Struggles of a Saved Man: When Temptation Calls Will You Answer?

Temptation: The act of tempting or the condition of being tempted. Something tempting or enticing. Lure, attraction, seduction, snare, fascination, or trap. We live in a world where people want things fast. People want fast food, fast sex, fast cars, and fast money. When something is done fast it takes less effort than something which takes (quality) time. I have experienced being tempted and not having the power to say no to the "call" of temptation. When I gave my life to Christ I still found myself in situations of temptation; but the only difference now is that I have the power of God within me not to fall victim to the "call" of temptation. The bait of temptation can be as simple as friendship, but the invisible strings of connection can lead you into heartbreak, bitterness, disease, depression, sexual addiction, and even death. When someone calls you answer the call by making a choice to answer the phone. When temptation calls you make a choice to answer this call by aligning your heart and mind with the desires of the temptation.

How many times have you answered the call of temptation? When someone calls the phone doesn't have to ring, sometimes it can just vibrate. How many times has your heart felt the vibrations of temptation that you knew would lead you down a path of destruction by taking you out of the will of God for your life. The call of temptation can be so subtle at times. Before I was saved I was in a state of weakness which is why I answered the call of temptation on multiple occasions. My strength was not sufficient (strong) enough to allow me to escape the presence (atomosphere) of lust and temptation which encapsulated (enslaved) my heart and mind. Are you living in a state of weakness which will eventually lead you down a path of destruction? Temptation leads to sin and the wages (price) of sin is death. Is answering the call of temptation worth you losing your life?

THE SPIRIT OF HIP HOP: TORN BETWEEN CULTURES

Spirit: An inspiration that influences behavior. Animation, motivation, and breath.

Hip Hop: A cultural movement that developed in New York City in the early 1970s primarily among Black Americans and Latino Americans.

Every culture has certain characteristics which causes it to be distinctive from other cultures. Some distinctive elements/customs included in Hip Hop are dancing, graffiti, slang, fashion, beliefs, MCing(rapping), and DJing (mixing beats/lyrics). There are certain customs of some cultures that are in opposition to the customs of other cultures. For example.....The culture of the Ku Klux Klan and the culture of the Black Panthers are in direct opposition to each other because of the nature (substance) of what they both believe. If the Ku Klux Klan were to begin to take upon themselves some of the cultural customs/traits of the Black Panthers then the very nature of who they are would begin to be compromised because of the opposing views of each culture. One dent can diminish the value of a car. One drop of blood can ruin an entire outfit. One terrorist can destroy an entire city. If one aspect of a culture is changed/altered it can pierce (taint,damage) the fabric of that culture for the worse.

Before I gave my life to Christ I used to embrace many of the customs of this culture called Hip Hop (man made culture). I have been on both sides of the fence. I realize now though that I have been engrafted into a Holy culture which was initiated by God and not by man. I realize that what I bring from my previous lifestyle and the cultures associated with that lifestyle can taint the new culture that I have been engrafted into. I don't want to compromise the standard (purity) of this new culture that I have been born into. Many people are struggling (torn) between two cultures. The culture of Holiness is not a culture which needs aspects of other cultures in order to become more effective(relevant). To imply that a culture which God implemented is incomplete/ineffective and needs to be improved is a slap in the face of God. Are you at a crossroads in your life in regards to choosing which culture to be associated with? Seek God and allow him to guide you. I pray that you have the faith to be engrafted into this culture of TRUTH and HOLINESS which was initiated by a perfect and holy God.

A Perfect Gift Received by a Tainted Heart: Unfair Circumstance

Tainted: To become affected with decay or putrefaction; spoil. A moral defect considered as a stain or spot. An infecting touch, influence, or tinge. Contaminated, corrupted, impure, or dirty. Think back to a time when you received something that you felt you didn't deserve. Did you give it back? When the standard of the individual receiving the gift does not measure up to the standard of the gift then should the individual say no to the gift? I have come to the revelation that the perfect gift is never the issue but rather the tainted heart and mind of the individual receiving the perfect gift.

