Hearing Voices - Martin Wiles

The Jebusites taunted David, saying, “You’ll never get in here! Even the blind and lame could keep you out!” 2 Samuel 5:6 NLT

When I was a teenager, I found myself hearing voices.

“Let’s get drunk,” said the first voice. The 1970s were in full force. Drinking seemed to be a way of life, so I agreed. And since this voice represented acceptance by my peers, I justified my listening.

Then the voice said, “Let’s do some dope.” I listened again—although I was a little frightened this time. I agreed to the Mary Jane, but nothing more.

“Do you want a smoke?” the voice continued. I did, and for the next decade I kept listening to that voice.

Listening to the wrong voices hindered my walk with the Lord and kept me in chains when I could have been free. David was anointed king and needed a central location for his capital. His sights were on Jerusalem. Trouble was, the Jebusites weren’t interested in giving it up. When he approached the walled city, they told him he’d never get in. But he did because he listened to a more powerful voice.

Training our ears to listen to the right voices is essential for good spiritual health. Many voices vie for our attention—most of them attempting to lead us down paths taking us farther from God.

God’s voice comes through the inner presence of his Spirit and will always agree with what is taught in the Bible. Being familiar with the teachings therein is vital if we’re to hear the right voice. Listening takes a power we don’t have. God, however, can provide the power so we don’t succumb to the wrong voice as Eve did when Satan tempted her, causing her to question God’s directive.

Voices of discouragement are rife—as they were in David’s day. Finding friends and acquaintances who encourage us is important if we’re to make respectable spiritual decisions. We can find them through social media outlets, at churches, in small groups, and through good authors. Voices reminding us about who we are in Christ: a new creation, a masterpiece in the making, a child of God who has worth and has been accepted into his family, and an overcomer of unhealthy habits, addictions, and social mores. Voices that will encourage us to seek God’s guidance in every decision we make.

Hearing voices is acceptable; just make sure you listen to the appropriate ones.

Father, give me wisdom and understanding so that I might hear and listen to the right voices. 

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

What's Stealing My Attention - Martin Wiles

Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, “This is the way you should go,” whether to the right or to the left. Isaiah 30:21 NLT

Getting shoppers sidetracked is a retailer’s dream come true. Who hasn’t had to ask, “What’s stealing my attention?” And not for the better. 

After a long day of sweating in the hot, humid temperatures of a South Carolina August, my wife and I showered and readied ourselves for church. Moving isn’t fun, but we had no choice.

Following church, we stopped by the local Wal-Mart for a few necessities: curtain rods and a gallon of milk. Tired from a day of moving, I said, “Now, we’re just going to get those two things and leave, right?”

“That’s all,” my wife remarked.

As we entered the store, we began walking in the wrong direction: the garden center. “Your mom said they had chair cushions on sale.”

And so our visit went. Although we only came out with four items instead of two, I had to continually keep my wife pointed toward what we came to get. My recliner was calling my name, but the retailer’s reputation for putting things in my wife’s path that attracted her kept sidetracking her.

God did his best to keep the nation of Israel on track. He sent prophets, priests, and judges who kept his ways before them, but they kept getting sidetracked. The pagan nations around them put more attractive things in their path.

I’m not much different than God’s people of old. In fact, I’ve been known to get sidetracked in Wal-Mart myself—just not over the same things my wife does. That’s how the enemy of our souls works. Through experience, he learns what attracts us. He won’t try to sidetrack me with clothes or shoes because he knows they don’t interest me. But he will throw up a few tech gadgets, a new backpack, or a recently released Kindle book.

I had to continue telling my wife not to get sidetracked. “Keep your eyes focused on what we came for,” I reminded her.

I must do the same for myself. If I don’t, Satan will lead me in sinful or unhealthy directions. And like a puppy on a leash, I’ll follow if I’m not clothed in my spiritual armor. By the power of God’s Spirit, we can say no, get what we came to get, and go home.

Don’t get sidetracked by Satan’s attempt to convince you that you need things you don’t.

Father, give me the power to say no to Satan’s attempts to sidetrack me. 

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

The Bully - Lynne Phipps

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith. 1 Peter 5:8-9 NIV

I once happened upon a situation where a person was extremely angry with their dogs. They yelled, hollered, and chased after them in a threatening manner. They tried to get the animals to move from one area to another. The dogs were terrified and had scattered in different directions, desperately trying to flee from the bully’s path.

One of the frightened creatures, spotting me, ran to my side and huddled against my leg. Having seen where their owner wanted them to go, I spoke quietly to the little canine and walked toward the designated area. The pup followed. As I approached the assigned area, I called the other dogs over to me as well, speaking in a positive voice. All the dogs responded and were soon safely out of the bully’s way.

Fear kept these dogs from hearing their owner’s loud and angry voice. Dogs respond to tone and attitude more than words. When I introduced the right tone and attitude, they listened and obeyed.

