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God's view: Temptations

What is a temptation.
In my own words temptation or being tempted is when you are lured or enticed to do something (usually a bad thing) .
Dictionary meaning :

Temptations come in different forms. We are tempted on a daily basis sometimes even without knowing. Let me give a short example with this story.

Beep, beep, beep.
My alarm clock blared, instantly waking me up from my sweet sleep.
Lazily switching it off I checked the time.
8:30am
Arrrrhhh!!!!
I mentally screamed, cursing myself for waking up late on my first day at work. I had barely an hour to get to the other side of town were my new office was located.
I sprang unto my feet and ran into the bathroom. Quickly taking my bath and doing all the needful.
I got downstairs about fifteen minutes later. Practically running into the kitchen. I took quick glimpse at my watch.
Half an hour left.
I had no time but I had to eat something.
My stomach growled in agreement with my thoughts.
On the kitchen counter sat a plate of toast and eggs.
They probably belonged to Zada. My stomach growled even lower.
I really should have eaten something yesterday. No time left, should I take the toast, I'm sure she wouldn't mind.
My stomach twisted and growled, I sure was hungry.
Without taking a second thought, I grabbed the toast and ran out the door.

I know most of you will be like 'but it's just toast'.
Only a little bit of toast tempted her and made her steal.
Although it's just toast but stealing is stealing right?
And temptation is temptation!
You can't keep making excuses.
Little things build up to big things.
It could be just toast now but tomorrow you could be tempted with something even bigger.

Like I said earlier temptations come in different forms.
Let me give an example of a very common temptation teens go through.

Being the new kid is always hard. In a school as big as Greenfield high it's even harder. On my first day I got lost at least twice until I met this really nice girl. Her name is Trisha, she introduced me to all her friends and was really nice to me.
Today I'm going to hang out at her house to get our science project done.

Hi eli
Hi trisha, are you ready to get started on the project yet.
Ugh not yet I was thinking we could have a little fun first.
umm I don't know about that
We need to get our project to be ready by friday
Oww come on, there's nothing wrong with a little fun
I guess your right.

30 minutes later.

Kids my age were now scattered in little groups  in the house.
Some where making out and kissing.
Music was blasting through the speakers. It was a mad house. I took myself to the most quite place I can find. I stayed there for a few minutes until Trisha walked up to me. She dragged me rather roughly to a group of her friends gathered in the kitchen. They were playing a game and she forced me to join. They were all drinking. Trisha asked me if I had ever drank and I replied in the negative. She and her friends laughed. I felt like the odd one out in the group. Trisha brought out a cold bottle of beer from the cooler and handed it over to me. I took it and her friends began to root for me to drink it. I took a long gulp feeling the cold liquid slide into my throat.

In the above story we see a young teen being faced with a temptation of a higher consequence than in the first story. She was tempted to drink by her friend and she did.

Temptations can come in any form and at any time, we must always be ready to face them. It's perfectly normal to be tempted, even Jesus was tempted. The only thing is you need to know how to overcome these temptations in order to avoid sin.

Is temptation a sin?
No!  Being tempted is perfectly normal and it is most definitely not a sin. Although where the problem lies is when you give into it.

What do I do when I'm tempted?
Don't condemn yourself!
Everyone gets tempted even Jesus was tempted by Satan. As a Christian being tempted is normal so no need to feel like since you are feeling tempted you are a big sinner.
Hold on to scriptures
To be able to do this you must have a knowledge of the word of God. It will help a lot if you memorize scriptures that may encourage you in times of temptation. When you are tempted just like Jesus did you can also overcome by using the unfailing word of God to your advantage.
Take a deep breath and Think!
When you are in a situation of temptation the problem of most peoe is that they don't think. They just do things and end up regretting them. First of all take deep breaths and calm down. When you are calm enough ask yourself,
will this give God glory?
Will this make God proud?
Think about it before you act.

How do I avoid temptation?
Identify your week points
It's important to identify what temps you. When this is done take conscious steps to avoid it.
Keep yourself busy.
Like they say an idle mind is the devils workshop. Keep yourself busy and occupied chances are If you have something important to do you won't even think about whatever tempts you.
Keep positive company.
Make sure that all the people around you will encourage you to keep away from temptations. For example, if you get tempted by alcohol it won't help if you have a bunch of friends who when they are around you always drink and keep alcohol around.
Be prepared and keep in mind the consequences.
Be always prepared for temptations. It is also advisable to keep the consequences in mind as it may discourage you even when you are about to give in.
Pray
Always ask God for help and his guidance.

Always remember the Lord will not give you any temptation that is too much for you to handle. (1Cor10:13)
You may not know, God may just be testing you just like he tested Job.

Verses to  read

James 1:2-3
1 Cor10:13
Luke22:40
1Peter4:12
PM me to get more scriptures.
Jesus loves you,
~β💜