The Proverbs of King David describe temptation that goes against the wisdom of God as a woman with honey dripping from her lips, full of lust and instant/fleeting satisfaction.
I am glad temptation is a woman, not say, a teen werewolf or a Coach bag or anything that I might find appealing, because the image is a bit of a gross-out for me, and it helps hint that maybe I should step back and think twice about temptations, so as not to make a fool out of myself.But temptation is everywhere, not
only in the aforementioned examples, but in the temptation to compare my life to someone else's, to judge them or pity myself, or to anticipate my own failure instead of success.There's also the very cunning temptation, especially when there's stress, to take a shortcut as opposed to some better course of decision-making. I realized this today, as I revised some of our curricula on teen decision-making. Here I am helping young people make good decisions with strategies I don't use 9 out of 10 times in my own life, which, forgive me teens, carries real consequences in some ways that the kiddies just won't encounter (YET, so pay attention in class!).
Pros and cons lists? Not when you are tired and bored and just need to escape. But the fallacy in this kind of thinking, (let's not mention the hypocrisy of not practicing what I preach), is that there is a higher goal to this life, and shortcuts don't get me there.
I want big things, like a happy, stable marriage that grows in love through trials and joys; well-adjusted, talented, generous children; legacies of compassion and creativity; and a clean conscience.This is why, as I rock out to LMFAO's "Yes," their lyrics "Every day I see my dream," become profound.
Obtaining these dreams will require a marathon of consistent choices, based on seeing my dreams and listening to wisdom not just at the beginning and the end of this race, but every step of the way.