Just as this person’s dogs scattered and ran in fear, our enemy, known in the Word as Satan or the devil, also seeks to put us on the run by bullying us with fear tactics. He wants us to doubt God and his truth. He wants us to rebel against God, just as he did. Our enemy seeks to sow doubt in our lives regarding our faith, often when we are most vulnerable. 

When sickness, sorrow, economic crisis, natural disasters, relational difficulties, and the like assault us, the enemy of our souls roars in with his lies, seeking to steal the truth from our hearts. He desires to crush our view of God, bombarding us with doubts and fears concerning our situation. Amidst his rampage and our resultant fear, it becomes hard for us to hear our Lord’s calm voice. But God seeks to remind us of his ability to use all things for our good and grant us strength and wisdom to endure. 

Let us therefore learn to recognize our enemy and his tactics by studying the Word and committing it to heart. Then, on the day of attack, amidst the lion’s roaring, we can tune our ears to God’s still quiet voice of assurance and hope. He can do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us. 

Father God, when the enemy roars into our lives, teach us to stand firm and listen to Your still, quiet voice of hope, wisdom, and safety. In Christ’s name, amen.

Lynne Phipps and her family live on a small hobby farm in the heart of Alberta, Canada’s farming country. She has been writing devotions for forty years and never tires of the spiritual correlation the Holy Spirit blesses her with. He uses normal everyday events and the behaviors of the multitude of glorious creatures He has brought across her path to point her to the truths of God. Lynne is a devotion writer for VineWords: Devotions and More.

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

 

How to Clean Fingerprints - Martin Wiles

WISHING ALL OUR FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS. 

Jesus replied, “A person who has bathed all over does not need to wash, except for the feet, to be entirely clean.” John 13:10 NLT

“Fingerprints all over the place.” Of course, how to clean the fingerprints involved another story.

My oldest grandson called the dirty storm door to my attention as he and his younger brother stood looking over the back yard. What he failed to mention was that both were the reason for the smudges. At the time, we kept them five days a week, so keeping the door clean was an exercise in futility—as it is now, since their number has grown to four.

“Handprints are more like it,” I snickered.

“You need to clean it, Pop,” he said.

A Type A personality like myself, he couldn’t stand dirt—or smudges. I walked by and left the door alone. Since we planned to move in a couple of weeks, I had even more reason to ignore the grimy handprints. But when I decided to clean the door—just before we moved—I didn’t replace the entire door. I just took out the window cleaner and cleaned the glass portion.

Jesus proposed a similar scenario to his disciples. They didn’t need to wash all over—just their feet. They were fully cleansed when they believed in him and decided to be his followers. Now they merely needed a daily sponge bath.

At nine years of age, I decided to do what these early disciples did—trust Jesus as my Savior. Dad explained the gospel message of how Jesus died for my sins. I believed and invited Christ into my life. In that moment, he cleansed me all over. Past, present, and future sins were washed away. The price Jesus paid on Calvary for humanity’s sins was applied to me.

But what about the daily fingerprints that come from putting our hands where they don’t belong—like my grandchildren? They won’t send us to hell because Jesus’ blood has covered them. They will, however, interfere with our spiritual vision as the fingerprints on the door clouded the view of the backyard. Confession will clear away the smudges. Our acknowledgement of our failures and sins is what Jesus referred to when he mentioned daily foot-washing.

Make confession a daily practice. Doing so is good for the soul and will keep your feet clean—and remove the smudges from the doors so interaction between the Savior and you can be open and transparent.

Father, keep me free from sin smudges so I can hear you clearly when you speak.

I invite you to try my book Grits, Grace, and God in eBook or paperback. If you want a daily dose of God's grace, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Series: The Things We Say - Best Meal Ever - Martin Wiles

This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me. Luke 22:19 NLT

According to my wife, I eat some strange things.

My wife and I come from different regions of our state and have different eating habits. On one of our earlier dates, she was fixing my dinner plate. Out of habit, I said, “Make sure you put some liquor on my rice.” A saying and practice foreign to her (liquor being the juice in the pot with the cooked vegetables). Nor did she understand putting vegetables over white rice—until she spent a few years in the Lowcountry and was served white rice with every meal. And some of the things I had grown up putting together—such as grits and fried cubed steak—she had never experienced. Getting her to add vegetables to the gravy she had just put on her rice was out of the question.

Since I love to eat, I enjoy almost any meal. But I suppose the one Jesus served to his disciples was strange. Not the bread and wine, but what he told them about it. Eating the bread entailed eating his body, and drinking the wine involved drinking his blood. The practice led others to accuse early Christians of cannibalism. And some church traditions teach that the wine and bread become Jesus’ blood and body when consumed.

Early churches observed the Lord’s Supper every time they met. I’ve been more accustomed to churches that do so quarterly. Dad always gave the biblical warning to examine oneself before partaking of the elements. Paul said Jesus reminded them that they proclaimed the Lord’s death every time they observed the tradition.

