August 6
“For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.” (James 3:2)
We all sin and stumble in many ways. We all have blind spots and besetting weaknesses that seem to return time and again. We can muster up self-control and determination from our own persons and make good progress for a good amount of time. But I am concerned about the long term success, the lifetime victory. I am discouraged by years or even decades of progress which are followed by relapses into old sins. Praise God for the success, but how unfortunate are the setbacks! I want God do deal with me from the very core and foundation of my being, my heart, mind, soul, and spirit, and change me in ways that enable me to never go back to sin again.
Have you ever felt that on the outside you were doing okay in overcoming temptation, but that deep down your struggle almost felt hopeless, because you knew there was a weakness, a desire for sin lurking under the surface that you were afraid might reveal itself one day and make you and many others stumble and tarnish the Name of our Beloved Savior? This is what we need to be going after. And this takes an intense desire to be made pure to the very core of our being, no matter what the cost. Do you desire His righteousness that much, to ask God to cleanse you from all sin no matter what the cost? I have prayed that prayer, and I will tell you that that is a prayer that I think God loves to answer. But be warned, it may cost you much more than you bargained for, but the result is “the peaceful fruit of righteousness” and greater fellowship with Him, and it is SO worth it!
Only He can make a wild tumbleweed that is accustomed to rolling here and there with the whims of the flesh take deep root and become capable of bearing sweet and holy fruit worthy of Him! Only He can develop in me the qualities of righteousness and holiness that will keep me from sin. And no matter how I struggle or how I fail, I will never stop praying to Him, seeking Him, and asking Him to produce these qualities in me.
If you want to change deeply and permanently, you must take very seriously your prayer time and your time in the scriptures. They must be to you not casual or optional but essential and vital to life itself. Spending time seriously applying yourself to prayer and Bible study must be similar to an athlete competing for the Olympics. But we can never rest in this discipline, and it must continue to be as long as we live, and we can never think that we have arrived or have matured to the point where we don’t need it anymore. Humility and an awareness of our utter dependence on Him for victory and success, each and every day, along with diligence and discipline in prayer and study, are the key.
Therefore, prayer, consistent, daily, focused, earnest, and determined prayer, accompanied by mountain-moving, spot-changing faith, is the first discipline I would recommend you develop. Write down what you want God to change in you, which principle you want to develop as the highest priority, and discipline yourself to pray for that every single day at least one. If need be, make an agreement with yourself to not eat any food until you have prayed through your prayer list. Force yourself to be diligent in that one thing at first, prayer, and pray for diligence and the ability to change in other areas as well. Name those areas, and keep praying. You will see results over time if you stick to this.
Then make a point to study the scriptures daily. Don’t just read or skim but also study and dig. Meditate and think. Ponder and memorize. Apply the things we talked about at length earlier in the year related to spending time in the Word. Make quality time for these things and make them a continual habit in your life, and you will see progress in overcoming temptation and in every other area of you life that you never before imagined possible. God guarantees it! (Psalm 1, John 15:7)