Trials And Temptations

Many people are not sure of the difference between trials and temptations. While admitting that in some circumstances, the difference may be difficult to delineate, the following can help tell the difference:

Temptations appeal to and manipulate ones' affinity to pleasure; trials challenge one to pay the price for what he cherishes.

Temptations are meant to be resisted; trials are meant to be endured.

In temptations, you are expected not to give in, in trials, you are expected not to give up.

Temptations thrill; trials grill.

We pray: Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us in trials. In other words, if it is temptation, avoid it; if it is trial go through it.

The Lord makes a way of escape for us if it is temptation; He gives us the strength to persevere if it is trial.

Still Vulnerable Despite Strength

One may be strong, but strength helps little if one is vulnerable and culpable in one way or the other. Samson was strong but he was vulnerable to the seductive and nagging Delilah. When he gave in, it also went with his strength.

I have been watching Africa Cup of Nations in Angola. I have seen strong teams lose, not because of anything but because of making a cheap mistake. This reminds me of Joseph’s case with Potiphar’s wife. Despite the seduction of Potiphar’s wife day-after-day, the Bible says that Joseph refused to go to bed with her or even be with her (Gen. 39:10). The lady however, didn’t give up. She waited for Joseph to make a wrong move, and he did. In verses 11-12, we read: One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, "Come to bed with me!” But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house.

It was a moment of a lapse in judgment for Joseph to have gone into the house when none of the household servants were inside. May be he didn’t know that the other servants were not there but the point is that by going into the house and be alone with Potiphar’s wife, he made it too difficult for himself as the repercussions of her attempts later will show.

This story teaches me that however ‘strong’ I am, I may not count my success on my strength. I need divine guidance and discernment to help me not sell myself away because of cheap mistakes. But should I make one, I’d rely on Divine intervention to sort me out of the imprisonment my mistake may have landed me into.

Conventions and Convictions

There are conventions that describe social norms from which we derive collective responsibility. Equally, there are conventions that prescribe penalties for delinquencies. When these are civil and secular, we seem not to have avowed problem. The problem comes when we are introduced to conventions that claim to censor us from the heart.

Spiritual matters, especially those portrayed by Christ Jesus, demand that the conventions are not to just remain 'external force' to tame our excesses, they demand that we personally surrender the excesses and turn the conventions into convictions from the heart. Many may not like this, but it is the most established requirement that stands despite its being unpopular.

Good News!

Good News!
Finally, Tomorrow is here. It has come in style. The problem, however, is that it has come with a new name. Unless you are very keen you may not recognise him.
We usually say Tomorrow never comes, but we are wrong! Tomorrow actually comes, always! Tomorrow that has come changes its name to “Today”.
Today is therefore the Tomorrow of Yesterday.
If there is something good you promised yesterday to do Tomorrow, do it Today because Today is the Tomorrow of Yesterday. Don’t let the change of name dupe you.
On the other hand, if there is something bad you promised Yesterday to do Tomorrow, please mind the change of name: Today is not Tomorrow, continue waiting for Tomorrow.
Have a Yesterday's Tomorrow filled with a fulfilled Today.

Fooling and Being Fooled

When you like fooling people and get pleasure out of it, it may turn out that some of the people you think you are fooling may fool you instead. No wonder the Bible talks of deceiving (others) and being deceived (2Tim. 3:13). Consider the following story:

Not So Dumb After All
There was a little boy named Johnny who used to hang out at the local corner market. The owner didn't know what Johnny's problem was, but the boys would constantly tease him.
They would always comment that he was a few bricks shy of a full load, or two pickles short of a barrel. To prove it, sometimes they would offer Johnny his choice between a nickel and a dime, and John would always take the nickel.
One day after John grabbed the nickel, the store owner took him aside and said, "Johnny, those boys are making fun of you. They think that you don't know that the dime is worth more than the nickel. Are you grabbing the nickel because it's bigger, or why?"
Slowly, Johnny turned toward the store owner and a big grin appeared on his face and Johnny said, "Well, if I took the dime, they'd stop doing it. So far I have saved up $20!"
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Source: ArcaMax.

Not Wise

He is not wise who is wise enough not to seek the Lord's counsel;
He is not a fool who is foolish enough to seek God's leading in the simplest of an assignment.

He is not strong who is strong enough not to seek the Lord's enablement;
He is not weak who is weak enough to rely on the Lord's strength.

He is not rich who is rich enough to think he doesn't need God;
He is not poor who is poor enough to trust God for every need.

He is not knowledgeable whose knowledge doesn't acknowledge God;
He is not uninformed who has been transformed by the Word of God.

Height into Depth

The quality of success is not measured by the quantity of accomplishments but by the humility of the heart.

If you are successful yet remain truly humble, then you are a true success. If you become haughty because of your success, know this for sure: Pride has the power to turn the height of your climb into the depth of your fall. Therefore, "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall", says the Bible (Proverbs 16:18).

Dumb Question

It is better to ask a dumb question than abstain from asking it only to end up doing a dumb thing. Asking a dumb question may stop you from doing a dumb thing. I came to this conclusion at the place of work where a new colleague was not sure about something, yet he feared asking because it could have been a stupid question for those who are versed with the process. The problem at the factory is that a small, or rather call it a stupid, mistake can cost the factory millions. Rather than risk putting the factory into a megalomaniac financial crisis, let us hear the dumb question please.

This is not just in a factory. Though people may rebuke or despise you for asking what to them is either obvious or dumb, you may not know what you have avoided by asking the 'dumb' question. Things are not necessarily obvious to everyone the way they may look.

Now, go ahead, ask your 'dumb' question.

Some Thoughts

While a dumb mistake will get a person into a plumb problem, he would need a grand wit to get out of that problem। The tricky thing however is that there is a strong affinity for a mistake to call for another mistake, purporting to “correct” or nullify the previous one.

There is always a disadvantage that comes with advantage: Success comes with pride; power comes with arrogance; comfort with laxity, etc. We may need to probably work harder to keep pride away than we worked to attain success.

Can The Devil Speak The Truth?

The Bible tells us that the devil is the father of all lies (John 8:44). In fact, he has the Copyright for sin generally and lying in particular.

But the answer to the question of whether the devil can speak the truth or not is, worryingly, Yes! The devil can actually speak the truth—on one condition: That his motives be desperately wicked. This is why we are called upon to watch and pray. Praying and fellowshipping with the Holy Spirit in the Word are able to unmask the “truths” that the devil speaks.

It is a dangerous thing when the devil speaks the truth. People who cannot discern the motive for his "truths" will be led a stray by these diabolic versions of the truth.

Truth is not necessarily ascertained by the superficial validity of what is said, the motive of speaking the truth must be in accord with the truth, that is to say, the motive must be virtuous(Read More about the biblical records of the devil and demons speaking the truth at some points)