“The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” 1 Corinthians 10:13
Have you ever faced temptation? i know stupid question right?! Of course, we all face temptations on a daily bases. This verse in 1 Corinthians gives us a hope that whatever the temptation is, there is a way out. That the temptations that you face are not new to the world but there are others who face the same temptations as you. Not that we all face the same temptations but that certainly there are no new ones roaming about.
So what does the passage mean when it says, “He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand.”? We need to look at the whole passage to truly get the meaning here. We often stop right there and rely on that then blame God when we stumble or fall, “God, You gave me more than i could handle on my own!” Here is the rest of that verse, “When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure.”
There is the key. Not that we won’t be given more than we can handle because that absolutely happens, but that God will give us a way out when we rely on Him. When we are tempted we need to look to Him, find the way out that He provides. It may come in forms that you aren’t expecting. When you are being tempted, the way out may come as an unexpected text message, phone call, knock on the door, etc. It may be something that comes to mind to distract you and you have a choice, take the way out or press on into the temptation.
Other ways out of temptation that God has already provided, are songs of praise and worship, His Word, prayer. Sing, Read, Pray your way through. Call a friend, text a friend, change the activity that you are doing…walk away. There are plenty of outs when it comes to temptation. It will take training, it will take support, it will take some effort to get out of a tempting spot. Its worth it, there is a way, He has provided and will continue to provide ways out when we rely on His strength and not our own.
Here is one big key to avoiding temptation in the future. When God tells you to get rid of something in your life, change a habit, change…do it. The temptation will be to hesitate but then whose strength are you relying on? Trust in God and rely on Him, look at these words of wisdom from Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.”
You are Loved,
cj
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