He exhaled heavily, the warm air condensing into a dissipating fog. The morning had suddenly become frosty after the season's first big cold front. He remembered the lyrics to George Strait's "Chill of An Early Fall" as he walked into the church foyer. His stomach turned another somersault as he saw his friend's name on the office door. They had been to seminary together twenty-two years ago and had enjoyed pastorships in the same town just out of school.
The chair he sat in seemed quite a bit lower than his friend's on the other side of the desk. For more than twenty years he had provided the service of marriage counseling, but never before had he been on this side of the desk. He could feel his hands sweating, yet still felt chilled.
His long time friend broke the ice, "Take your time. Start from the beginning."
Embarrassed, he shifted in his chair. "It all happened so quickly. She was a close friend of ours. Her husband had quit coming to the counseling sessions, but she kept attending alone. One thing led to another. I just never thought it would happen to me...."
Guest speaker Dave B. provided some sound insights in dealing with lust. Lust may be the most powerful deception Satan uses today. It is manifested in different forms such as desires for material goods, power, money, etc., but is most commonly addressed as "excessive sexual desire, especially as seeking unrestrained gratification". (Webster Dictionary) A similar word relating to lust is "libidinous"- having a root word of "libido", meaning a "driving force behind all human action".
So you might say lust emerges from roots of natural human attraction for the opposite sex. Other sins are fairly black and white morally, such as murder, but lust stems from the abuse of natural desires intended to develop love and intimacy in a monogamous relationship. Although women can also struggle with lust, it is predominantly a men's issue. Unfortunately, lust can destroy, from within, fellowship with God and discourage us in our spiritual walks. If left unrestrained, can lead to broken relationships and an alienation from God.
The Bible describes lust as being from the world and not a product of God. Jesus warns in Matthew 5: 27-28, "You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." To many, these verses carry little weight in our minds because we see no harm in "just looking", but the scripture is clear as to the levity of the meaning to God.
Many large trees begin as small seeds. In the same way, lust starts small with an occasional glance, but can grow to a powerful, overmastering motivator. James 4: 1-2 describes lust as the starting point for more sins. As we want more and more, we are willing to go farther and farther to be satisfied.
The reason lust grows in power is explained in Ephesians 4: 19, "Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more." The New American Standard version uses the words "becoming callous" for "lost all sensitivity". If we continually allow lust to fester inside us, we become more and more "callous", needing something new and exciting or even more in quantity. In this way, it has similar traits to a drug addiction. Proverbs 7 depicts our following down the path of lust and foretells the result as being "sudden and destructive".
So how do we fight against such a deceptive sin, rooted in natural desires? We can know what God wants: "It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality." (I Thes. 4:3) How do we abstain from sexual immorality? "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me- put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." (Phil. 4: 8-9) This is a promise from God, that if we "practice" these things, "the God of peace shall be with us".
We should consider adopting this theme verse in conquering lust: "How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." (Psalm 119: 9-11) Write this verse on a card and keep it with you. When you feel the lust surfacing, pull out the card and read it. We must be committed to fighting lust for the duration of our lives by practicing the act of having pure thoughts and putting scripture to memory. It is our duty from God to apply these practical strategies to overcome lust and attain peace in knowing that God himself is walking with us. To God be the glory.
He exhaled heavily, the warm air condensing into a dissipating fog. The morning had suddenly become frosty after the season's first big cold front. He remembered the lyrics to George Strait's "Chill of An Early Fall" as he walked into the church foyer. His stomach turned another somersault as he saw his friend's name on the office door. They had been to seminary together twenty-two years ago and had enjoyed pastorships in the same town just out of school.