There used to be a huge pothole in the freeway on my drive home from work that took up the two left lanes. Every single time I’d get to that part of the freeway, I would only remember the pothole was there just before I was about to hit it and it was too late. After hitting it I would always make a mental note that the next time I drove home I would move to the right lane before I would get to where I knew the pothole was. It took multiple drives home for me to finally remember in time to avoid it. Then, the first time I actually moved lanes to avoid it, I looked over and the pothole was filled. Temptations and sins are a lot like this pothole. 

I used to get frustrated with myself when I would hit the pothole because I knew it was there before I would hit it, but I hit it anyway. I became concerned because not only was it annoying for me, but I knew that it could damage my car. In the same way, the first thing we need to do when a temptation arises is recognize that it is there and that it can damage our lives and our relationship with Christ if indulged or entertained. 

After recognizing that the pothole-temptation is there, we need to do our part to avoid it. President Nelson said, “The Lord loves effort because effort brings rewards that can’t come without it.” We can look at how Satan tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden to see how we need to do our part. First I must say that I have great respect for Eve and her decision that brought about the plan of redemption. The actual situation in the garden is not our primary concern here; in this case, it is to see how Satan tempts us. We can imagine ourselves as Eve, “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it became pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make her wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and also gave unto her husband with her, and he did eat” (Moses 4:12). Like Eve, when we are being tempted we let the temptation go from our eyes, to our thoughts/desires, to our hands, to our mouth, and then to someone else. If we cannot stop ourselves from seeing the thing that tempts us, then we should stop ourselves from letting it get into our thoughts. And if we let it get into our thoughts, we should stop it from getting into our hands, or, in other words, putting ourselves in a situation likely to lead to sin. And if we let it get into our hands, we should stop before we eat/commit the sin. And if we do partake of it, we shouldn’t try to get others to partake to make us feel better about ourselves. We should be like Joseph of Egypt when Potiphar’s wife grabbed him by his clothes, attempting to get him to lie with her, he “fled, and got him out”. He didn’t just say no, thanks—he ran. Even though the temptation was there for him to see, he didn’t let it get to his thoughts. Something that we often try to do is simply resist temptation without changing our physical circumstances at all. Instead of doing this, we should be like Joseph. We should not stick around to see where the temptation leads; we need to run. In our lives we can run from temptation by changing our physical surroundings. Lynn G Robbins said in his BYU devotional titled “Avoid it”, “Avoiding temptation should be our first line of defense. However, we live in a world in which the wheat is growing together with the tares and in which it is impossible to completely avoid temptation. But it would be wise to minimize it to the extent possible. When we are faced with temptation, we should resist it with an avoidance mentality. “Get thee behind me” was the Savior’s example of resisting with an avoidance mentality. “He suffered temptations but gave no heed unto them.” When we are faced with temptation, it would be wise to follow the Savior’s example by dismissing Satan without any further argument or discussion—immediately and swiftly.” If your temptation is to be lazy and spend hours on your phone, give your phone to a family member and have them tell you if you get any important messages/calls. If your temptation is to text your ex because you’re lonely, delete their contact info. If your temptation is to say something mean, don’t say anything at all. If your temptation is to drink alcohol, don’t go somewhere where they sell it. If you decide to go off sugar and your temptation is to eat chocolate chip cookies, don’t bake them or even keep the ingredients in your house! Christ said, “And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell…And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire” (Mark 9:45-47). We can use other external things to help control temptations such as making sure we are taking care of our bodies’ physical needs, talking to a close friend or relative about what you struggle with, and asking for help from your bishop. Talking to your bishop can be especially helpful in the repentance process. He loves you and his goal is to help you feel the love of the Savior and become closer to Him through your trials. When I can’t avoid temptation, one thing I found to be helpful is to tell myself that I’m only going to resist temptation for 5 minutes. Then I keep telling myself this over and over until I can get myself in a better situation to avoid rather than resist temptation. Cutting it down into 5 minutes of resistance can make it seem less difficult. We can do the same thing with bringing good things into our lives. I convince myself that I only need to do the dishes for 5 minutes, then I’ll be done, or that I will read my scriptures for just 5 minutes, then be done. However, once I have started, I usually just keep going. Our minds and bodies, once in motion, often will stay in motion. What can you cut out of your life or bring into your life that would make it easier for you to stay true to your goals and not yield to temptation? 

