle and quick wit. That saddens me but it is good to know I was not always dull and slow witted. PD pulls a person down until they can’t continue. As much as I hate it, PD is part of every facet of my life. I have aged rapidly in the past three years. Sleeping all night is a joke. It is tasking, not only multi-tasking I have lost. I am tempted to give in and just allow the disease to run its course. There is no cure. However, symptoms improve with medication and exercise. (Which of us could not be improved with medication and exercise?) The temptation is to do nothing and take the short cut to the inevitable rather than work like heck to create moments of wholeness. I have joined a small gym where we live and that has made a huge difference in how I feel..

Finally, we need remember that temptation is not sin. It is an open door we don’t have to walk through. There will always be someone calling us to skip a step, cut in line, and use an expired coupon. Maybe we should redefine our definition of "best" as qualitative integrity and not quantitative biggest, fastest, best. When our inner voice says “go ahead no one else will know” it is time to reconsider.