“Choosing A New Lifestyle”

Tuesday, June 05, 2018

Hello, I am the friend in “A Chosen Lifestyle“, and I am writing this as an update/question.  First, I want to say thank you for the advice, and this site is wonderful!  I have made lots of progress thanks to God's grace, and I am trying hard to repent; however, I am still struggling to some extent.  Although I am reading my Bible almost every day and asking God for His grace to give me a new mindset and a healthy christian life, I’m still having to deal with this terrible thing.  I know I’m beating this slowly but surely, but it’s very hard and troubling.  I was just wondering if you had any advice on beating the devil and his temptations.  Thank you so much!  God bless!!

Sincerely,
Turning The Tide

Dear Turning The Tide,

Words cannot express how happy we are for you and how proud we are that you are fighting this addiction!  Thank you so much for giving us an update.  Aside from the verses that we already mentioned in “A Chosen Lifestyle Pt. 2”, here are some other verses to consider.

When a sin becomes so entrenched in your life that you are enslaved to it (Jhn 8:34), you are dealing with an addiction.  Addictions are formed by habits, and habits are formed by repeatedly making the same choices.  James describes this process in Jas 1:13-15.  All sins begin with a mental decision.  If you want to remove an addiction, isolate the choices that are putting you in the position to commit that sin.  If you change the environment and circumstances that lead you to a sin, you change the future playing field.

We are also told that a powerful tool in defeating sin is confessing our sins to one another (Jas 5:16).  Sin likes to be kept secret (Jhn 3:20), and bringing it to light by making it public goes a long way in defeating habitual sin.  A very popular way of getting this sort of accountability is by using accountability software that forwards your browsing history to a friend or trusted individual.  Companies like x3watch and CovenantEyes make accountability software, and many struggling pornography addicts have found it to make a huge difference.  If you want to defeat sin, you must expose it.  Confess your sin to others, and you will begin to see change.

Assemble with a faithful church (Heb 10:24-25).  If you read our posts regularly, you have probably already seen that many churches aren’t biblically sound.  Read “Down With Denominationalism” for some insight into the religious confusion of America.  If you aren’t already a part of a congregation that follows the Bible pattern, we would be happy to help you find one.  There is no greater help to our spiritual growth than to be stimulated and encouraged by people of like-precious faith.  There is strength in numbers (Eccl 4:12).

And last, but not least - don’t give up.  A righteous man falls, but he keeps getting back up (Pr 24:16).  A failure doesn’t become permanent until you let it.  Keep trying.  Congratulations on your current successes, and we pray for many more victories on your behalf.

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