Story of the day

A singing bird flew into a forest and sat on the branch of a tree. The bird sang with a melodious voice. Every animal in the forest listened spellbound, appreciating and admiring the music of the gifted singer. Animals from nearby areas rushed to the scene, lulled by the sweet sound of the song. A worm was seated on a leaf of the lowest branch of the tree on which the bird rested. With all its strength the worm crawled into a crevice from where it could not see the bird.

Seeing this rapid retreat, a rabbit asked the worm, "Why do you go away from the singer, while all of us are watching the bird and listening to the song with ardent admiration?" The worm said in a soft voice, "I saw the bird staring at me. After finishing the song the bird would feel tired and hungry. Most probably the stare was to identify me as a tasty snack. So I moved away to this safer place."

Virtues and prayer serve as our armour in the fight against temptations. We must be alert to avoid even minor causes of temptations to sins which are obstacles to a pure and peaceful life. We can gain the power to resist massive temptations if we practise resisting minor temptations of life regularly and constantly with the power of prayer and faith in God's infinite grace. God will grant us the strength to resist temptations.