Ability vs Responsibility
I knew Larks had a handful of pretzels . . . but as I was fumbling with my phone to take her picture, she shoved them all into the endless cavern that is her mouth. The picture I feel is super cute, but then all the pretzels came out seconds later . . . making for a wet, gooey mess.
Too often we fall for the same deception . . . just because we can does not mean we should. The self control, discipline, and wisdom needed seem to often flow much more freely in hindsight than in front of us when we need it!
But God HAS PLANS FOR ME AND FOR YOU. And daily desires for us to win the battles for our thoughts ("take every thought captive" 2 Corinthians 10:5) and our words ("Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless." James 1:26), and over temptations for anything in between! (1 Corinthians 10:13 "No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.")
Self control is hard and often we need help making it "stick." But praise God for HIS strength and help as well as God's provision of the body of believers to encourage us.
May we all find the strength to make the responsible choices that need to be made.