Daniel 1:5, Daniel 1:8, 1 Corinthians 10:13

Carl Belcher inspires us to deal with the temptation of indulgence

Carl Belcher

In my last couple of Life Files we looked at Daniel - the 'above and beyond' character of whom it was said that there was none equal to Daniel. In every matter of wisdom and understanding he was head and shoulders above the rest.

We've looked at two of the enemy efforts to strategically subvert his destiny - to Isolate & Indoctrinate. Now comes the time to uncover the third enemy strategy - to Incite to Indulge.

Now, a little indulgence isn't all that serious is it? After all, just about every media advert is enticing us to indulge in something or other; whether it's Ben & Jerry's latest calorie-crammed ice cream creation or a weekend's soothing in some exclusive health spa, we are actively encouraged to indulge ourselves as much and as often as possible.

The problem is that indulgence just magnifies our sense of self, or rather selfishness. The dictionary definition of indulge is, 'to yield to, satisfy, or gratify (desires, feelings, etc.)' or another version says, 'to allow (oneself) to follow one's will'. That's the core of the problem. It places us and our immediate desires and wants right at the centre of our thinking, feeling and lives.

Daniel knew full well the power that indulgence has to take your eyes off God and put them on yourself. In Daniel 1:5 it says, 'The king assigned them a daily portion of the food that the king ate, and of the wine that he drank.'; verse eight says, 'But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king's food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself.'

Why all this fuss over a little food & wine, it's hardly the crime of the century is it? Daniel knew though that all the food and wine that the king consumed would have been offered up on the altar of their pagan 'gods' before serving it up. Daniel however had 'resolved' (already decided) that his life would be free of compromise, avoiding the 'grey' areas of life and be completely devoted to the one true God, so he didn't even allow himself to go there.

Did you get that? He had ALREADY decided. He didn't wait for the pressure to catch him by surprise, but he had made up his mind before the temptation came of how he would handle it. It's like he had already drawn a line across the ground and said to himself, 'this far but no further'.

Have you done that yet? Do you need to?

Bill Hybels once wrote, 'There are very few people who are able to make morally heroic decisions at the very moment of extreme temptation'. (Making Life Work)

It's one thing to do the right thing when you're surrounded by other 'going-for-it Christians' at a festival or church, but it's another thing altogether when you're back on your tod, when no one's looking and no-one will know. It can be well hard at times like these to do the right thing and not cave in. The reassuring thing though, is that even though you may feel on your own, you're not; 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, 'No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it.'

So my prayer for you today, is may you know more of God's word in order to know what is helpful and what's harmful and may you make the right decision now about what you will do in that circumstance before you're in it!

Go for it! Draw the line today!