Satan and Temptation

One great requisite in a net is that it should be more or less concealed; it must be imperceptible to the victim, as it lies hidden in the grass or among the bushes. Temptations lie in the familiar path of everyday, things which do not startle us into a sense of danger; things which we do not see unless we are for-warned. They might be small occasions for the loss of patience, or the purity of thought, small provocations to envy, to deviation from truth in daily intercourse, or in ordinary business; small sparks to kindle pride or vanity; small excuses to sloth and self-indulgence; in short, opportunities to forget and indulge ourselves in what is not according to the will of God. And near the net, though out of sight, there stands the Fowler. The great organizer of the forces of evil is there, the personal enemy ever on the watch to spread the snare for the soul. Much net-like difficulty may be predicted by common precautions taken, by avoidance of place and company, and sight, and books, and websites which have a plain tendency to mischief.

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