Yield Not To Temptation!

"When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;" (James 1:13 NIV).

And then James goes on to say that we are tempted by our own lusts (evil desires) and when one yields to the temptation, they yield to sin.

Some years ago, Flip Wilson used the phrase, " the devil made me do it" in his comic routine.  Many thought this was funny, especially within the context used. However, it is misleading. The devil does not make anyone do anything, any more than God will make anyone do anything. The devil tempts people to do evil and because they have evil desires, they give in to the temptation.

The enemy uses people to tempt others to land into the lake of fire with him. He influences people to murder, molest, abduct, coerce, mangle, manipulate, lie, cheat, steal, cuss, and commit all manner of disastrous acts that lead people deeper into the pit of no return. But they could not be tempted if the desire to do those things were not already present. Those desires begin with thoughts and if the thoughts are not changed, rapidly, they intensify until the thoughts are acted upon and havoc reigns.

If we want to avoid being tempted--by anything or anyone, we have to change our thought patterns before they become acts that cannot be reversed.

Some might say--they are stronger than that--they don't have to give in. I would encourage all to reflect upon the world events, historically, and recently, that have led to escalated violence and people being killed. All of the acts--began with a thought and thoughts ran rampant--completely unchecked until they became acts.

For change to occur in the world--it must begin with change in every individual's way of thinking--in a positive manner so we can all live in peace, without the threat of continual violence.

Perhaps, we should all lobby legislators to change the way they think--putting people first--above their own personal agendas. And then we should pray--in the privacy of homes and other personal space--and then "out loud" so the enemy will know what we're doing and put him on notice.

Don't allow the evil thoughts and desires to become acts of disaster and then try to claim--God tempted you to do it. He did not. The Word from God will only encourage us to live according to what God says--so we can live to see the promises fulfilled in our lives and to see our future--a future to prosper us and not harm us.

The devil doesn't do anything he was not created to do--and neither should we. We were created to be a praise unto our God and to give Him glory. Let's do it!