So Saturday night - Shaun and Matt decided (at 9:30PM mind you) to eat chocolate cake!!! Really? So I headed flounced off to bed early in a bit of a huff... Spent some pious time contemplating my current "trial" and how much I was sacrificing and thinking: "How can they do that to me" Shaun came to bed (smelling of course like chocolate) Our conversation was a bit like this:
Shaun: "I am sorry you're upset and I love you".
Me: "I love you too but I need some time because I am hurt and upset that you didn't consider my feelings and what I am trying to do"
Totally justified in my temper tantrum. Right??
WRONG!
Be very careful with your "righteous" anger because sometimes? It will smack you upside the head!! In my case it was the book of JAMES (Oh thank you Pastor Ben!)... talking about trials and I am really getting into it and still nursing my hurt feelings from the night before... Preach it Pastor!! Preach it! Then Thwack!!! What?!?!?! Where did that come from?? Don't mistake my temptations for trials??? Well of COURSE I am not doing that... Am I?
13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.
James 1: 13-15
Crap! That chocolate cake was not a trial at all!! It was a temptation and while I did right and ran... (All the way to the bedroom) - I did it with a stinky attitude! Now, you might be wondering why it would be a temptation vs a trial? BECAUSE it's what got me here in the first place!! Not running, not making good choices (There's that word again.. CHOICES). Had I learned some discipline years ago and said no (or at that point, even taking a smaller portion that I used to). I wouldn't have been in my bedroom feeling sorry for myself. One more thing... not eating chocolate may be bad... but eating CROW because you now have to apologize for your crappy attitude is much worse (TRUST me on this).
I think the two most important words I am learning are:
Choices
Responsibility
I choose to eat right or I choose to be overweight
I take responsibility for my past actions or I keep making LAME excuses
It's really that simple. :)
I love this and I am glad that you were able to separate what was justified. It’s funny how we choose to do these things and expect that others to understand. Sometime we don’t realize that it them that are the ones that sacrifice and support what we chose to do. Trial vs. Temptation is defiantly not the same.
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