When a perfect gift is placed into a tainted atmosphere this can affect the quality of the gift. The atmosphere of one's heart, mind, and intentions can tarnish a good and perfect gift. Should the perfect gift have to lower its standard in order to align with the tainted atmosphere that it is being received by? The sacrifice of measuring up to the standard of receiving a good and perfect gift comes with a price. The process of preparation that leads to you lining up with the standard to receive the perfect gift is priceless. This process of preparation will determine whether or not you are equipped (able) to maintain/handle the perfect gift that you are given.

The process of preparation can be likened to a "season of seasoning." The right ingredients must be saturated into the soil of your heart and mind so that the end result can be a seasoned recipe that is ready to receive its perfect side dish. A perfect entree deserves a perfect side dish or the meal just isn't complete. In your season of seasoning there is a major ingredient called 'moral excellency' that must be sprinkled throughout the whole recipe. The only atmosphere (oven) that can prepare this perfect dish is the atmosphere (presence) of God. How long will you allow yourself to remain in this atmosphere of purification (molding) that will prepare you to receive your perfect gift? The passion to receive your perfect gift must outweigh the sacrifice of your season of preparation.

When the body becomes the tool of an infested mind

Infest: to live in or overrun to an unwanted degree or in a troublesome manner. to be parasitic in or on (a host) . Ravage, infiltrate, penetrate, invade, flood, occupy, plague, or inhabit. Think back to a time when you had to use a pair of gloves to clean something so that you could protect your hands from bacteria. Imagine if you didn't wash with soap for a period of time, eventually bacteria would begin to build up on your body. How often do you clean the surface of your mind from parasitic thoughts that attach themselves to the fabric of your mind? How can you clean something that you can not see? When I close the top on a washing machine I can not see the cleaning process but I know that the end result is clean clothes. When your thoughts are expressed (produced) are they clean or are they tainted. Dirty water will produce dirty clothes just as unclean thoughts will produce an unclean lifestyle. Imagine your body as a tool which is responsible for expressing the images of your mind. If your mind was symbolic of the water in the washing machine and your lifestyle was symbolic of the clothes coming out of the washing machine. Would your clothes(lifestyle) be clean?

Do you need to change the method in which the surface of your mind is being cleansed? Thoughts come from inspirations and those inspirations can either be tainted or pure. What cleaning solution are you using to sanitize the surface of your mind? Some stains are harder to remove than other stains. The longer a stain remains (saturates) on a surface can make it more difficult to remove that stain. If we were to examine the surface of our minds can we honestly say that the stains have been removed? E.g. Stains (thoughts) of abuse, stains of heartbreak, stains of loneliness, stains of depression, stains of doubt, stains of lust. I personally can say that there is one cleaning solution which is capable of removing all stains. This solution is the word of God. Until the right solution is applied the stain(s) will remain, and your body will continuing being the tool (puppet) of an infested mind.

Casualties of War: Scars and Wounds of Emotional Warfare

Casualty: One injured, killed, captured, or missing in action through engagement with an enemy. Calamity, misfortune, wounded, blow, catastrophe, or fatality. I want you to picture your mind as a battlefield. Imagine every thought that enters your mind is like a soldier which enters the battlefield. Do you have more enemies than allies on the battlefield of your mind? What weapons are you using to defeat the enemies which have entered the battlefield of your mind? How many tears and how much blood has been spilled out on the soil of this battlefield called "your mind?"

Imagine your heart as the bullet-proof vest which absorbs the bullets of war. How many bullets of confusion, bullets of loneliness, bullets of anger, bullets of suicide, bullets of deceit, and bullets of lust has your heart had to endure? Whether you acknowledge the war or not does not limit the fatalities. How can you remove a bullet of deceit from your heart when you can not see the wound? How can you remove an enemy soldier (thought) from your mind which you can not see? How long does it take the heart to heal from a piercing wound?

