In the face of our temptations (Henri Nouwen)

  As Jesus was sent by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted, so are we.  It may be that the true quality of the spiritual life can only be recognized in the face of our temptations.

  Three temptations by which we are confronted again and again are the temptation to be relevant, the temptation to be spectacular, and the temptation to be powerful.  All three are temptations to return to the ways of the world of upward mobility and divert us from our mission to reveal Christ to the world.

--Henri Nouwen, The Selfless Way of Christ

Image source:  Duccio di Buoninsegna, Temptation on the Mount (1308-1311), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Duccio_-_The_Temptation_on_the_Mount.jpg