Your definition of ‘messy’ is probably different from mine but for me, a strong theme is a predilection for certain habits that feed the old sinful nature and ultimately, stunt my spiritual growth in Christ. Today, I want to use my messy story to encourage those who are weary from their fight against the ‘old man’ and are seeking God’s strength to overcome.

I was a bookworm from a very young age but somewhere in my teens, I discovered certain books in my local library that I really had no business reading. But I wouldn’t be denied the illicit thrill they gave me and so I’d borrow them without my parents’ knowledge making sure they were well hidden when I got home. You may think, “well, it’s just reading, that’s not bad”.

But what we consume matters; whether physically or otherwise and it plays a great role in shaping us. Because the natural next step when books were not enough to satisfy my curiosity was the internet. Not only was I born and raised in a household of faith, I’m also a pastor’s daughter and so I had no doubt that my reading and viewing choices were contrary to the will of God. I knew better but couldn’t do better. I had let my guard down and the enemy had gained a foothold.

My disobedience triggered a seemingly neverending toxic cycle of sin (poor choices in what I read and watched), shame and blame that lasted years.

Try as I may, I couldn’t break free from it. But it wasn’t for lack of trying.

Or praying.

I felt as if I should have sufficient self-control and be able to stop this. After all, I was saved. I had given my life to Christ. I believed and trusted in him. Yet, I kept falling. The spells between the falls were sometimes long but somehow it seemed inevitable that I’d fall. There were times when I became resigned and stopped trying. Instead, I put on a garment of wilful disobedience, indulging my flesh.

Until grace found me.

Regardless of whether you’ve told another living soul or not, we all have something we struggle with. It could be addiction(s) of some sort, certain thought patterns, gossip, anger, etc. These weaknesses trip us up on a constant basis and can leave you feeling beaten down and trapped. As if you’re doomed to repeat the same mistakes over and over again.

Despite all my trying for years, nothing worked until I came to a point where I realised I couldn’t do it without total reliance on God and letting Him change me how He wants to. I couldn’t do it in my own power. It sounds overly simple to say that but it has taken the strength of God for me to overcome and stay victorious.

I’d like to share some of the lessons that I’ve learnt along the way. I hope they help you as you seek for strength to resist the devil and his wiles.

#Encouragement for those who are weary from their fight against the 'old man' and are seeking God's strength to #overcome. Share on X

Refuse to live in habitual sin

One of my main sources of concern over the years when I was still plagued by this weakness, was the scripture that says, “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God” (1 John 3:9 NIV)

For years, I felt condemned by this verse. I knew I was born of God but yet I couldn’t stop. Did that mean I wasn’t truly saved? But then one day in my quest to really understand better, I came across this explanation in a commentary,

“So it is utterly incompatible for a new creation in Christ to be comfortable in habitual sin; such a place can only be temporary for the Christian”.¹

In that instant, the Lord opened my eyes to see that I wasn’t “comfortable in habitual sin”. If I had been, I wouldn’t have been so bothered and tried so desperately to stop.

Friend, whatever it is you’re struggling with, you first have to get to a place where you are uncomfortable in your sin and refuse to live there anymore. Otherwise, there can be no real change.

Strip off all pretenses, come as you are

Secondly, if you’re not already at this point yet, you must realise that you don’t “got this”. You cannot do it yourself. It’s in human nature to try and solve our problems ourselves. But it’s not until we reach the end of ourselves that we can access His fullness.

Matthew 5:3 (MSG), “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule”.

Another translation of the above verse says,

“Blessed [spiritually prosperous, happy, to be admired] are the poor in spirit [those devoid of spiritual arrogance, those who regard themselves as insignificant], for theirs is the kingdom of heaven [both now and forever]”. (Matthew 5:3 AMP)

I didn’t start to live victoriously until I reached a point where all my layers were stripped off and all subconscious pretenses peeled back.

