The company. 1
Corinthians 15:33 “Bad company corrupts
good morals.” Company that cracks sensual jokes should be ejected from your
life beloved. Stop hanging around people that celebrate your struggles.
As far as these four areas are
concerned, Christ says-Ephesians 5:3 “But
among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of greed,
because these are improper for God’s holy people.”
But it is not enough to NOT do
these things. You must also fill your mind with the right things. For darkness
to flee, you must light a candle. So here is the light:
Good viewing: Invest in clean entertainment
Good listening: I
strongly suggest that for a believer, clean music is not enough, but
spiritually building music.
Good reading: The
world of building literature is enormous. I shamelessly market myself and say
begin with THE HUMAN TEMPLE by Yours Truly! (See top right side of page)
Good company:
Our company gives instruction to our ears and eyes which give instruction to
our mind. May the instruction build!
4) Start a Media Fast
Take a fast from online social media,
television, radio and literature. Spend that time in prayer. Starve the lust
and build the spirit man. It is as if there are two dogs within you-one of
lust, the other of Godliness. The one you feed more gains presence, prominence
and preeminence. Start training to feed the right dog through a fast to starve
the lust. In that time, spend time building the fallen dog. Feed him and
empower him for future battles because I assure you, the struggle of lust will
face you as it does every man.
5) Don’t punish yourself
If you fall, don’t be hard on yourself,
beloved. Rise up! As you rise, remember:
1 Corinthians 10:13 “But remember that the temptations that come
into your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful.
He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can't stand up
against it. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you will
not give in to it.”
Memorize that verse and understand that
as long as you are in Christ, you always have the power. He has infinite grace when
we fall and where the sin abounds, his grace abounds more to keep us from
falling.
Jude 24-25 To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before
his glorious presence without fault and with great joy-- to the only God our
Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord,
before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen
Once we stand, glory to him alone!
6) Stay healthy
When your body is out of sorts, your
mind is weakened and so is your will power. Drink lots of water, eat healthy,
and exercise beloved. Exercise has been known to decrease depression and keep
one’s mind alert.
7) Be productive
I fold origami when I am free. The old adage that an
idle mind is the devil’s workshop is quite right. Your free time should not be
spent on Facebook or Twitter. It should be spent doing a constructive task.
Many people whom I have talked to in the rut of masturbation have too much free
time on their hands. Occupy that time with a productive activity. If you start
wallowing in the self-pity of “poor me, I have no gifts,” you can sit back,
relax and enjoy your time being used by something you can’t control. Be a good
steward of your time, beloved.
8) Read, meditate, memorize, study and hear THE WORD OF GOD
If you fail to do this, you might as
well forget about number 1-7 because you will be discouraged by failure. In the
armour of God in Ephesians 6, the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of
God, is the only offensive weapon for the believer. A sword is not a weapon for
every Tom, Dick and Gregory. A sword is a weapon for a person with skill. One
who has mastered the art of swordsmanship. The WORD OF GOD is your sword. Do
you have skill with this sword? Or do you wield it aimlessly.
Read the word of God because your life
will be blessed when you read, listen and obey (Revelation 1:3)
Meditate on the word of God because you
will always be fruitful even in days of drought (Psalm 1)
Memorize the word of God because it will
keep sin at bay and help you be pure. (Psalm 119:9-11)
Study the word of God because you will know
the truth from the lies (Acts 17:11)
Hear the word of God from seasoned men
and women in the faith because it will build your faith (Romans 10:17)
Now that you know these things