‘Lead me into TEMPTATION’
WHY everything that’s supposed to be bad make me feel so good? Kanye West’s song Addiction speaks directly about the lure of temptation, something we’ve all grappled with. And though we’re encouraged to try our best not to yield to enticement, many times what presents itself is difficult to ignore, and like West, we may indulge and become addicted.
Below readers share what led them into temptation.
Joseph W:
I went to a club with some friends when I was in college. It was a strip club and people were having live sex on stage, but I was the shy one in the group. I remember my friends saying we could get favours from the girls and the thought was alluring and enticing. It was wrong, as I was in the church, but in that moment I felt free and I thought if no one knew, nothing would happen. I can’t explain it, but it was tantalising.
Audrey T:
I was on a diet and my friends carried me to an ‘all you can eat’ buffet. I sat there on the edge of my chair for the entire night wondering why I was there, if I was going to survive, and whether or not one bite would harm me. Suffice it to say I took one bite, then another bite, then another bite, until mi buss.
Marcia B:
I enjoy reading and it became my downfall. I would read everything and anything I laid my eyes on — pornography, the Bible, romance — and I was all for the saying that reading maketh a man. I remember when I read Fifty Shades and the kink appealed to me and I was curious and tempted to try it with my boyfriend. I was also convinced he was Christian Grey. And I didn’t even take the precaution of starting out small; I went straight for the plunge and had him whip me. I was left with welts and bruises. I ended up harming myself because of a temptation from reading, instead of leaving satisfied.
Lorraine S:
I had a boyfriend for two years, but then I got saved and got baptised. Naturally, salvation meant that I could no longer engage in activities of the flesh, and my boyfriend seemed quite understanding. But while the heart is willing, the flesh is weak, and one rainy night I called him over to cuddle. Needless to say, that temptation resulted in a pregnancy, and I was removed from active duty in the church and basically ostracised. But I didn’t care. I’ve yielded to the same temptation quite a few times since then, and am waiting for the wrath of God to come down on me.
Trudy P:
For me it wasn’t the kind of temptation that resulted in me being affected personally, but I ultimately ruined someone’s relationship. My good friend had this boyfriend — she loved him the way Jesus loves the little children. He was her everything. However, her being with him meant that she had less time to spend with me, and that annoyed me. So I figured that even though he said he loved her, he was just a man like all the other men, and I tricked him into cheating on her. I provided the temptation in the form of a pretty girl, and I provided the opportunity for them to be together. After he cheated he was devastated and apologetic, but my friend dumped him, and we resumed our sisterly bond.
