“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry” (Matthew 4:1-2).
Our temptations aren’t likely to come to us from a mysterious figure in a deserted place. But often they revolve around the same basic human drives: hunger, emotional security, safety, status, ambition. Many of the stories told about St. Francis reveal his struggles with temptations of various kinds. The message of the Gospel today, like the message of Lent itself, is twofold: “Repent and believe the good news.” We are called to do both. It’s easy to think that the repenting is the hard part. But in all honesty, often it’s far more difficult to believe in good news. We know our weaknesses far better than we know our strengths.
—from the book Lent with St. Francis: Daily Reflections by Diane M. Houdek
1 thought on “Wrestling with Temptation”
Knowing myself requires persistent discernment; it always I often missed the most relevant opportunities to perform my duties as a true servant and failed to exercise my faith in accordance with the Good News. The countless moments of repentance over my shortcomings same useless as I remain stubborn, but I always pray for the grace that I will never lost the the courage to beg God’s mercy of forgiveness and be able to grow little by little, day by day.