What is your most beloved vice?
You know… that one bad activity that you just can’t seem to stop… no matter how hard you try?
Whether it’s impatience, over-eating, lack of exercise, procrastination, or any other bad habit – one thing is for certain:
Humans (like you and me) can be our own worst enemy.
The problem is, we LOVE it. And the other problem?
Well… that’s easy: We also HATE it.
You and I call them ‘vices’ for a reason. They aren’t good/healthy things. They don’t affect our lives positively, and can usually be identified as fierce enemies of our physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual health.
In the life of a Christian, that usually means those things are sins.
Simply put, we wouldn’t be identifying them as something we ‘shouldn’t do’ – if the Holy Spirit wasn’t doing a bit of convicting – most likely.
At least, that is my experience – but always be sure to search the scriptures and pray for an answer (don’t take my word for it – take God’s word for it!).
Anyway, I have a bit of experience with these things… because…
I’m Familiar With Sin…
But before I talk about my sins, I’d like to give you a small reminder. I am not ashamed of my past because God takes what the enemy meant for evil and turns it for good.
And in so doing, He shows His glory through our weakness – because HE DELIVERED ME.
He delivered me from alcoholism that almost killed me, from intravenous use of hard drugs, from smoking cigarettes, from sexual immorality, and from becoming a complete waste of potential – a complete waste of God’s intended purpose for my life.
My addiction had led me to years of homelessness and, eventually, highly dangerous criminal activity. My own foolishness from a young age resulted in serious compromises to the fortitude of my vitality, and I am certain the only reason I can write this today is by His grace.
And God didn’t stop at my redemption… but instead delivered me into a great career. He mended my broken relationship and brought me into a marriage of purity under Him, He mended my broken heart, and He did it all from the riches of His mercy.
All of what He did was for His glory – but my testimony is for another time.
I shared this because, through all these experiences – I can attest to the fact that:
WITH GOD, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!
My wife and I are living, breathing examples of God’s miraculous power, and I want to share with you a couple of things that might help you in your walk.
Now, I realize you’re problems/vices might not be the same as mine were (or maybe they are), but I assure you that nothing is too big – or too small – for our God.
You see, when Jesus went to the cross for us, He went there to break the chains of sin and death for all of us. He broke us free from our inevitable sentence to death and made it possible for us to access God again in this life.
We are so blessed! But let’s not minimize God’s gift to us…
We Are Free From Hell… BUT… We Are ALSO Free From Sin In This Life…
When you invited Jesus into your heart and the Holy Spirit entered, you were forgiven of all sins and given access to the Father through the blood of Jesus.
Something happens at that point, and while no one but God truly understands His entire plan, He does reveal to us some important information.
One thing is that, if He starts a work in you – He will complete it (Philippians 1:6).
He is going to purify us until we see Him through the process of sanctification.
“Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” – Thessalonians 5:23.
We can have absolute faith that this is true (no matter what things look like), and that faith and reliance on Him is what will bring us out of our sin.
Like children, we piggy-back across the torrents of struggle, hanging on tightly to Jesus – on who’s back we are grasping – and like Peter walking on water, we don’t look down…
And we strive not to be like Lot’s wife when they left Sodom – we never look back.
When we are redeemed, we put aside the flesh (which is dead in sin), we pick up our cross and follow Him with a pure spirit. The devil can try to distract you, but that’s all he can do.
Satan no longer has power over you, but he is a master of illusions. The devil will surround you with mirages of your past, he will try to fill your head with memories, and he will try to stop you from success by using shame.
But God has broken all your chains. Jesus has already done the deed. On the cross, it was done, when He said, “It is finished.”
You just keep your eyes focused on Jesus, and you keep taking one step at a time. Never take your eyes off of Him. Bury your eyes in His word. Seek Him with all of your heart, mind, body, and soul.
Remember that your body is now His temple. You are the dwelling place of the Lord. Envision your life without sin. What WILL it be like?
Now, in faith – CLAIM that freedom in Jesus name!
Rely on Him when it’s tough. Accept His grace when you fall, but persist to stop falling – so that you don’t become insensitive to His spirit and end up with a corrupt conscience.
When you are struggling, whatever sin you are trying to defeat – just remember:
It’s not about what you can do… It’s about what He already did FOR you…
You just have to accept it and believe. You have to put Him in the rightful place in your heart. Seek Him first.
A couple of things that helped us when we were struggling:
- Imagine life on the other side of this struggle. Envision all the benefits of a new life that is perfectly pleasing to your God. Think of His eternity of blessings and let that minimize the short-term allure of sin at this moment.
- Think about the consequences of your sin – NOT the initial act of sin. That first moment of our sin is the part that feels good. If you focus on not doing that, you will probably just end up doing it because the subconscious mind cannot accept negative commands. Instead, you have to replace those pleasurable thoughts with the regrets you remember feeling afterward. What are the negative emotions you feel later? Focus on them instead.
- Pray, pray, pray, and pray some more. When you shift your focus onto Him, He sustains you. It is hard to turn to sin when you realize that He is right there with you. He is in the room, right there. He is in YOU…. right there. There is no escaping it.
- Imagine Jesus is sitting right beside you. You don’t really have to imagine this… He actually is! When we sin, we usually ignore this fact – but it doesn’t change that it’s true… A little hard to stomach, huh? And He still loves us!
- Read, read, read, and read some more. Bury yourself in the life-giving words of the Bible. You can derive so much strength from His word.
- Talk to friends who are founded in God. If you are having a hard time doing this on your own (most people do), use peer support systems. Many of us need accountability partners to work with us, which can be very rewarding because God did intend for us to work this way. We are supposed to support one another in the church because we are all members of one body. When even the least of the members suffers, the whole church suffers – so be sure to seek help and encouragement when you need it.
The thing is, this might sound terrible to someone who is living in sin. It probably sounds like utter foolishness. “Why would anyone suffer this way?” An unbeliever might wonder.
The reality (which I now know from experience), is that a life with God is not limiting. Instead, it is absolute freedom! I was enslaved to those things, and they did nothing to benefit my life… not even here on earth!
I’m an infinite amount better for it when Jesus takes away my sins. It leads to a life of fulfillment, health, peace, and confidence!
If you have a hard time…
Just remember to keep getting back up. A righteous man falls seven times but rises again (Proverbs 24:16). He will get you through it if you rely completely on Him!
Pray with me:
Jesus, I want to thank you for saving me. Thank you for the riches of your grace. Thank you for loving me and forming my soul before the foundations of the earth were laid.
When you formed my being, you had a purpose in mind for me – but I know I can’t reach that purpose if I don’t learn to live in obedience to you.
Help me to see the areas where you need me to obey. Reveal to me, through Your Spirit, the things which must change for me to please You.
I want You to come first in my life, Lord. Help me to seek You persistently, to walk in all Your ways, and to hold fast to You. Sanctify me through your Spirit, and provide me strength when I am weak…
Because I know I can’t do this without You. I surrender my will to Yours, to serve You with all that I am. Thank You for the blessed assurance we have in You, Jesus!
In Your Holy Name, Jesus… Amen!
P.S. I really hope this helped you out. Please, take a moment to subscribe to the newsletter if you enjoyed this. To do that, click here.
