Saying No To Temptations

​Katherine Hurst

We all have temptations, and that is something that we can work on to overcome. During the season of Lent, our responsibility is to more eagerly learn how to say no to the temptations that come our way. Sometimes, we are tempted by the little things, but we should never allow those to consume us. Lent is one of the holiest seasons in our church, and we should be open to learning how to overcome the challenges currently present in our life. It is essential to spend time in adoration and learn how to say no to the temptations pulling our hearts away from Christ. Learning to cope with these temptations and turn them away is something that God wants for us. None of us are perfect, and we all have our own unique temptations, but we should believe in God and get past them. We have no hope of being perfect apart from God.  His desire for us is to pick up our cross and follow the path He calls us to go on.

As I sit here writing this and thinking about the distractions in my life, I realize how imperfect I am. I often struggle with reserving enough time to sit quietly in prayer and grow closer to God. When I have the time, I enjoy my time in adoration and how much joy it brings me. I often find myself thinking of “other things” to do or work on that eventually get in the way of my prayer life. I tell myself that I can always do it later, or even the next day. However, that is not always true because then it turns into pushing it off even longer. 

When I do not take the time to sit in prayer as often as I should, I always feel down and unhappy with myself. It gives me that sense of grief because I know how much God is watching over me and everything I do. To add to the confusion, I often feel guilty because of those temptations to not pray. The next time that I actually sit quietly in prayer or adoration, I always reflect on the things that I let get in the way of my prayer life. I make sure to take some time to talk to God and explain why I let those things consume my prayer life and take steps to make sure that it will not happen again. 
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I know that it is not acceptable to let things get in the way, which is why I am continually trying to grow deeper in my faith and reject those temptations when they arise. It takes practice to turn those temptations away and choose to grow deeper in my faith and spiritual journey with Christ. This is one of the most cherished aspects of my life - Spending time with God, and I hold very close to my heart.  This is because God is the only one who knows how your life will progress. He will always be there for you.   We never need to doubt Him or the path that He takes us. By having heartfelt conversations with Him, we learn what makes us stronger and grow spiritually with Him.

Going to adoration weekly is the source of my joy and enables growing in my faith journey. While I was in college, I was very consistent with going to adoration weekly. I would take every opportunity to go and would sometimes even go more than once a week. I found this as my time to slow down with all of the craziness in life and just have a one-on-one talk with God. It allowed me to let go of all the temptations sitting in the way and grow deeper in my spiritual journey.

Since finishing college, I noticed my time in adoration was becoming less frequent, but I continued to feel called to the real presence of Christ. I may not go as often as I used to, but I still make it a point to go when I can. It is one of those things that brings pure joy.  It is time away from the world and time dedicated to Christ.   It makes you realize the essential things in life. I decided to take the initiative and dedicate scheduled time for adoration.  This is the best action I can take to make sure to keep improving my prayer life. Prayer helps us become more thankful daily.  For example, I am so grateful for all of the fantastic opportunities and blessings that have come my way within the past couple of months.

I often look to God when I am struggling under the weight of my responsibilities in life. Taking the time to spend some time with God allows me to have those conversations with Him. It also helps me learn how to wait patiently for the things that I have always dreamed of. By praying, I have been blessed with answers to my prayers in so many ways. I cannot thank God enough for all of the answers He has sent my way so far, and I can’t wait for all of the fantastic things that he will do for you.

Answering yes to God’s calling to do whatever He calls you to do should be taken seriously. I know that if I had not listened to Him, I would probably not be where I am spiritually and physically today. God has many things planned for us, and he will fulfill His promises.  For him to do so, we must make it our best intention to follow the path that He has laid out for us. This Lenten season, I hope that you reflect on the areas that God is calling you and that you take action to fulfill His promises. I encourage you to spend more time in prayer and get to know Christ, our God, King,  Lord, and our closest Friend.

God Bless.