“Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him.” James 1:12 (NIV)
Meditation;
Another weapon of the enemy that we will encounter in many instances of our life is temptation. The enemy will try to take advantage of our weaknesses and fleshly desires in order to sidetrack us from our walk with God. As human beings, we all have fleshly desires that will try to distract our focus. It could be a love of food, obsessive, compulsive disorders, or more harmful things like an addiction to harmful substances, etc. As we grow in our relationship with God, and we work towards removing these unhealthy desires from our life, the devil comes in and tries to knock us off of our feet.
We need to realize that there is no temptation out there that is too great for us to handle. God has equipped us with the strength and resolve to endure various trials and tribulations, is the same way he has equipped us to overcome any temptation that comes our way.
One of the ways the enemy tries to get to us is through our mind. When we are presented with tempting situations, the enemy will try to manipulate us into thinking that there is no way out of the temptation before us. He will try to make us think that we are too weak to resist.
But the word of God tells us otherwise. The word of God tells us of the authority that we possess as sons of God. The word of God tells us of the exceedingly abundant amount of strength that we possess in Jesus Christ that enables us to resist any temptation to come our way.
The word of God provides us with the wisdom we need in order to get out of any sticky situations we may find ourselves in. It gives us the clarity we need in order to see the temptation for what it is - nothing but a lousy tactic of the enemy.The Holy Spirit strengthens us and enables us to move past the temptation, keeping our eyes focused on Jesus Christ, the one who set the example for us.
When we have overcome all temptations, trials and tribulations on the earth, and we remain in the faith, we will receive a crown when we reach heaven, a reward for remaining faithful to the cause. This is what motivates us to keep going.It reminds us that there truly is no trial, tribulation, or form of temptation that will ever be greater than God who resides in us.
Prayer:
Our Father in heaven, thank you for awesome promise; we’ll receive the Crown of Life; if we stay connected with you and focus in Jesus who gave us freedom to overcome temptations. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen!
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