Tuesday May 13, 2008: James 1:12-18; Mark 8:14-21

Imagine a life without temptations? Imagine if you did not have to make any choice? The greatest gift God has given to us is the gift of freewill. We have the freedom to choose between good and evil. Without this freedom, we would be robots remote controlled by God. When we face temptations, it is not God that tempts us to do evil. Evil is not created by God but it is the absence of the good. Every temptation however gives us an opportunity to choose God or evil. The classic “the devil made me do it” argument is not a good enough excuse for choosing evil over God. The sins we commit are borne out of our own selfish desires. Think about most of the sins you commit and see how many of them have to do with your desires? We must root out selfish desires from our hearts - the desire for material things; the desire for earthly things and things of the flesh. Our whole lives should desire God. When we desire God, he will help us to overcome temptations and at the end, we will receive the crown of life.
What are some of the evil desires in your heart? What must you do concretely to root them out?