Particularly with Lent upon us, I thought this was a very good article, well worth passing on!
Confessional Advice
The part that resonated with me the most was the bit about resisting temptation - number 10. in the article. Handing temptation over to God, admitting to it? That's so simple, and so trusting. Why don't I think of these things? My usual method is more akin to the method of the sort of dieters who fail: I feel guilty about even being tempted, I end up obsessing over whatever temptation I'm currently struggling against, and whenever I do fall, (and of course I do, frequently!), I feel like the dieter who's given into temptation, had that piece of chocolate cake, and thinks they might as well give up trying at all because the diet is broken. I turn away from God, right when I should be turning to him. It's not logical, of course. The way to get back on course is to accept that mistakes have been made, accept God's offered mercy, and live from that point forward.
But one of my biggest faults is being disappointed when I fail to be perfect. It's pride, pure and simple, and it's a turning to self, away from God. Lately, I've been trying to actively offer even my imperfections and failings to Him, accepting that I'm not perfect, that I need Him - a lot.
2 comments:
I know that this is an old post, but I just wanted you to know that you're not alone by a long shot in this.
There are certain behaviors I try to avoid, and when I weaken I tend to embrace other bad behaviors more readily. It is like a diet (something else I frequently do), in that I eat well, have a slip up and have a cheeseburger at lunch, and then figure that I may as well not exercise because what would the point be after all those calories?
But you're right. it's the more difficult times that define you as a Catholic, not the easy ones.
Old post or not, I'm glad you stopped by! Today was one of those days when I really needed a kick in the pants -- I had one of those work days when I worked hard and yet accomplished nothing and was really tempted to wallow in self pity. My own old post and your thoughts on it helped a lot. So thanks!
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