In hindsight, I can see that for a very long time, I had been trying to fix my mess myself before I came to God. Subconsciously, I felt I wasn’t good enough to throw myself on Him. But the Lord in His infinite wisdom allowed me to get to a point where I no longer had faith in my abilities or human thinking. At that point, I took it one day at a time and I simply came to God everyday acknowledging that I was broken and empty but that I wanted to be filled and I wanted to hear from Him something that would help me and/or whatever He chose to tell me that day.

Lean in, Don’t tough it out

Whenever I felt those old stirrings – instead of toughing it out or trying distractions (all of these rely on my strength) – the first thing I did was remind myself who I am in Christ. I memorized 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV) and repeated it out loud or in my head as the circumstances may allow,

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

And then I proceed to name those old things that have passed away in the name of Jesus. In so doing, I deliberately lean in to the Lord. Sometimes, I have bad days where it feels like I’m walking a fine line and could easily stray over the line – on those days, this memory verse is a lifeline. One that I’m very grateful for and I end up repeating it A LOT.

Another scripture verse that I keep in my arsenal is 2 Timothy 1:7 (AMP):

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control]”.

I personalise this verse by inserting the name of what I struggle with and claim God’s power over it. Feel free to use the above verses as well.

Remain on your guard

Over the years, I’ve learnt that when I feel the most ‘secure’ is when I should be more careful so that “when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand” (Ephesians 6:13; NIV). This means I remain on guard at all times because I know that the enemy is only gone for a while.

“When the devil had finished every temptation, he [temporarily] left Him until a more opportune time”. (Luke 4:13 AMP)

I said earlier that what you consume matters and so in the in-between times, I don’t slack on my communion with God. If you’re honest with yourself, you know what your triggers are. Don’t stray out of the bounds of His freedom by filling up on the things of this world that will cause you to stray. That may be certain friends, places, things you watch, read, or hear, etc. Instead, renew your mind daily through prayer and with His word. Your victory depends on it. He is the true source of your strength to resist the devil and have him flee (James 4:7).

Don't stray out of the bounds of God's freedom by filling up on the things of this world that will cause you to stray. Renew your mind daily through prayer and with His word. Strategies to #overcometemptation Share on X

Give yourself grace

You may wonder how this last point gives you strength to fight against temptation. Well, I’m realistic enough to know that you may have times that you slip again in those early days. If the unthinkable happens, you have to give yourself grace. We are often our own worst critics and wallowing in guilt and the accompanying self-loathing can not only sap your strength, it can stop you from getting up again.

It took me a while to really understand the love of God. That concept of unconditional love didn’t really sink in for a long time. I always knew I couldn’t earn His love but I tried so hard to keep it. And so every time I slipped, I’d “hide” out of guilt (not unlike Adam and Eve) and move farther away from God. This was of course playing into the enemy’s hand.

Jesus came for the messy. Just writing that sentence lights me up inside. The bible says, “But God clearly shows and proves His own love for us, by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8 AMP).

He loved us even when we were covered in muck! Remember that sheep that went missing in Matthew 18:12-4? That was me and you. The Lord hunted us down even though we were lost and He will keep doing so because His banner over us is love and it is not God’s will that any of us be lost (John 6:39). Do not buy into the enemy’s lies of condemnation. Don’t give up.

Jesus came for the messy. Remember that sheep that went missing in Matthew 18:12-4? That was me and you. #savinggrace Share on X

Friend, it may look dark now but there is light on the inside of you. Your perpetual fight against your flesh have probably left you feeling weary and condemned but remember that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1). There is hope for you yet. God has promised that He will always make a way out of every temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13) and I have found this to be true. You just have to lean your entire weight on Him; you have to not have a plan B. Only when you are drawing your strength from Him, will you be able to overcome.

The Lord is on your side, you ‘ve He’s got this.

It may look dark now but there is light on the inside of you. Do not buy into the enemy's lies of condemnation. #God has promised that He will always make a way out of every #temptation and He is faithful. Share on X

References

1. Enduring Word commentary – 1 John 3

This may be linked up here.

(Image credit: Michel Paz from Unsplash)