We should not be proud in our hearts for not having any one temptation. In my experience, whenever I have had the thought “I don’t struggle with that”, I am very quickly shown otherwise. Remember that after Jesus told Peter that he would deny Him, Peter told Jesus “Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee”(Matthew 26:35). Peter then went to the palace: the place where He would be put in a situation to deny Christ. He probably could have gone somewhere else, maybe have stayed with the other apostles. Surely enough, Peter denies knowing Jesus, “Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew. And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly” (Matthew 26:74-75). Never think you are above any one temptation or another. Just because a road has always been smooth, doesn’t mean it is immune to potholes. This is why Christ said “pray always that you enter not into temptation” (D&C 61:39). We must never stop praying for God’s help to avoid temptations, especially the ones we know we are prone to. 

Along the road of following Christ, eventually you will realize that, while you can usually avoid the pothole on your own, you cannot fix it by yourself. This is where we must turn to God. We can do our part here by doing the usual prayer, scripture study, and fasting, but with more vigor, dedication, and purpose. While we do our part, there is a point at which we must turn it over to God and let Him fill the pothole of sin and temptation in our lives. When I was struggling with something a while ago I started to pray more earnestly, study the scriptures more, and fast with a real purpose. I was blessed that within a couple months my circumstance changed enough that the temptation was gone. Just like that pothole on my commute being filled after I made the effort to avoid it, the Lord saw fit to fill that temptation in my life after I made my best effort to avoid it myself and after I asked Him for help. For me, when the temptation was taken away because of a change in circumstance, I was honestly a little upset at first because I knew that just because the circumstance had changed, didn’t mean that I had changed. I knew I was justified but I knew that I was not sanctified. Then I thought back to the pothole. Would I be upset because the city filled the pothole and I just barely started to avoid it? Maybe for a second because of my pride, but ultimately I would be glad that the pothole was filled and that I could drive in any lane on that road again. I can also learn from hitting that pothole that I need to do a better job of looking for other potholes that have not been filled yet. The same goes for temptations and sins—we should learn from them, be grateful when they are taken out of our lives, and then watch out for similar types of temptation so we can avoid them from the beginning. The Lord does not always take the temptation away immediately as soon as we put in the effort. Sometimes people have to avoid a pothole for the majority of their life before it is filled.

In this process it is important to not get discouraged. Especially when the Lord does not take the temptation away immediately as soon as we put in the effort. Sometimes people have to avoid a pothole for the majority of their life before it is filled. CS Lewis wrote in his book “Mere Christianity”, “Christ said “Blessed are the poor” and “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom,” and no doubt He primarily meant the economically rich and economically poor. But do not His words also apply to another kind of riches and poverty? …If you have sound nerves and intelligence and health and popularity and a good upbringing, you are likely to be quite satisfied with your character as it is. “Why drag God into it?” you may ask. A certain level of good conduct comes fairly easily to you… Often people who have all these natural kinds of goodness cannot be brought to recognize their need for Christ at all until, one day, the natural goodness lets them down and their self-satisfaction is shattered. In other words, it is hard for those who are “rich” in this sense to enter the Kingdom. It is very different for the nasty people—the little, low, timid, warped, thin-blooded, lonely people, or the passionate, sensual, unbalanced people. If they make any attempt at goodness at all, they learn, in double quick time, that they need help. It is Christ or nothing for them. It is taking up the cross and following—or else despair. They are the lost sheep; He came specially to find them. They are (in one very real and terrible sense) the “poor”: He blessed them… There is either a warning or an encouragement here for every one of us. If you are a nice person—if virtue comes easily to you beware! Much is expected from those to whom much is given… But if you are a poor creature—poisoned by a wretched upbringing in some house full of vulgar jealousies and senseless quarrels—saddled, by no choice of your own, with some loathsome sexual perversion—nagged day in and day out by an inferiority complex that makes you snap at your best friends—do not despair. He knows all about it. You are one of the poor whom He blessed. He knows what a wretched machine you are trying to drive. Keep on. Do what you can. One day (perhaps in another world, but perhaps far sooner than that) he will fling it on the scrap-heap and give you a new one. And then you may astonish us all—not least yourself: for you have learned your driving in a hard school.” I feel I identify with both the rich and poor in this example. In some ways I think we are all the poor as well as the rich discussed here because none of us are perfect. We all must be wary in the areas we feel we are doing well in, but not become discouraged in the areas we are weak in, giving both to Christ. 