Every day and every hour of our lives there is a constant war occurring on the battlefield of our mind. There is no peace treaty which will prevent this war. When you are engaged in a battle with an invisible enemy this calls for an invisible ally. Your eyes may have never seen God but the enemies on the battlefield of your mind fear him. He is able to remove the bullets that have pierced the soil of your heart. He is able to heal the scars that have tarnished the soil of your mind. Many times we allow the (destructive) thoughts of the enemy to enter into our mind, but now is the time when we must allow the (repairing/healing) word of God to enter our mind(s). The more soldiers (thoughts) of victory that you allow into your mind will put you in a position of victory. There is no question (doubt) that we are in a devastating war. The critical question that we should all be asking ourselves is "Are we fighting with the word of God?" A visible weapon can not win an invisible war.

Single but Attached: The Invisible Strings of Connection

Attached: Being joined in close association. Fond and affectionate. To bind, fasten, tie, or connect. Link, secure, become associated with, and committed. When you hear an individual say they are single what comes to mind? When I hear that statement, I picture a person with no connection. Many people are dating but still consider themselves single because there is no commitment. Many people are in intimate relationships but still consider themselves single because there is no commitment. Do your words make you single or do your actions make you single? The answer is both.

A person can abstain from sexual relations for months at a time, but if their heart and mind are still attached to the sensations and/or urges associated with sex, then they are only physically detached but not mentally or emotionally detached from sex. There are multiple ways to remain attached to something: invisible strings called "urges" can link the heart to situations; and invisible strings called "memories" can connect our minds to past events. Can someone be single and still crave the intimacy of the opposite sex? The invisible strings called "cravings" disqualify you from being considered totally single. Your mind is not single from thoughts that have attached themselves to your cerebral membrane (mind), like parasites (leeches) attach to a host. Your heart is not single from the emotions that cause you to seek to fulfill your next urge in a never-ending cycle of lust.

Ask yourself, "Am I totally single or just living a lie?" Invisible strings of connection may cause you to call a particular person just to hear their voice. Invisible strings of connection can cause you to miss being with a particular person. Invisible strings of connection can cause you to desire being intimate with a particular person. I have come to the realization that these invisible strings can hinder our relationship with Jesus if they are not addressed. Do you have any invisible strings of attachment in your life? Who are you seeking to be connected to?

Eyes Saturated with Lust: Unable to Distinguish True beauty

Saturate: To imbue or impregnate thoroughly. To soak, fill, or load to capacity. Bathe, infuse, douse, penetrate, quench, submerge, drown, drench, flood, or immerse. So many times we can look back and remember how we were deceived by what our eyes seen. Natural eyes are capable of seeing what is on the surface but how about beneath the surface? I remember a time when I had 'pink eye' and it just irritated me until the point where I just wanted a cure for it so that it would go away. How many times have we got to the point where we became dissatisfied with "eyes of lust?" We seek to get medicine for pink eye but how do we seek to deal with the issue of eyes that are drenched (dripping) in lust? We live in a culture where it can be easy to become sedated. We must ask ourselves "does a culture control me to the point where they dictate to me what true beauty is by the images that are celebrated?" As I sit here I think to myself "if I was blind how would I determine what true beauty was?" If I could not see than how would I measure what true beauty was? There is surface level beauty which can be subjective, but then true beauty is determined when we begin to look holistically at the true concept of beauty. Lust is to the eyes like a virus is to the body. A virus weakens your immune system just as lust can weaken your paradigm of beauty. Lust can be likened to a fungus(bacteria) which spreads and does not just affect you in one area of your life but it spreads throughout. Lust is not something that can be cured with medicine. As I look at myself I just marvel at how God still loves me despite my imperfections. The cure begins when you allow God to transform your perspective to align with his perspective. He has a perspective (paradigm) of purity. When will you seek him?