My heart aches for some of my brothers and sisters:
Last night as I lay in bed, I was being tempted by some pretty strong lustful thoughts. But you know, I was also pretty easily deflecting every temptation. Do you know why? It's because God gave me a revelation of His grace in 2009 that has become a shield to me. I will share more on that in a minute.
As I lay there, I remembered how I used to struggle. Those kind of temptations would easily set me ablaze before and pornography would soon follow. I thought about other people who don't know about God's grace and my heart ached. Some people are so vulnerable to temptation just like I once was.
Do you know how I overcome temptation? I don't fight the temptation. I focus on Jesus. How did Peter walk on the water? By trying to keep his balance? Yea right! No amount of effort could keep Peter on the water. It was all Jesus' power. Peter's fight was to believe.
So what do I believe about Jesus?
Well, it's simple. In 2009, God showed me that I trusted in my own strength. Moreover, I believed God wanted me to. I thought putting out my own effort glorified God. Faith is what glorifies God. Only when we do things by God's strength is God glorified in the end. Think of Peter again. If he had tried to exert himself to stay on the water, would it have worked? God didn't put that weight on his shoulders to do something in his own power that he had no ability to do.
So, abba Father showed me that He wasn't putting any weight on my shoulders to overcome the power of lust. He put it on His Son's shoulders at the Cross. You know, it's funny. I used to hear people saying things like, "You need to take up your cross!" or "You need to deny yourself!" And somehow I interpreted that to mean I need to rely on my own effort to really honor God. But a man who relies on his own strength has no yet denied himself.
So, when I learned that no amount of will power or effort to obey would in itself break the power of sin, but rather, what Jesus did on the Cross, I simply started to trust Jesus and not myself.
And you know what? I *immediately* experienced the life and power of the Holy Spirit. Oh! I will praise God forever! You will see me there, standing before His throne glorifying His name forever and ever! When I experienced the Spirit's life, the temptation broke off like it was nothing. Do you know why? Because temptation is nothing to God!
In 2009, I learned what it means to live *through* Jesus Christ. It's His life, not my own, by which I live. A branch does not rely on a branch. It relies on the vine. The vine gives it what it does not have on its own. Living through Him is to trust in Him. To trust in Him is to look to Him. To look to Him is to be transformed.
How great is our God! I will lift Him up and not myself! I will glorify His righteousness and His strength! I will praise Him forever and ever.
Trust in Him, you His saints! Trust in Him!