Defeating Temptations

This is a continuation from my earlier post..discussing some of the practical ways to overcome temptations. This is again an excerpt from Chapter 27 of the Purpose Drive Life by Rick Warren. I encourage you to read the full version if you have the book or let me know if you want a pdf copy of this chapter

You may sometimes feel that your temptations are too much for you to overcome. But that is a lie from Satan. Remember the Bible tells us that we won't be tempted beyond our ability to bear. 1 Cor 10:13. However you need to practice four biblical ways to defeat the temptations from becoming Sin.

Refocus your attention on something else:

Bible does not teach us to resist temptation.. but we should resist the devil. You don't have to fight the thought of your temptation.. rather refocus your attention on something else. The more you think about something stronger it takes hold of you. Temptation gets you by capturing your attention. So don't continue to give your attention to it. Bible tell us to keep our minds focused… " Fix your thoughts on Jesus" Heb 12:1-2. and "Fill your minds with things that are good and that deserve praise: things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely and honorable" Phil 4:8. Remember that this might take a lifetime of practice but with the help of the Holy Spirit you can do it. In a very practical way find other ways to keep yourself and your mind engaged. Things that you do with others.. things that are fun to do like sports.. music.. reading etc..

Reveal your struggle to a godly friend or a support group:

This aspect has been a major help in my own struggles against my temptation. The Bible says that " Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other that you may be healed" James 5:16. Also the song "Healing Begins" by Tenth Avenue North resonates well with me. By sharing it with a Godly friend, you shine light on the darkness that the Satan is haunting you with. The satan will run miles away after you share. Sharing with a friend not only helps you lower you sense of guilt or burden but also provides an opportunity for you to seek help from others in terms of keeping you accountable or suggesting different means to help you. Remember that just by your will power and personal resolutions you cannot defeat the Satan. Because he is gonna try to lower your confidence by speaking more lies to you. I would suggest that if you do not have anybody (atleast one person) in your life who does not know that darkest part of yours that you struggle with.. then I encourage your to pray to God to show you such a brother or a sister. I have seen the power of this in my life and would greatly urge you to do so. But often times one aspect that would come on the way of confessing to others is our pride. Remember the bible says, "God hates the proud and gives grace to the humble" James 4:6. So confessing to an other person is also an act of humility before God. You will realize that, by doing this what you gain (the freedom from the bondage of sin) is much more than what you might lose (your pride).

Resist the Devil:

As I said before.. You don't have to resist the temptation.. but the devil. We are called to fight back the devil. That's why the Bible addresses us as soldiers in the enemy territory. We are called to wear the armor of God. (Eph 6:10-18). There are two important things that we should do in order to resist the enemy..

- First is to accept God's salvation. You won't be able to say 'no' to the devil unless you have said 'yes' to Christ. If you are a believer, satan cannot force you to do evil but can only suggest.

- Next is the Word of God. It is the weapon against the devil. Remember how Jesus when he was tempted by the Satan in the garden, used God's word to defeat him (Luke 4:1-13). You cannot defeat Satan with your own logic or opinion, but only the truth of God. So the key thing is to "MEMORIZE BIBLE VERSES". It is absolutely necessary to defeat the devil. If you don't have any memory verses with you then you have no bullets in your gun! This aspect is so true.. I'm starting to see it's power in my own struggle against my temptations. But have seen it working powerfully in the life's of many other believers also.

Realize your vulnerability:

It is important that we don't get over-confident about our own ability to overcome temptations. Given the right circumstances any of us are capable of sin. So we should always be wise in terms of avoiding the obvious situations that might tempt us and be always prepared with God's assurance of salvation and His word to fight against the enemy.

So in summary.. Temptations are good in a way that they help us grow and mature in Christ. But we should also know that this will happen only as we depend on Christ to resist the devil and not by our own strength. Temptations are meant to humble us and help us grow. The satan's plan for us is to fall through temptations.. but In Christ we can transform it for us to get even closer to God.

I pray that we as a community can continue to grow and mature in Christ.. by dwelling on His word and sharing honestly with each other so that we may defeat the Satan's plans and let God's plans work in our life and our community.