Day 4

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” – 1 Corinthians‬ 10‬:13‬ NIV

I recently read an article from June of 2019 which lays out the decision by Pope Francis to agree to change some of the wording of the Lord’s Prayer. Specifically, the Pope agreed to re-word the section asking God to “lead us not into temptation.” The reworked language instead petitions God, “do not let us fall into temptation.” The idea seems to be that implying that God would lead us anywhere but in a direction of our own benefit (ie: “into temptation”) is anathema to His very nature.

And yet, in this passage from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, it’s pretty clear that God will never lead us into temptation “beyond what you can bear.” So, all those times when I blame God for putting me in a place that I don’t want to be, maybe that is not God after all. Maybe that is the temptation that is “common to mankind.” In my case, my worldly definition of “temptation” can be an example of a lack of understanding of where God is trying to lead me. That temptation, in its truest, Biblical form, comes from the Devil is not in doubt. But it is also abundantly true that temptation, in its broader form, comes from each one of us, and from who and what we surround ourselves with every day. I can’t tell you how much I struggle with this. How tempted I am on a daily basis to follow the desires of my own heart or succumb to the fears that build up in my own head. The temptation to walk my own path (because of course I know best!) is a constant challenge. All too often God leads me to water but can’t make me drink.

The next sentence in the Lord’s Prayer, “deliver us from evil,” speaks to this. God leads me where he wants me to go and if I follow him and find temptation, it’s just as likely that it is me straying from his path because I’m not truly trusting where it is he’s trying to lead me. I’ve written in the past about how I’ve become more consistent about praying every night before bed. This Lent, my goal is to try to do the same each morning, in the hopes that God will speak to me about my path at the start of the day and show me the roadmap that he wants me to follow before I get too far off course. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll be enlightened enough to take a drink when I get there.