Resisting the Temptation to Turn Stones to Bread

The Bible tells about an experience Jesus had early in his career when he was in the wilderness for 40 days without food (Matthew 4). The devil tempted him saying, "If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread." But Jesus refused this suggestion and replied, "It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."

I've always thought that the point of this story is that one shouldn't try to use prayer or spiritual power for personal gain. However, recently I saw this story from another angle which was helpful to me, even if its not exactly the lesson intended by the Biblical writer.

I was on my morning jog when, for the second day in a row, a neighbor's unleashed dog ran out of its yard and began jumping on me. I stood still and waited while the neighbor came and retrieved their pet. They were barely apologetic, apparently thinking I should be thrilled to be a chew toy for their dog. As I jogged away, my mind was filled with negative thoughts about careless dog owners.

Then the thought came to me: "Those are just stones. Don't try to make bread out of them." To me this meant that those thoughts about my neighbor were not ideas from God. Therefore dwelling on those thoughts would not provide me with any mental sustenance. When Jesus said that "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" he wasn't just talking about our physical diet. As he said elsewhere in his teachings, life is "more than meat". Our strength and health come from the God-like thoughts we entertain in our consciousness - thoughts from God.

Recognizing that ruminating about this incident with my neighbor's dog was a stone that would weigh me down, not food for thought, I refused the temptation to dwell on it further and turned my thoughts to ideas that God was sending me. "Put down the stone!" I told myself every time one of these negative thoughts would try to creep back into my thinking. I was soon happily occupied with more productive thoughts.

As I've thought further about this idea, I've realized there are other instances when I'm tempted to turn stones to bread. The human mind has a tendency to yield to the temptation to dwell on criticisms of others, rehearse events, or even just day-dream. While some of these thoughts may seem to be harmless or innocent, if they are not thoughts from God they have no nutritional value for our physical or spiritual well-being.

Recognizing these negative thought patterns as temptations to turn stones to bread has made me more alert to what is occupying my thinking. I am more readily putting aside the stones of mortal thought-patterns and seeking the life-giving word of God!

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Follow this link for some more thoughts on turning stones to bread.
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