A United Methodist Pastor's Theological Reflections

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory (nikos) through our Lord Jesus Christ." - I Corinthians 15:57


Thursday, March 22, 2012

Shamrock Shake Temptation: Dave's Deep Thoughts



Here's Pastor Dave McDowell's weekly devotional that he sends out to members of his church. Dave is my brother and serves as the Music Minister at Stewartstown UMC in PA.
It is said,
good things are worth waiting for.

But what if they arrive a day early?

Anyone who knows me
knows that March 17 for me,
is Christmas, the sequel.

Oh yes,
I do have a bit of Irish blood in me,
but it's not so much about bloodlines
as it is about sugar.

I am not a big fan of fast food restaurants,
I rarely visit them.
But once a year, I make my pilgrimage
to a certain fast food establishment
that offers a frothy mint dairy delight.

Never mind that these cups of creamed confection
are available to the masses starting on Feb 1.

Oh no.

With all due respect
to those who imbibe early,
I do not decorate my tree on Thanksgiving.
Firecrackers are for July 4th, New Years Eve ,
and openings of Olympic ceremonies only,
and birthday gifts are opened on Oct 11.
Do I even need to discuss Christmas presents?

It's not that I am not tempted.....
Rarely a day goes by that
I don't drive past one of those restaurants.

I have found that at the first site of those arches during the month of March,
I am able to keep driving by.
if I think about tsunamis, nuclear war, or feline leukemia.

Pass a billboard that is exploding in shamrock green?
I look the other way.

See a friend who is importing mint cream through a straw
faster than oil through the Alaskan pipeline?
I move to the other side of the street.

One of those television commercials comes on?
Nothing says no for me more than the almighty mute button.

One shake,
one day,
once a year.

On March 16th,
I was traveling upstate.
My schedule only allowed me an early breakfast.
By early afternoon,
I was hungry.

Traveling through upstate rural Pennsylvania
can be hazardous to your hunger.
You can go long stretches without seeing restaurant signs.

It was almost 4pm and I still hadn't found a restaurant.
I was famished.

I finally was able to get off the back roads
and reach the highway.

Two exits later,
finally, a restaurant sign.

Was there a waffle house off the exit......no
a diner.......no
a steakhouse?

No,
staring me down from 100 yards,
was the arches,
and nothing else.

I gulped and turned onto the exit ramp.

If the way to a man's heart is through his stomach,
then I was being wooed.

If I was an innocent sailor,
then my boat was headed straight towards the sirens.

If I was Samson,
I was headed straight into Delilah's hair cuttery.

I murmured my mantra over and over....

One shake,
one day,
once a year.

I walked in the den of lions.
The lions were roaring....

It's just one day early.
No one will ever know.
They are better than ever.........

I walked up to Satan
who was conveniently disguised
as an 18 year old cashier.

How may I help you today? she said
Translated......
What forbidden fruit may I offer you today?

Her name tag said Heather,
but I knew fully well that her name was really Eve,
and Adam had just come up to the counter.

I breathed in deeply,
uttered my mantra one more time
and said,
I'd like a #2 meal super sized.

Recognizing that I was clinging onto my faith
like a child clinging to mommy's leg in a room full of strangers,
Eve came at me one last time with both claws....
Would you like a Shamrock Shake to go with your meal?

Unless this restaurant has recently gone with a gargoyle motif,
I'm pretty sure I saw demons hanging from the dessert menu.

There is that moment of truth,
that moment where the world goes quiet
and all you hear is your head arguing....

that moment where you know there is a fork in the road,
and you know once you make your decision,
there is no turning back.

It is said that character is what you do,
when no one else sees you.

Digging down deep
for my last ounce of character I said,
No thank you.

Translated.....
Get behind me Satan.

As I walked past play land,
children demons hissed at me.

As I stepped up to the exit,
I proclaimed the mantra once more....

One shake,
one day,
once a year.
None of us resists temptation all of the time.
If we did, we would have no need for Jesus.
.
Will power helps,
but what we need most of all
is to invite the Holy Spirit
to reign in us each and every day.
.
As Christians,
we understand that God dwells in us through the Holy Spirit.
But we also have free will,
and so people of faith need to daily
ask the Spirit to reign over our fleshly impulses.
.
It's not easy to do,
but the results are far more rewarding
than the immediate gratification
of the latest temptation.
.
When we realize that God is with us,
dwelling within us,
we find we can do what we need to do.
It is in fact, when we admit that we can't do right on our own,
that God's power is revealed in us.
.
Don't wait for your Eve or Satan to pounce,
Start the day with the invite.....
Lord, as You live in me,
steer me to follow your ways,
and I will receive Your strength to do what is right.
.
You might be surprised what God accomplishes in you.
.
As for me and God,
8am breakfast at the arches on March 17th
was spectacular.
.
My grace is sufficient for you,
for power is perfected in weakness.
Most gladly, therefore,
I will rather boast about my weaknesses,
that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
2 Corinthians 12:9
.

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