It might be old age. It might be some rare tropical disease (though I’ve not recently—or ever—been to the tropics). It might food issues. Whatever “it” is, it means my tummy doesn’t do well if I try to eat too much or too late in the day. There’s really no other way to say what happens than to bottom-line it: I toss my cookies.

If you’re still reading this—meaning: 1) you didn’t have to run toss your cookies when you read those words, or 2) you didn’t open up a new page to go search Google or WebMD because you are intrigued with finding out what might be wrong with me (trust me, that could take a lifetime), then here’s my quick point today:

I know that eating too much or eating too late brings that reaction. So, I take the necessary step to prevent it: I eat an early supper (and yes, it’s supper—not dinner—when it’s that early). The problem comes when the “full” feeling of the early supper wears off around 7:30 p.m. So, you guessed it: Instead of drinking a glass of water to quench the “empty” feeling, I indulge my desire for more food—even though I know what the consequences will be. Then, those consequences rear their ugly head around 1:15 a.m.; I regret my actions; and I raise my right hand and declare that I will never, ever do that again.

You undoubtedly already put two and two together, but isn’t this exactly what we do in our spiritual lives? We take the right step by going to church or having a daily personal time with God. But then a temptation comes. Instead of quenching that desire with the Living Water, we give in because—well—because our desire outweighs our knowledge of the possible consequences. Then, the consequences or trials come, and we cry out that we will never, ever do that again.

Even though it’s sometimes a little tricky to read (so I’m using the quotation from an easy-to-understand version), Paul said it best:

“I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate.” (Romans 7:15, NLT)

Because the lesson is clear, I leave you with this straightforward question a preacher friend once asked a group of us many years ago: What is so important to you that you’re willing to sin to get it?