Do Men Really Face More Temptation?

[hymnsinger]

A friend gave me this on a piece of paper. I hope I transcribe it right. I don't know about the copyright but I'll attach it anyway.

MEN: BEWARE OF TEMPTATION
  Men and women respond to temptation differently. Women tend to flee temptation, while men like to crawl away slowly and hope temptation will overtake them.
  No man sets out to succumb to temptation on purpose. Yet every day we learn of men, Christian men, who fail. Unless a man remains perpetually vigilant, his own evil desires carry him into temptation and sin.

Six temptations men face:
* Emotional neglect. Men are most tempted not to give their wives the thing they desire the most: emotional connection and intimacy; the sharing of yourself at the deepest level, and wanting to know the same level in your spouse. God commanded, Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church (Eph. 5:25). The Bible gives no similar instructions to wives because wives are naturally drawn to an intimate love relationship. For men it must be learned.

* Lust. Men become sexually stimulated visually. When a man looks and lusts, that does not mean he no longer loves his wife. He is engaged in temptation - physical and spiritual. We live in a sexually over-stimulated culture in which many men are drained of the spiritual energy needed to expose temptation and the moral energy to resist it. The best way to resist sexual temptation is to flee from it.

* False gods. You can have only one god. Most men try to worship an idol and God. That, too, is impossible. Idolatry is the error of giving worship or homage to any power or object other than God. It's either going to be Jesus Christ or something else. And whatever the something else is, it will never satisfy (e.g. accomplishments, money, pleasure, possessions, power, prestige, or position).

* Money and debt. Men find money intoxicating. Jesus named money as his chief competitor: No one can serve two masters....You cannot serve both God and money (Matt. 6:24). Not only is man tempted to earn more money, but also to borrow more money than he can afford to repay. The temptation is not to love God or money. The temptation is to love them both. To live debt-free within your means, with Jesus as the god of your life, is the goal.

* Whining. The Bible tells of people who grumbled about the sufficiency of God's care. When men see others advancing more rapidly, frequently resentments, jealousies, envy, and bitterness build up. Slights, perceived and real, grind on his ego. The way to overcome the temptation to complain is to accept your lot in life and get on with a positive outlook. Paul said, I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances (Phil 4:11).

* Pride. Stubborn pride often keeps a man from humbling himself and admitting he's wrong. Temptation to pride comes in many disguises. The most common form is for a man to look down with disdain on others. It is a sin of comparison in which a man compares his [perceived] strength with another's weaknesses. Equally insidious is the temptation for a man to look up in disgust to others who have it better or have accomplished more. Pride can even cause some men to feel they are above talking about "touchy feelings," and so emotionally neglect their wives.
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Patrick Morley is a business leader, speaker, and the best-selling author of seven books, including The Man in the Mirror, Walking with Christ in the Details of Life, The Rest of Your Life, Devotions for Couples, and The Seven Seasons of a Man's Life. He lives with his family in Orlando, Fla.
Taken from What Husbands Wish Their Wives Knew About Men by Patrick M. Morley. Copyright (c) 1998 by Patrick M. Morley. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 49530, 1-800-727-3480.
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A comments on that!

In His Service
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[smiley4jc]

I somewhat agree with Mr. Morely but not totally.  For one thing, in this day of "women's liberation", we women are quite free to participate in whatever behavior we deem necessary or desirable.  Young, teen girls who used to sleep around were considered sluts and other non-desirable names.  Today...it's accepted that "kids will be kids"  "It's a phase....", "they're just sowing their wild oats", etc.  Having gotten one girl through the teen years and one boy going through them now, I can tell you that in my case, it's the girls who are confronting my son with more temptation than the guys ever provided my daughter.  The girls ain't running!  At least not away from temption.  They are throwing open the doors, puttin' out the welcome mat, settin' the table and puttin' their best hoochie momma threads on!  And this behavior starts early, too!  Shockingly so.  Unfortunately, this behavior is not exclusive to the young girls....I know some 50 + year old women who are putting out those same welcome mats.

*emotional neglect - if women would allow men to be men, then maybe they would get the emotional support they are needing.  Does my husband, who honestly confesses he is not a Christian, give me all the emotional support I feel I need?  No...but that's the way he was raised...it's from his dad.  Has my husband gotten better over the past 20 years?  Most definitely.  But, no matter what my husband believes or doesn't believe, I understand that he's the head of this household and all final decisions are up to him.  The more support I give him as the head of our household, the more support I get in return.  I believe women these days emotionally castrate their men, wanting them to be more touchy, feely and push down their "manly" ways.

*false gods - Sorry...I don't see men having a corner on this one.

*Money and debt - I have to strongly disagree here.  There is a woman I go to church with who is very "spiritual".  I love this woman like a sister but....   In a recent discussion we were having about my daughter's "lovelife" I commented that someone in my family was praying for a man to come into my daughter's life who has a very good paying job, lots of money in the bank and can give my daughter all the "stuff" she deserves.  I have been praying that God would send my daughter a Christian, God-fearing, Bible grounded, Spirit-filled man....then everything else will fall into place.  This Sister in Christ then informed me that the very first thing she looks for in a man (and she is single...at the moment...multiple marriages) is a large bank account.  I have a sister-in-law, again, whom I love dearly, who trades her "wifely favors" for cash and she is known to spend voraciously, constantly to the point of on several occasions sinking their family into much debt.  Her daughter is turning out the same.  I believe that women are more obsessed with money than men.

*whining - you've got to be kidding me!  Women wrote the book on whining.  Men make excuses and carry on as if they are gospel.  Whining, game-playing, manipulation....whatever it takes to get your way.  It's a woman thing!  Also, you show me a whiney man and I'll show you a man whose wife won't or his mom didn't let him be The Man.

*pride - Mr. Morely obviously has never been a fly on the wall when the women are in the "powder room"." "Did you see Jane?" Can you believe she would actually come out in public with that hair?"" (implication:  my hair is soooo much better)  "And that dress!  The poor dear is so stuck in the 70's."  (translation:  I have such good fashion sense)  Us women might express our "pride" a bit differently but it's no less volatile or poison.  In fact, I think since most women are a little more subtle and underhanded with it, we can be even more damaging.  Would you rather get the snot beat out of you to prove who is the best man or would you rather have your reputation totally trashed?   

I do not think that men face more temptations.  It just comes in different flavors and we handle it differently.

smiley