The Best Way to Defeat Temptation
Paul told the brothers in Corinth to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Pushing every unwanted and impure thought out of our brains is essential to live a life worth living. The person who plays with fire will get burned. We cannot accept impure thoughts as normal. The sparks of temptation must be extinguished immediately before they grow into a raging, uncontrollable fire.
How could I get rid of all of those obscene thoughts that hounded me day and night? I had to focus my mind on good things. For instance when a thought about a woman wearing a mini skirt or a low-cut blouse popped into my head, I would immediately begin to recite a Bible passage I had memorized or sing a song of praise to the Lord. Of course this took dedication and practice, but over time I developed new habits. I found I could quickly push lustful thoughts out of my mind by refocusing my thoughts on something wholesome and productive. As I learned to dwell on healthy thoughts, I discovered it was quite possible to win the battle against those lusty images that attempted to take control of my mind. The apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit gave this advice to the Philippians:
Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report: if there is any virtue and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Philippians 4:8
Motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar urged people to get rid of “stinking thinking”. The best way to push all ungodly thoughts from our brains is to replace them with thoughts which are pure, true, noble, admirable, and excellent. Our primary battleground in the war against this plague (or any undesirable practice), lies in what we choose to dwell on, what we allow to occupy the space between our ears. We must drive out what displeases God and harms us by allowing God to fill our minds with only the best.
In 1427 Thomas A. Kempis wrote the following inThe Imitation of Christ:
“Above all, we must be especially alert against the beginnings of temptation, for the enemy is more easily conquered if he is refused admittance to the mind and is met beyond the threshold when he knocks. First, a mere thought comes to mind, then strong imagination, followed by pleasure, evil delight, and consent. Thus, because he is not resisted in the beginning, Satan gains full entry. And the longer a man delays in resisting, so much the weaker does he become each day, while the strength of the enemy grows against him.”
This has certainly been true in my life. When I resist temptations right off the bat, I do just fine. But if I give in just a hair, leave the door ajar just a fraction of an inch, it soon becomes almost impossible not to yield. My best strategy (really the only strategy that works) is to avoid every impure thought and to stay as far away from the slippery slope as possible.
Filthy or impure thoughts cannot be toyed with. Only a fool tries to see how close he can get to the edge of the slippery slope before sliding down all the way to the bottom. The best way to head off feelings of lust is to nip them in the bud. Act quickly, vigorously, and decisively. Be radical.
If I aim at only avoiding the really bad stuff, but remain content to allow my mind to dwell on “normal” provocative thoughts, I will never find freedom. The beast of lust must be starved to death. I cannot continue to ogle women, look at promiscuous photos, or coddle impure images in my mind and hope to find freedom.
Our goal must be to eliminate every sexually impure thought. As Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus:
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.
Ephesians 5:3
If I asked you to stop a mighty river from flowing, you would find it impossible. But follow that same river up to its source, where a little spring comes bubbling up out of the ground and try to stop it now—much easier.
In the book Song of Solomon, verse 2:15 it is written:
Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom.
The only way to develop clean and healthy thoughts is to ruthlessly eliminate every impure thought. This means changing the channel on the TV and turning off the computer or my smartphone whenever I’m feeling vulnerable to lust. It means looking away and not looking back a second time when I am tempted to lust after a woman I see walking by.
By avoiding the “little foxes”, things that most people would consider perfectly normal and okay, it is possible to avoid the slippery slope which leads to the slimy pit of sin. Of course, temptations will appear, but with God’s help, it is possible to quickly switch my thoughts to other things – good and helpful things.
Thank God I’ve learned that change is possible, even for someone like me who kept making the same mistakes, over and over again, for decades.
What am I going to allow into my mind? Focusing my thoughts on good things by listening to Christian music, memorizing Bible verses, or just thinking about happy moments with my family is always a wise decision.
The instant an unwanted or unhealthy thought appears in my head, I force it out by choosing to think about something noble and true. This was extremely difficult for me in those first days and weeks. After years of allowing my mind to dwell on those pictures, deep ruts had burrowed into my brain. By working diligently at immediately controlling my thoughts, I slowly began to receive a great blessing from the Lord: I got my mind back! Those impure thoughts that had tortured me night and day slowly began to recede into the background, and I found hope for a new life and a new way of being.
Paul gave this advice to the young evangelist, Timothy:
Flee from youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
2 Timothy 2:22
In regard to sin and seeking God, rigid rules and radical thinking are almost always our best course of action. In his book, The Purity Principle (pg. 53), Randy Alcorn puts it this way:
“When it comes to sexual temptation, it pays to be a coward. He who hesitates (and rationalizes) is lost. He who runs, lives.”
This strategy of quickly and ruthlessly throwing certain thoughts in the trash and instantly replacing them with beautiful, worthwhile ideas has served me well. Like a kid learning to ride a bike, I fell down many times. But I would just dust off my pants and get back on my bike and start pedaling again. At the time it seemed like an endless task, and sometimes, it felt like I would never make it. But I just kept plodding forward. With God’s grace and mercy, I fought each battle in an attempt to win the war, and He helped me every step of the way.
The New Century Version translates Proverbs 4.23 like this: “Be careful what you think because your thoughts run your life.”
Begin your new life today! The Lord is more than happy to help you become the person he always intended you to be.
Find more help in my book: Jesus Is Better Than Porn
