“The Lord is well aware of our mortality”

   Soon after Christ was baptized by a humbled John, "Jesus was led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be with God." In the wilderness he was able to fast and "commune with God." (JST Matt.4;1-2) Secluded in the wilderness without distractions, I am sure it was a great opportunity for him to prepare and receive great lessons from his Father. A great way to prepare for his last days on earth.

   "And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered." (Matt. 4;2) Then Satan starts in on tempting the son of God. Like an unwanted visitor, the adversary loves to come in unannounced and at our weakest moments. This was probably a great chance to one up the Savior of the World...he was ready to pounce.

   He starts with a carnal temptation, second with pride and then with worldly riches and power. These are often the temptations with which we are faced on a regular basis but Christ was prepared beforehand. He was also the scriptures incarnate. He had the word of God written on his heart, He was the "word."

   This is why he was able to combat each temptation with scripture and power, even after such a weakened physical state. It would be wonderful to act as Christ did when faced with temptation but as Joseph B Wirthlin stated, "The Lord is well aware of our mortality. He knows our weaknesses. He understands the challenges of our everyday lives. He has great empathy for the temptations of earthly appetites and passions." (In Conference Report, Apr. 1996, 46)

Friends,

   A little insight I have come to know as I have helped people overcome addiction and other temptations...the more time we have in communing with Heaven, the more power we have over temptation. Pretty simple to understand but a great relationship with Heaven also has mental and physiological benefits. The greater spirit we have the more equipped we are to deal with negative moods and past traumas. 

   These moods potentially lead toward huge chemical imbalances to our brain and more lethargic feelings of "I don't want to do or feel anything for days. All I want to do is watch this screen for a day and then play the other screen when I get tired of that screen." In essence, the scriptures and meaningful communion with heaven are great preventors of mental and emotional anguish. They can also get you back on track mentally and emotionally... if you let them. :)

   So, Christ set a great example by seeking heaven to overcome sin:

      1. He communed with God

      2. He was continually seeking light through the scriptures

      3. He beat temptation with scripture and great motivation to do God's will.

      4. And after all of the anguish that he endured and after fighting off Satan, "Angels came and                   ministered to Him." (Matt. 4:11)

   I believe that we can do the same. Please think of some different ways you can implement the actions the Savior portrayed in these scriptures. We won't get there right away but we can get there little by little. I pray that we will recognize how much joy and angelic ministry will come to us as we follow Christ's example in overcoming temptation.

Cody Hawes MSW, LCSW

Life Changing Services Clinician

lifechangingservices.org

1-801-721-0144