Remember when combating temptation that you are not alone! Everyone hits potholes. I get a little frustrated with myself anytime I hit an avoidable pothole in the road for a second, third, and fourth time. I think we do the same thing when it comes to temptations and mistakes. We hit the same temptations and sins over and over again, get frustrated with ourselves, and promise to avoid it next time. It takes time to learn and remember how to avoid the temptations we are subjected to. God is patient and always willing to give us another chance if we seek it. If a pothole damages your car, get it fixed and try to remember that experience so you avoid it better next time. Don’t get discouraged, no one has ever been perfect except for Jesus Christ. Turn to Him and He will help you. Lynn G Robbins said, “Whatever your weakness or temptation is—and we all have them—if your desire is to avoid that temptation in the future, remember that the Savior wants to help you. As noted under grace in the Guide to the Scriptures, His grace is a divine source of “help or strength [that] is given through the mercy and love of God. Every mortal person needs divine grace because of Adam’s fall and also because of man’s weaknesses.” He understands what we are dealing with, as this scripture teaches: “Jesus Christ . . . knoweth the weakness of man and how to succor them who are tempted.” And how does He know how to succor those who are tempted? Because “he himself hath suffered being tempted, [therefore] he is able to succour them that are tempted.” CS Lewis added on this topic, “Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is… A man who gives in to temptation after five minutes simply does not know what it would have been like an hour later. That is why bad people, in one sense, know very little about badness. They have lived a sheltered life by always giving in. We never find out the strength of the evil impulse inside us until we try to fight it: and Christ, because He was the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full what temptation means—the only complete realist.” We can take comfort from knowing that we are not alone in being imperfect. Even more so, we should take encouragement and comfort in knowing that Christ knows us and our temptations as though He lived each of our lives individually and He loves us so much.

From my funny little experience with a pothole on my commute, I hope we can all learn these lessons:

1. When you hit a pothole, recognize it is there and it will damage your car.
2. Do your part to avoid the pothole:
   1. Physically distance yourself from the things or people that lead up to the temptation.
   2. Ask for help from close friends, family members, and church leaders.
3. Recognize that you can’t fix your sins entirely on your own.
4. Be grateful when God takes the temptation away by changing your circumstance.
5. If the pothole isn’t filled immediately, keep avoiding it the best you can and don’t despair.
6. You’re not alone; everyone hits potholes.
7. Christ knows you and your temptations better than you do.

I remember when I first moved to the right lane after hitting that pothole on my commute home so many times, I felt excited for myself that I had finally avoided it, immediately followed by surprise, relief, and gratitude as soon as I saw it was filled. I know that we can all feel that same way when we turn to Christ and allow Him to fill our imperfections. I end with the words of Alma the Younger, “And now, my brethren, I wish from the inmost part of my heart, yea, with great anxiety even unto pain, that ye would hearken unto my words, and cast off your sins, and not procrastinate the day of your repentance; But that ye would humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and watch and pray continually, that ye may not be tempted above that which ye can bear, and thus be led by the Holy Spirit, becoming humble, meek, submissive, patient, full of love and all long-suffering; Having faith on the Lord; having a hope that ye shall receive eternal life; having the love of God always in your hearts, that ye may be lifted up at the last day and enter into his rest” (Alma 13:27-29).

References

https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/lynn-g-robbins/avoid/

https://www.dacc.edu/assets/pdfs/PCM/merechristianitylewis.pdf