Monday, October 24, 2011

daily meditation: slow seduction and a quick fall

Proverbs 7:21-23

"With much seductive speech she persuades him;
     with her smooth talk she compels him.
All at once he follows her,
     as an ox goes to the slaughter,
or as a stag is caught fast
     till an arrow pierces its liver;
as a bird rushes into a snare;
     he does not know that it will cost him his life.

Too often we think that temptation happens only in the instant before our sin. In reality, temptation seduces us slowly, feeding us small lies and empty promises over days, weeks, months, and years. It is this slow seduction that makes our fall seem so sudden.

Beware the steady voice of the adulteress. She calls daily in the streets. Shut your ears to her words so that none of them can get it. Fill yourself, instead, with sweet Gospel truths so that you can "say no to ungodliness and worldly passion."

-joe

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