Temptation

First Sunday of Lent; Luke 4:1-13

“No one who believes in God will be put to shame.”

Romans 10:11

In my prior life when I owned a business, I was constantly challenged to find ways to grow the business. If a business does not grow, it is shrinking. And a shrinking business goes away. I had too many good employees who depended on me to allow that to happen. So, I was always looking for ways to gain new customers and raise revenue.

One year, we were having a fun competition between the employees to see who could bring in the most new customers. Incentives were offered, prizes were held out to win, and cash was dangled to motivate them. One of my better employees came in one day all excited. He had stopped at the address of one person and sold him a good program. There was only one problem: the homeowner was already a customer and was priced lower than the new price my guy had sold him. What to do?

The crew thought it was so funny that this customer didn’t remember who their service company was and was congratulating my salesman on up-selling the guy without his even realizing it. I allowed the hilarity to go on for a few minutes and then walked into the room. Of course, when the boss walks in, everybody get quiet, which worked to my advantage. “Nice sale,” I said to the salesperson. “But if that were your father, what you think the right thing to do would be? I’ll let you decide how to handle this.”

Temptation is a hard thing. I don’t think anyone is immune from it, least of all me. In fact, she says I can resist anything BUT temptation. The Gospel from Luke tells us Jesus was tempted for 40 days. He got off easy; I’ve been tempted for over 65 years!  The problem with temptation, in my estimation, is that it makes me focus on me. I begin to worry how I am going to get more stuff or a better job, or a bigger house.

In the reading from the book of Deuteronomy, reminds me that I am a part of a long line of immigrants and oppressed people. When the Irish arrived in America, they were not welcomed at all. You’d never know that today, but it’s true. Every nationality has had to endure taunts, prejudice and discrimination when they were newly immigrated. And all of that fades compared to the treatment that white immigrants have given to BIPOC peoples.

Thankfully Paul reminds me that “no one who believes in God will be put to shame.” [Rom 10:11] God’s grace is for everyone, not just those who are deemed worthy. I have to set aside my greed and arrogance and remember that more often. Everyone is my brother and sister, and they deserve the best I can give.

Just so you know, my employee called the customer back and told him of the mistake, and that his price would be the same as the previous year, not at the higher price. The customer was obviously pleased and grateful. Had we not responded in that way, I can assure you the customer would have figured out what happened and cancelled his account. Our reputation would have suffered, and other people would have not considered our service, and the company would have moved backwards. All because of a little temptation.

Carolyn Townes, OFS recently wrote that “In a world crying out for justice, our readings for this first Sunday of Lent serve as a beacon of hope and a call to action. May we, like the Israelites, remember our story. May we, like Paul, proclaim the inclusivity of God’s love. And may we, like Jesus, stand firm in the face of temptation, working tirelessly for a world that reflects the justice and mercy of our Creator God. And when the way seems dark and uncertain, you can cry out like the Psalmist, “Be with me, Lord, when I am in trouble,” and surely God will hear.” *

Every Day

* Carolyn Townes, OFS, FAN Newsletter: The Same Lord of All, March 4, 2025, Franciscan Action Network; https://tinyurl.com/2yprquon

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