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- Written by: Don Goulding
But each one is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desires. Then when desire conceives, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is full grown, it gives birth to death. (James 1:14-15)
When I sin, I feel far away from God, and when I’m far away from him, I sin. The whirlpool goes round, sucking me down. Each time I repeat my vices, I’m pulled further in.
I pray for release from of the whirlpool of temptation, but my heavenly Father has a different plan. First, he teaches me that temptation is not sin, and living within its tug will make me stronger because of the fight.
During his sinless thirty-three years on earth, Jesus didn't leave the whirlpool. He felt its pull when Satan baited him in the desert. The whirlpool caused his prayerful struggle to accept the cross. Our forerunner demonstrated that wholesale escape from temptation is not Father’s purpose for this stage of life.
The vortex froths white at the safe horizontal top, and black at the dangerous vertical bottom. Deep inside the funnel’s walls, failure is a certainty. When I loiter in those lower regions, and tell myself it’ll never get a complete hold on me, it’s already too late.
The key to success isn’t escape from temptation, but in living within reach of heaven’s assistance. Up there risky indulgences can’t master me. For now, I have to live somewhere inside the whirlpool, but I don’t have to surf the wall.
Prayer: Holy and beautiful light, I choose to live near you today.
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- Written by: Don Goulding
A perverse person spreads dissension,
and a gossip separates the closest friends. (Proverbs 16:28)
I imagine myself in paradise, twirling through the light of God’s presence. I don’t know if it can happen in that place but, if a negative word against someone else comes to my lips, I’ll know what to do. I’ll consider the glorious face of Jesus, recall how he suffered for the target of my slander, and I’ll close my mouth. They don’t gossip in heaven.
I envision hell as a realm full of ruthless, backstabbing liars. That’s where they curse our God, his city, and his people. They probably badmouth each other too.
Heaven never gossips and hell never tires of the perversion. It’s here on temporary earth that we choose which realm we champion by way of our mouths.
Words are sacred, with the power to create or to destroy. As beings made in God’s image, we are granted authority to use our words to change the world around us. What am I doing with that gift?
Our Heavenly Father saw me playing in the mud of dissension. After washing me clean, he led me to a playroom full of eternal possessions. If I slip back into the mire, it means I’ve forgotten my benefactor and reverted to throwing the mud of gossip.
Prayer: Remind me, oh Lord, to save my tongue for praising you.
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- Written by: Don Goulding
Yet Jesus himself frequently withdrew to the wilderness and prayed. (Luke 5:16)
My son and I leaned over the rail of a ferry headed for Canada. We spotted a half dozen otherworldly creatures. Black and white Dall’s porpoises took turns riding the bow wake. Their torpedo shaped bodies exploited the bulge of glassy current displaced by the ship’s prow. This went beyond survival instincts into the realm of animal fun.
Jesus rode the bow wake. Like the porpoises, he knew a secret place that launched him forward. It was time spent in prayer in the wilderness—that was his bow wake. It’s where he surfed with the heart of God. He went there frequently.
Now it’s my turn to navigate life. Jesus and the porpoises have shown me where to find power. It’s hidden in a glassy bulge at the bow of life’s churning mass. Only in this sacred place do I know Jehovah’s irresistible power, and find rest from mans’ tiresome effort. The name of this secret place is prayer.
It’s absurd to think that insignificant me can plant myself in God’s path. How preposterous to believe I can ride in his might without toil on my part. And yet, there it is, this glassy, surging bubble of prayer. I’m invited to plunge in headlong and discover the fun.
Prayer: Father above, let me ride your bow wake often.