I was upset (again). I was angry, confused, frustrated. One of my first thoughts? I need to go buy myself a nice, warm cup of coffee. Maybe a mocha.... Well, I don't have time to go all the way to the coffee shop. I think I have a piece of chocolate in my desk. That would be pretty tasty at the moment. On the other hand, I could just forget about work, go home, make some popcorn and watch a movie with my son. That would make me feel better.

And it would, of course. I would feel better by doing any one of those things. I would feel better for a time. Until the next thing came up that I couldn't handle.

But nothing get's solved that way. I just distract myself from my life. It's like that line from Piano Man by Billy Joel. People come to see the piano man in the bar "to forget about life for a while". But then you have to go back. You have to go back and then you get a huge reminder that things are not the way they should be, not in the world, not in my situations, not in my heart.

Well by God's grace, I was able to avoid simply forgetting about my sinful anger and I took it to him. I can't even remember what I said to God in between gritted teeth and groans, but He knows and He heard and He answered so that I was able to gain peace in my heart and mind and continue to do the work He had set before me.

Now, I don't plan on giving up coffee (or chocolate or movies), nor do I think I need to. But, I do need to be on guard. From one perspective, this whole incident is a matter of worship. My anger in the first place was due to me worshipping things and people rather than the one and only True and Living God. But then my first response, to turn to other things for help, that too is about worship. Whenever we try to find our comfort, our meaning, our joy in something, we are worshipping that thing. Whenever I look to something to solve all the problems in my life, I am looking to that thing the way I should be looking to God.

Where do you look to find help in time of trouble, temptation, and sin? Do you run to the distractors? Or do you run to Jesus, who was tempted in every way, yet was without sin, and so is able to hear us and help us in our time of need.