Don’t make a permanent decision based on a temporary temptation. Temporary temptations come in all shapes and sizes. Temptation can be rooted in doing something bad or doing something good without a goal. This is why setting goals and understanding where you want to go is so important. Without a destination in mind, it is often hard to tell the difference between what is a necessary investment and what is a destructive temptation. The goal will highlight what is useful for reaching it and what is not. In I Cor. 10:13 we read, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind (The problem is not the fact that we will be tempted) And God is faithful, He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear (Warning, this is NOT saying we have no role in responding to temptation, we do). But when you are tempted He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it (The problem arises when we fail to take advantage of the way out God provides. The way out involves having a goal and being committed to it).” It is good to live – in the moment. Living in the moment can be deadly however, if there is no direction the moment is attached to. We can be so convinced of something or feel something so strongly in the moment that it leads to making a choice that is permanent. Permanent is a long time. Permanent needs the perspective of God and His Word. The Bible is able to ground us in a wisdom that works well with permanence. Don’t make a permanent decision based on a temporary temptation. This is how you raise the bar on your discipleship.
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