Most Triumphant Lord, I implore Your help in defeating the sinful yearnings of my flesh. You came, suffered, died, were buried and rose from the dead to set me free from sin and my fleshly weaknesses. The gift of freedom that You gave me was not for me to do whatever I wanted to do because that would only lead me back to the bondage of my selfish desires. As a result of Your work, You’ve provided me with the potential to do what was impossible before … live unselfishly. I understand that if I persist in living my own way and indulging in my own desires it will cause me to fall back into the clutches of sin. This is why I need Your help in standing up against the things that try to enslave me through worldly ways and vain imaginations. I need Your wisdom, strength and guidance to become a true overcomer. I need Your light to shine into my darkness so I can see a better way.
I believe that one way to overcome “what I want” is to serve others. The freedom You won for me is not the freedom to sin because that would only enslave me to Satan, the influence of others and my own fleshly desires. Your freedom has freed me to do what is right and loving. When love motivates me, I am able to overcome my selfishness. Anything less than being totally motivated by Your love causes me to focus on others faults and shortcomings instead of the potential You put in them. I must constantly remind myself of the guidance You gave when You instructed me to “love others as I love myself.” If there are issues that need addressing, it is better to confront them in love than to avoid them with scorn. Your Word tells me that “if (my neighbor and I) keep biting and devouring each other, watch out or we will destroy each other.” Your ways do not easily become my ways … but they should.
I continually find within myself a war going on between my flesh and the Holy Spirit. I know that the Holy Spirit is more powerful than my flesh. Yet if I try to follow the Holy Spirit in my own human effort, I know I will fail. My only real chance to overcome evil is through the empowering of the Holy Spirit. But, just how do I do that because You Yourself said “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” The reality is that I have evil desires and I cannot ignore them. In order to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, I must deal with my flesh decisively by crucifying it. To win the battle over sin, I must first recognize my weaknesses and seek the help of the Holy Spirit in dealing with them. The way to overcome sin is by joining my life to Yours by spending more time with You and choosing Your will instead of mine. Though my flesh is weak, I know it can be overcome by more of You. And it’s in Jesus’ name I pray. AMEN!!
Galatians 5:24-25 Those who belong to Jesus Christ have crucified their sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.