Dear Faith Family, 

Choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin, (Hebrews 11:25). 

“A tickling in the nose, frequent sneezing, chills, and a runny nose, followed by a scratchy throat, fatigue, a light headache and lots of thick mucus,” (Isabel Atzl & Roland Helms in their book A Short History of the Common Cold).  Each of those descriptive words runs down the crevices of my brain like fingernails down a chalkboard! 

For three days I lived in denial, hopelessly hoping that each symptom marked an allergic reaction to pollen rather than the common cold.  By day four or five (this light headache makes it hard to distinguish) hope gave way and reality set in.  Enjoy the ride!  Great! 

And then I got to thinking.  Isn’t the common cold like sin?  You know.  Something looks appealing.  We begin to move in the direction of self-gratification through disobedience to God’s Word.  The symptoms begin to warn us of an impending virus!  I wonder if our tendency is to ignore the symptoms.  Denial frees us, at least for a moment, to continue to pursue what we want, pretending that it isn’t sin. 

Now somewhere around day eight, a new reality begins to dawn.  This cold is temporary!  Did I hear an “amen”?!  “Cold” (as if it could hear me), “your days are numbered!  Start packing your bags.” 

So, here’s the thing.  What if, with Moses, we could recognize the fleeting nature of the pleasure of sin?  What if we could know the downside of gluttony before we ever entered the buffet line?  What if we could realize the end of a lie before we were tempted to tell it?  What if the internal and external devastations of lust were evident before we chose to indulge? 

Make no mistake about it.  Sin is pleasurable.  If it were not, sin would not be tempting.  But also know that the same pleasure is short lived.  Sin will always leave you, not better off, but worse than before you dined.  Just ask Adam and Eve! 

May the eternal joy of obedience eclipse the temporary pleasure of sin in our lives even as in the life of Moses, 
Pastor Karl