Living in God's Power-Overcoming Lust (with podcast episode #22)

The following is the transcript for my weekly In Sharon's Heart Podcast. 

Matthew 17:20 says, if we will have faith as small as a mustard seed, we can say to this mountain, move from here to there and it will happen. Do you believe it? Believe it. God has more for your life. Let me first say, we are still talking about Hybels' book, Living in God's Power, Finding God's Strength for Life's Challenges, in which I am doing a 7 week book study. The book discusses the ways in which we can go about getting to the next level in what God has for our lives.

Before I delve into our topic today, let me give a brief recap of the previous chapter, which was about overcoming greed, the 4th session or 4th chapter in Bill Hybels' book.  In that chapter we talked about what Hybels says about getting over greed, which was the following: If you are serious about overcoming greed and living free from its claws, the first thing you have to do, is acknowledge its reality. Do not say you are exempt from its pull and power, face it. Greed affects all of us to one degree or another. When you notice your eyes wandering towards all that glitters and your heart hungering for more more more, admit it! Then pray for wisdom to discern what is a normal, healthy desire and what grows from the sinister drive of old fashioned greed.

This week's topic is on how to overcome lust. It's the 5th session or 5th chapter of Hybels' book, so lets talk about it, shall we? I'll begin with a question to you: Have you ever had a desire for something that wasn't good for you? I think most of us can say yes to that, right? On page 47, Hybels says, lust is taking the image God made of someone and reducing the person down to an image or thought God doesn't approve of. He goes on to say that a person caught up in lust doesn't appreciate or care about the other person's thoughts, feelings, spiritual condition, worries, anxieties, or aspirations. I never quite heard it put that way. Have you? I think Hybels has a point though. He goes on to say that there's no easy way to overcome lust and like every other area that's challenging for us, we definitely have to call on the Lord to get us through and even sometimes, counselors to help us. There's nothing wrong with seeking expert help when we need it. Don't be ashamed if you need to talk to anyone who has more knowledge in certain areas than you. It's a smart thing seek wisdom. 

Anyway, if you are struggling with anything in your life, just know that God is a God who is aware of everything and He knows our needs and wants. His door is always open for salvation, on-going communication, and a relationship. Remember what Matthew 6:33 says and that is, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." With God, we can get through anything.