Silas
Beloved of All
We rejoice with you in what the Lord Jesus Christ has already done, and we give Him all the glory and thanks for the improvement you have seen. It is God who shows mercy, who hears the cries of a broken heart, and who begins a good work of deliverance. Thank Him for this progress and keep trusting Him to complete it, because lasting change comes only from Him.
You asked for prayer that these sins would be removed forever from your life and heart, and that God would renew your mind and make you wise. That is the right prayer. The Scripture teaches that all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not from the Father but from the world, and the world is passing away with its lusts, but the one who does the will of God remains forever. For a long time we all lived according to the desires of the flesh and of the mind, doing what comes naturally to fallen nature, but now in Christ we are called to live differently, not to fulfill the lusts of men but to fulfill the will of God. The time past is enough to have lived for those old desires.
The struggle you describe begins in the heart. A person is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed, and when that desire is entertained it gives birth to sin. That is why it is so important to cut it off at the first thought. Do not lust after beauty in your heart. What is outside of marriage and is called love is often only lust, and it has no true love in it. Pornography in particular is not harmless. It inflames passions and then creates pressure toward further sexual sin, and it can take hold like a drug and bring a person into bondage. Many have found themselves enslaved by it, unable to free themselves, and it destroys what is precious in families and relationships. You are right to want it far from you completely.
The purpose of prayer is not to get our own will done so we can use the answer for our own desires, but to seek God's will and to be changed by Him. God wants to wash your mind with His Word and to renew your thinking, to give you wisdom to see temptation for what it is and to turn from it quickly. He wants to make you pure even as Christ is pure, and to help you walk in holiness and righteousness. Remember that God designed sexual intimacy to belong only within the lifelong covenant of marriage between one man and one woman. Outside of that, God calls us to purity, and He gives grace to walk in it.
So we pray for you now in the name of Jesus Christ, who alone saves and delivers. Father, have mercy on this dear one who has cried out to You. Forgive, cleanse, and deliver from every hold of pornography, masturbation, flirting and all sexual sin. Renew the mind, give understanding and true wisdom, and wash away what has defiled the thoughts. Teach what practical steps to take to remove these sins completely, to guard the eyes and the heart, to avoid what stirs lust, and to fill the heart with Your Word. Make the heart pure and keep these temptations far away, not for a moment but for a lifetime, for Your glory. Strengthen faith to live now for Your will and not for the desires of the flesh. Keep this life rooted in Christ and walking in purity, holiness and obedience, trusting Jesus alone for salvation and for daily victory. Amen.
Keep looking to Jesus, keep feeding daily on Scripture, keep making honest choices to turn away at the first stirring of lust, and keep asking for help. God is faithful to continue the work He has begun.
You asked for prayer that these sins would be removed forever from your life and heart, and that God would renew your mind and make you wise. That is the right prayer. The Scripture teaches that all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not from the Father but from the world, and the world is passing away with its lusts, but the one who does the will of God remains forever. For a long time we all lived according to the desires of the flesh and of the mind, doing what comes naturally to fallen nature, but now in Christ we are called to live differently, not to fulfill the lusts of men but to fulfill the will of God. The time past is enough to have lived for those old desires.
The struggle you describe begins in the heart. A person is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed, and when that desire is entertained it gives birth to sin. That is why it is so important to cut it off at the first thought. Do not lust after beauty in your heart. What is outside of marriage and is called love is often only lust, and it has no true love in it. Pornography in particular is not harmless. It inflames passions and then creates pressure toward further sexual sin, and it can take hold like a drug and bring a person into bondage. Many have found themselves enslaved by it, unable to free themselves, and it destroys what is precious in families and relationships. You are right to want it far from you completely.
The purpose of prayer is not to get our own will done so we can use the answer for our own desires, but to seek God's will and to be changed by Him. God wants to wash your mind with His Word and to renew your thinking, to give you wisdom to see temptation for what it is and to turn from it quickly. He wants to make you pure even as Christ is pure, and to help you walk in holiness and righteousness. Remember that God designed sexual intimacy to belong only within the lifelong covenant of marriage between one man and one woman. Outside of that, God calls us to purity, and He gives grace to walk in it.
So we pray for you now in the name of Jesus Christ, who alone saves and delivers. Father, have mercy on this dear one who has cried out to You. Forgive, cleanse, and deliver from every hold of pornography, masturbation, flirting and all sexual sin. Renew the mind, give understanding and true wisdom, and wash away what has defiled the thoughts. Teach what practical steps to take to remove these sins completely, to guard the eyes and the heart, to avoid what stirs lust, and to fill the heart with Your Word. Make the heart pure and keep these temptations far away, not for a moment but for a lifetime, for Your glory. Strengthen faith to live now for Your will and not for the desires of the flesh. Keep this life rooted in Christ and walking in purity, holiness and obedience, trusting Jesus alone for salvation and for daily victory. Amen.
Keep looking to Jesus, keep feeding daily on Scripture, keep making honest choices to turn away at the first stirring of lust, and keep asking for help. God is faithful to continue the work He has begun.
