Life presents all sorts of opportunities and choices for us, whether we are consciously cognizant of them or not. Not too surprisingly, some of those opportunities and choices, are not things that are we should give in to, for the consequences though often times not immediate, are negative in their ultimate outcome, so that, having made that choice, we suffer for having made a poor one. So too, it is necessary to recognize that in order to truly measure a man, one needs to test that man, for many a person believes that they are faithful when they are not, or believes that they are strong when they really are not, or believes that they are better than thou when surely they are not. Therefore, some of the tests that we take in life, are in fact, to prove what type of man that we really are, for words are one thing, especially lofty words, and actions are the proof of whether those words have real meaning, and those that talk a good game, but fall short, are held more accountable, than those that are rather more humble about it, while also falling short.
Whenever we are tempted by something that we know has no good upside, the choice would if we are rational, be rather straightforward, but within mankind, there are innate traits, inclinations, and habits that some are able to master and some are not. For instance, very young children are known for their need for instant gratification, for they really do need food or drink or comfort or to go to the bathroom, and are not shy in expressing such, but as adults we need to overcome some basic temptations, especially when we have been taught better and we do know better. That is to say, as adults, the most common temptations actually align very closely with the most deadly sins which are: lust, pride, covetousness, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth. This would surely indicate that we should be well familiar with these deadly sins for these are indeed the ingredients of the temptations that we will have to face up to in this world.
In order to be a master of anything, not only must you consciously know well your craft, you must be able to perform it well on a consistent basis, as well as being able to perform competently under the most trying of circumstances, along with having the discernment to cast aside things and barriers that get in your way while performing such focused work. All these are the qualities of a master craftsman, so that, we should expect, that on a good day, all will go well, but on a poor day, that we would still be able to persevere and overcome obstacles in our way, in order to demonstrate in action that we are not just a "fair weather" worker.
The temptations that we face in life may be expected or unexpected, but temptations will come, and those that are able to overcome such, are those that then become the pillars of bright light in the house of our Lord, for God accepts nothing less than the attributes of what makes for the eternal music of harmony which are: love, humility, kindness, courage, chastity, patience, and diligence. Therefore those that face temptation and overcome such have taken hold of that opportunity to prove themselves worthy students of good faith, deserving then of all the nourishing fruits for their loyal labor.