Lord, give me the wisdom to see. No good life comes without right discipline. Give me the grace to impose it upon myself lest others do it for me. Help me to discipline my tongue, That I may be clear rather than clever, sincere instead of sarcastic. Help me to discipline my thinking and actions, to do what is right and not what is easy. Let me get on with the job on hand doing the best I can and leaving the rest to You Amen
“Do not let your passions be your guide, but keep your desires in check.” Sirach 18:30
Reading this verse makes me laugh a little bit. You have to understand that I am currently six months pregnant, so restraining my appetite isn’t going as well as I would hope. With my first pregnancy, I could hardly eat. And when I finally could, all I craved were grape tomatoes and fruit cups form Chik-fil- A! This time around all things sugar and carbs are calling out to me, and I’m having a hard time saying no! This verse is about so much more than food struggles, which is only one of the desires that may be getting in our way as we strive for sainthood. As fallen beings, sin has taken our normal and good desires (for hunger, love, security, happiness, beauty) and twisted them into barriers that keep us from God and others. If we really look hard at those who struggle with addiction, underneath that was a desire that could not be restrained.
Temptation is all around us, for me right now it’s in my kitchen pantry. I don’t really need twelve donuts, and neither does my baby. But you and I CAN both overcome temptation and not give in to our base desires. Prayer, the sacraments, spending time in scripture are all things that can help us to restrain our appetites. Allow God to be in control of your life and give up your desires to him.
What temptations are you currently facing? How can you take power away from them?
To Jesus through Mary-Sarah Ruiz
