Prison

Okay, so I started on this Journal entry, and man, things got deep, fast. Forty days in the desert withstanding temptation? That's some next-level willpower right there. Started me thinking about my own temptations—scrolling instead of sleeping, donuts instead of determination.

Then the life conversations jumped in and started explaining all the fancy terms – a mortal sin, venial sin, seven deadliest… yikes. Like, who knew there were categories for messing up? Makes you realize just how easy it is to get off track without even trying. Had that awkward mirror moment, you know the one.

But here's the thing, the "what" that struck me: whether it was Jesus way back when or little old me with the donut dilemma, sometimes you've just got to face the wilderness. No distractions, no excuses, just you and God working it out.

It reminds me of those mornings I ditch the alarm and sit quietly instead. There are no flashing screens, nobody talking, and sometimes those little whispers of worry that swirl around in my head get real quiet. It's not always comfortable—sometimes it's downright messy—but there's something powerful about getting real with God, about being honest about where you're weak and letting those temptations rise to the surface where His light can hit them.

Honestly, it feels exactly like hitting the reset button, trading those "oops, did it again" moments for some true soul-cleansing. I don't know, maybe that's what those forty days in the desert were all about for Jesus and why even in prison John The Baptist kept preaching. A reminder that time alone with God is always a good call.

A Reading from the Gospel of Mark 1:12-15

The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan.

He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him.

After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: "This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."

Amen to the the Word!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Trusting and Pleasing

“Therefore, we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.” 2 Corinthians 5:9  “Cease striving and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10 Do you seek to please God or simply trust Him? I believe many of us would say that we desire to do both, but if you had to choose or focus on one or the other, which would it be? In pleasing God, we put ourselves in a “what must I do” frame of mind. It requires considerable effort to do those things that are “good and acceptable in the sight of the Lord” (1 Timothy 2:3).  Our way then becomes paved with good intentions as we strive to please God. That word, strive, means “struggling in opposition,” and that really sums it up. We are not perfect, and those imperfections and shortcomings will continue to follow us as long as we live. “Trying to please,” in and of itself, becomes an ongoing challenge. Conversely, Scripture says to “cease striving” … to be still and know that God is God. Instead of all the manufactured...
Read more

3

The number three is a powerful and often used number in scripture. When one goes looking for “threes” you can most certainly find them in Christianity. Noah had three sons (Gen. 6:10). Three visitors appeared to Abraham (Genesis 18:2). Jonah was inside the belly of the fish three days and nights (Jonah 1:17). Jesus answered Satan’s threefold temptations with three scriptural references (Matthew 4:1-11). Jesus’ ministry lasted three years. Peter denied Jesus three times (Luke 22:54-62), and three times Jesus affirmed his love (John 21:15-17). And the biggie and most often reference to the number three is the Trinity, God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So how can we harness the power of three? Well, let’s use and follow Jesus’ example. The Father is repulsed by sin so, as Jesus did in the desert let us also use the power of three to fight temptation. When tempted by the evil one, do these three things immediately. First, pray! Ask the Lord to remove the temptation. Pray earn...
Read more

PULP FICTION

Samuel L. Jackson is Jules Winnfield, a mobster in a tight spot. Jules and his partner Vincent Vega (John Travolta), have just pulled into the home of Jimmie (played by Tarantino himself) with a dead body in the car which they have to dispose of pronto. Under pressure from Jimmie to get out of there as fast as possible, Jules calls his mob boss Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames) to apprise him of the situation and plead for backup. Wallace reassures him he'll be sending "the posse" in the form of "The Wolf" to help. Jules, obviously as relieved as he's ever been in his life, utters a line similar to this one, “Brother, That's All You Had To Say.” Roll with me here. What kind of faith pleases God? What constitutes a belief in God that receives His approval? These words of Jesus from Luke 7 rest in the middle of a story about a Roman centurion asking Jesus to heal his servant. A centurion going to this much trouble for a servant demonstrates great love for th...
Read more