When I was younger, I spent my summers at my grandma's house. She stayed in a little house that had a lot of stray cats that loved to hang around the pouch and in her yard.Well every now and then we would we have a new cat that would come around. It would walk around the yard, scoping out the food that my grandma had thrown out, but would get too close to the porch. It would hang on the side walk or in the drive way for a while because it wasn't comfortable enough to come to on the porch. But when we quit telling it to get away (or just being meddlesome and trying to scare it away), and the more my grandma starting feeding it, it felt more comfortable and before you know, BAM! It had made its way to the stoops on the porch. Just as comfortable as could be. It got to the point where we didn't even make note that it was there.
So, how comfortable is the sin in your life? Do you even recognize what it's doing to you? Y'all see how that cat just made its way to our front porch and stayed there. Do you see how easy it was? Sin is the same way. First it FASCINATES, then it ASSASSINATES. All issues begin with small seeds. It takes a small seed of fornication to give birth to full blown lust. It takes a small seed of curiosity to give birth to full blown homosexuality. It takes one small seed y'all. ONE SEED is all it takes for a root to begin to form in your heart that will eventually start giving birth to full blown SIN.
But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. - James 1:14-15
This verse is one of my favorite verses in describing how sin works. First there is a desire.Once entertained, it takes a fatal root deep in within our hearts and a tree of sin forms; which will lead to death. AND far too often we think that if we just sorta pray it away or just forget about it... that we won't have to struggle with that sin anymore. NO! It's time to stop feeding that tree of sin in your heart!! It's time to stop trying to cover it with a band-aid when you know God needs to operate on it. When a person has cancer, they can't just put on a band-aid and hope to feel better soon! Doctors have to go and remove the tumor before it spreads. Only a trained physician that specializes in cancer can go in and safely remove that damage areas so that healing can begin...
& only the GREAT physician that knows your heart can go in and yank out that cancerous sin so that you can begin to produce life.
Being from the Auburn area, I remember when the Toomer's Oak Trees were poisoned. For a while after it happened, they had specialist monitoring the trees to see if it could produce life. Unfortunately, it didn't and the tree was already dying. Trees that we over 80 years old were killed by just a little poison.
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| toomer's oaks, before they were cut down. |
It time for some of us to POISON the roots of sin in our hearts. Worship is poison to our sin. Yes, worship is toxic. It takes us to another place with God where we become totally undone and he begins to strip us what does not look like him. When you get to another place with God, your appetite changes and you no longer desire the same things you use to once crave. I've see full blown homosexuals, sex addicts, drug addicts, fornicators, etc. turn away from that lifestyle after experiencing the presence of God. The presence of God is so overwhelming. It so power that you're never same once you leave is presence. You're not the same person.
We're talking about eternity. Heaven and Hell. It's time to get serious about overcoming sin and truly living for Christ. Here are some tips that helped me:
1. Repent. Like realllly repent and mean it!!! Tell God how you want to change and turn away from sin.
2. Quit entertaining the sin. You know sex before marriage is wrong. You know it. So why do you continue to let your boyfriend/girlfriend spend the night? Quit opening the door to sin. Stop putting yourself in situations where you could sin. Yes, the bible says that God will provide a way of escape (1 Corinthians 10:13), but for some of y'all that way of escape is not answering the phone when he/she calls.
3. Lose the flesh. Our flesh gets us in a lot of trouble. In fact the bible tells us that if we live by the flesh, we will die. (Romans 8:13)
Stop acting in the flesh, renew your mind and start thinking with your spirit. When you're in a spirit mindset, things are so much more clear.(Romans 12:2)
4. Listen to your convictions. If you're having second thoughts, chances are you just shouldn't be doing it at all. The little voice that's making you rethink it the Holy Spirit. Listen to him and save yourself from lot of trouble.
So I challenge you, wherever you are to die to your flesh, kill that root of sin, and start truly living for Christ. I'm always available if you need me. cfrance05@gmail.com <3.
Love youuuuu,
xoxoxo.
