I have, since a teenager, wrestled with temptation as we all have. And I can honestly tell you I have given in to its lure more times than not in the past thirty or so years.
That being said, there have also been times when I have stared temptation in the eye and put it in its place. This has happened several times in my life, but the following actual experience comes to mind.
I was in my early twenties. I was homeless and searching for a home base. I was in Texas, walking in a middle class subdivision around two or three in the morning. It was a pleasant evening, the moon and stars were out and the temperature was spring like.
As I walked a pack of six stray dogs approached from a distance. They got closer and closer so I prepared for the worst. I had a knife and it was drawn. The dogs had stopped about forty feet away, eyeing me intently. I stared back, and postured myself in a confident stance. A few seconds later the Alpha dog turned away and the others followed. They disappeared into the night and I continued my walk.
Towards the end of the subdivision there was a large field with a lone majestic oak tree in the middle. I was attracted to this site so I walked thru the field to the base of the tree. As I looked up thru its branches I suddenly had a vision of a face midway up the tree. The face, a shadowy outline, was staring back at me and it was an evil stare from an evil face. It sent shivers down my spine and I stepped back from the tree, but the face would not go away. So I kept backing up. At about twenty five feet from the tree I stumbled on a pile of fist sized rocks. I picked myself up off the ground and as I did I picked up two rocks one in each hand. I stood back and threw those rocks at that face one at a time until the whole pile of twenty or so rocks was gone. I was in such a furry of emotion that I hadn’t noticed the face had faded away.
At this point I again approached the tree. Looking thru its branches all I saw was the moon and stars. I fell to the ground at the base of the tree and sleep came over me.
The vision never tempted me in such a way again.
Face your temptations head on and watch as they fade into distant memories.
© Bryan Stross July 26th 2008 8:00 PM EST
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