Make A Choice

"But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.  Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death."

James 1:14-15

When we fall into temptation, that ultimately leads to destruction in our lives, we so easily blame everything and everyone around us.  When things don't go our way, it is normal for us to point the finger as someone else, or something else to blame.  Our culture is filled with finger pointing.  A very common example of this is in a difficult marriage.  Almost every time one party only wants to primarily tell you what the other person is doing wrong.  And they always believe that if the other person would just change something then the marriage would be good.  Rarely, do we look inward when we see the signs of sinful behavior in our lives.  The root of the problem is our hearts and our own evil desires.  Jeremiah 17:9 tells us "the heart is deceitful above all things".  So the sin and despair we see in our lives, can all be drawn back to the evil that is in our hearts.  It is our own thoughts and desires, and ACTING upon those that causes us to fall into the temptation of sin.  This ultimately leads to consequences in our lives that shape habits and become our character that people see.   But, it is important to realize that our sin ALWAYS starts with our own desires.  Therefore, we have to have a game plan.  Life is full of choices and decisions.  We get pulled in so many directions throughout our day, and often don't have time to think.  If we are not careful, this leads to a reactive life.  We will then always be reacting to situations instead of being proactive.  When we live a life always reacting to our circumstances, it is much easier for us to be deceived by Satan and fall into temptation, that leads to depression, despair, and death.  Knowing these things we must live a proactive life.  We must be proactive in knowing that our sinful desires lead us to sin, and that we must be mindful to make a choice each day, to be Spirit led, and not follow our own sinful desires.  Certainly this is a spiritual discipline that takes lots of practice and godly encouragement from others.  In order to have victory over sinful desires and thoughts, we need to make a conscious decision each day to follow the Lord.  It is wise to pray each morning, pray to God to help us commit our thoughts to Him, the work of our hands to Him, and all of our actions to Him and for His purposes.  Remember today that sin starts with us.  It is a decision we either make or don't make.  And remember that God always give us a way to flee from the sin in our lives (1Cor. 10:13).  Be encouraged today that this is a spiritual discipline that takes help and takes practice.  Focus your desires on the Lord today and be blessed!  Love you all!  Praying for you and yours!  Have a blessed day, it's your choice!