Temptation - Something to Think About

"We gain nothing by our decision to renounce earthly things if we do not abide by it, but continue to be attracted by such things and allow ourselves to keep thinking about them. By constantly looking back like Lot's wife towards what we have renounced, we make clear our attachment to it. For she looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt, remaining to this day an example to the disobedient. She symbolizes the force of habit, which draws us back again after we have tried to make a definitive act of renunciation. By habitually thinking about what we have left behind, we undermine our determination to advance and we are pulled in the opposite direction, returning to our old sins. Habit may be shaken and forced to give way, but it is not permanently changed, unless through prolonged effort we retrace our steps." - Neilos the Ascetic