It never ceases to amaze me how everything happens for a reason and God has it all under control.
I've been asked by one of the Chaplains here to be one of the leaders for a men's study on the book, "Every Man's Battle." This book helped me tremendously back in Sept. '04 when my sexual addiction was broken, and I look forward to helping other men gain the same freedom and victories.
It gives some very solid scriptures on battling lust and impure thoughts as well as setting the standard God desires. That standard is Eph 5:3, "But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people." Not even a hint! That is a very solid standard with very little wiggle room.
Another scripture that helped me tremendously was 2Cor 10:5, "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." That is a scripture I quickly deploy anytime a thought comes to mind that doesn't honor Christ. It has been a very effective Sword in cleaning my mind. Another great one is Phil 4:8.
A devotional that comes along with the study had a line in Thursday's entry, "As history has shown, God will give every man a desert experience to prepare him for his future." It was discussing lots of men from the Bible and their experiences to say that we also will experience a "desert experience" to prepare us for the future God has for us. It just so happens my desert experience is turning out to be spiritual and literal and I'm very glad for both!
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9 comments:
You never cease to amaze me. And that's not a bad thing. I'm surprised by your willingness to talk about such a personal matter especially since in cases like this, the less you say the worse people imagine. I can't say that I've ever personally used the Christian Bible to work out any of my own problems...but after what you said versus what I've been going through emotionally, you did send me running for my Buddhist Bible. :) Thanks. I didn't even really think about tapping into my faith for help...
CT, It truly IS every man's battle! Thank you for your courage and transparency. You are leading me out my comfort zone.
Thanks agian.
Man what are you doing in the military and in Iraq? Shows how out of the loop I am. I move to St.Francisville and lose touch with the rest of the world. Good to hear from you and to hear that you are doing good. Let me know what's up in your world and how you got to where you are. E-mail me when you get some time. timmy.straight@healingplacechurch.org.
Speechie...while I obviously disagree with your source as the best source for help, an increase in faith is never a bad thing b/c it takes focus off of yourself and places it on a higher calling.
Ultimately if you continue to pursue that, my prayer is it leads you to the one Source of all Truth.
Ron...I have no doubt that God intends to use my struggles to help others gain freedom as well which just drives satan insane.
Straight...I'll email you more, but I'm in Iraq as a contractor not in the military, however that might be changing soon. More to come on that in the next few weeks as I get more direction.
Tiger, "all things work together for them that love the Lord.." You see this and so do the people that read this blog. I know it will be easier to hear from a man who himself walked in this bondage but is now walking in freedom through Christ.
Have you ever read Perry Nobles bog? He talks openly about his former addiction to porn and he is a powerful preacher now.
Keep on Keepin' on!
FeatherIron...I had not, but THANKS for the recommendation. His site is awesome. I look forward to going back and reading his posts. As you may have noticed, I've already added him to my links =)
I'm impressed with your candor.
I have little knowledge of these matters, but it seems that the scripture you cite is so broad in its prohibitions that it becomes less useful. No obscenity or even coarse talking, too? Does not seem like a realistic guide to me. Even the most faithful must be wayward by these standards.
HD...Eph 5:3 is the standard we are challenged to meet. There will be times when we slip, but the goal is to continue moving closer to that standard each day.
No obscenity and course talk definitely fall under that standard. For me those were the easiest to overcome. Everyone has different struggles.
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