Can We Really Avoid Temptations ?

I believe in the power of change.  Fundamentally, I believe we, as human beings of divine descent, are capable of becoming what we want to be and not in being stuck with whomever we currently are.

But in practice ... it seems virtually impossible!

We ALL have temptations to be the person we are instead of the one we aspire to be.  Glance over the list of the seven deadly sins and you can quickly find at least one or two that call your name (often very loudly) all day long!  I have at least a half-dozen personality traits and/or "addictions" that I long to rid myself of, but success has thus far been rather elusive on virtually all of those fronts.

Whether it be eating junk food instead of healthy meals, or being "quick to anger" instead of more patient, I just seem to not be making much headway.  Try as I might to become more of a morning person than a night owl, progress seems stunted (or even heading backwards).  And these are but a few small examples of "temptations" I seem to be unable to get rid of.

But ... I think there is a key to unlocking that success.  If my near elimination of sugary sodas is any indication, then corrective behavior change may be possible, even likely, in the right circumstances.  The key lies in not trying to eliminate the bad habit or just trying to avoid the temptation, but rather replacing the bad with something good that is equally satisfying.  Ice cold water instead of soda.  Fruits or nuts instead of candy.  Scripture reading instead of crude humor.  Writing thank you notes instead of posting harsh words on social media sites.  There is opposition in all things and if you can unlock the natural, positive opposite to whatever trait or behavior you want to get rid of, success becomes much more likely.  At least I hope that's true.

Song Of The Day:
How could I not use a song that involves the group "The Temptations" when their name is in the title of the post?!  Although not from their original heyday, the group collaborated with Rod Stewart for "The Motown Song" and I remember buying the single on cassette tape because I loved the song so much.  It certainly is a good song that should replace some of those bad messages out there nowadays.

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