|
March 1, 1998
|
Mark 1: 12-15
|
Lead Us from Temptation
This scripture tells of the story of Jesus being sent to the desert for 40 days and subjected to Satan's temptation of sin. Afterwards Angels were sent to take care of Jesus.
Life is full of temptations. Children may be tempted to cheat on a test. A young adult may be tempted to shoplift. An adult may be tempted to take credit for someone else's accomplishments. I believe we all have an angel to watch over us. It is up to us to lead a life the way our Lord has taught us and deal with situations as they arise.
My grandfather was a wonderful role model. He was the Vice President of a small town bank, raised beagles and Shetland ponies, and was very active in his church. Every Memorial Day grandpa would drive to all the cemeteries in the area to place flags on the Veteran's graves. Grandpa would call the roll call and my brother and I would place the flags on the graves. Grandpa was blessed with good health until he was in his late 70's. At that time he was diagnosed with borderline diabetes. At the age of 79, his leg was amputated right above the knee. One year later, his remaining leg was also amputated. Grandpa struggled with rehabilitation during that time adapting to being without his limbs and coping with a wheelchair. It would have been so easy for grandpa to give up and ask why this was happening to him. But he never did. Instead he accepted what was happening and decided to learn from the experience. A scooter was purchased so that he could get around and drive himself into town. A ramp was built at the Church so that he could drive right into the sanctuary for the service. Grandma would follow him in her car on the way to Church. (My brother and I were always afraid that grandma would run over him.) Grandpa remained active in his Church until he passed away at the age of 85, 11 months after grandma passed away. Grandpa could have been bitter. He knew, though, that God never gives you more than you can handle and believed with all his heart that God would take care of him. We all need to put our trust in God and turn from the temptations that are presented to us daily.
When Jesus returned from the desert, he told us to turn from sin and rejoice that God's kingdom is near. Though he said these words many years ago, they are still true now.
Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, please help us remember that you are always with us. Help us turn from sin so that we may enter your Father’s Kingdom and rejoice with all that have left this earthly world before us. Amen.
[Yesterday |Lenten Index | Tomorrow]