So, what’s the big deal about Communion or the Lord’s Supper? Of all the meals we might enjoy, this should be the most pleasurable because of what it represents. Other meals merely fill our bellies, feed our muscles, and then leave our bodies. God’s meal, however, sticks to our ribs and gives us continual spiritual nourishment. Eating the bread reminds us that Jesus was our substitute. His body was broken as he paid for the sins we had committed, were committing, and would commit. Drinking the wine or juice reminds us of the blood he shed for our sins because, without the shedding of blood, no forgiveness exists.

Enjoy a good meal, but don’t neglect the best meal.

Father, thank you for allowing your Son to give his life so I might have life.

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Forgiving Self - Martin Wiles

Now go and give this message to his disciples, including Peter: Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee. Mark 16:7 NLT

Not forgiving myself for my unwise teenage decisions could have changed my future.

At twelve, my future appeared bright. Dad was a preacher, and I intended to follow in his footsteps. Perhaps I would do it part-time because I also felt God wanted me to teach on the college or seminary level. Either way, I knew where I was headed, or so I thought. Satan knew, too. He slithered in during my teen years and convinced me he had a better plan. Like a starving catfish, I took the bait. Although I finally got back on God’s track, a part of which included forgiving myself for my foolish and sinful actions, I wasted quite a few years.

Peter was in a similar boat. Denying three times that he knew Christ was more than just a small slip-up. I’m sure he regularly beat himself up on the inside. Perhaps that’s why the angel singled him out when he instructed the women to tell the disciples that Jesus was alive and would meet them in Galilee.

Satan loves nothing better than to witness a defeated Christian. God forgives all our sins when we accept Christ as our Savior, but his forgiveness doesn’t make us perfect. Dwelling on what we’ve done and refusing to forgive ourselves sets us up for a life of wasting the gifts God has given us. And Satan loves every minute of watching us wallow in self-pity. God is a holy God, but if he can forgive our sinful foibles, we must learn to forgive ourselves.

When we fail to forgive ourselves, we limit God’s power in our lives. God is perfectly able to work all things together for our good and his glory, our mistakes included, but we must accept his forgiveness, forgive ourselves, and move on. Rather than allowing our mistakes to chain us, we can use them to help others who may be struggling with similar issues.

Refusing to forgive ourselves is, after all, illogical. Our sin offends a holy God, but if he can forgive me, who am I not to forgive myself? Failing to forgive ourselves is requiring more of us than God does—and he makes the rules.

Don’t let refusing to forgive yourself hold you back from God’s plan for your life.

Father, enable me to forgive myself just as you have forgiven me, so I can move on with your plan. 

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing. No one escapes life's hurts, but we can move beyond them to hope and healing. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Pulled by Porn - Martin Wiles

Your eye is a lamp for your body. A pure eye lets sunshine into your soul. Matthew 6:22 NLT

Once, porn was mainly relegated to magazines stuffed behind drug store counters or to the big screen drive-in theaters, but not anymore.

 

I grew up in the years before the internet—a time when people still did research at the library and most people paid for subscriptions to magazines and newspapers. Porn was no different. Hustler and Playboy were the two major competitors, but proprietors stuffed those magazines behind counters with the covers concealed so customers purchasing other items couldn’t see the scantily clad women. And while a sizable number snuck in or legally attended the XXX drive-in’s, those movies weren’t advertised as the respectable movies were.

 

The internet—along with changing cultural mores—has altered my innocent world of yesteryear. Surveys by Josh McDowell Ministry found that half of all teenagers and almost three-fourths of young adults encounter porn monthly. More disturbing is that both groups consider viewing pornography as less immoral than not recycling. The numbers of young women who view porn are also on the rise. After all, sex addicts are plying their trade right into their bedrooms through their smart phones.

 

While we can’t end the spread of porn, we can take some measures to ensure our eyes—the lamps of my body—allow in only what is pure and good.

 

Investigating who we befriend on social media platforms is wise. When we receive a friend request, we should take a gander at their page. If the posts are questionable, we should ignore or decline the request.

 

However, porn is bound to pop up even when we take safeguards. If we’ve friended someone who later reveals themselves as a bad influence, we can unfriend them or quickly ignore the questionable post.

 

If we find ourselves pulled by porn, we can take steps to guard ourselves against its presence. A preacher friend who struggled with this temptation chose to stay off the internet and to allow his wife to filter his email messages.

 

Vision is powerful. What we see takes root in our minds, which in turn plays out in our actions. Being familiar with God’s guidelines for relationships—and understanding how porn distorts those principles—goes a long way in helping us resist the pull of porn.

If porn pulls you, turn off the source.

Father, draw my eyes only to what is pure in your sight and beneficial for my spiritual growth.

I invite you to try my book Grits, Grace, and Grands. If you have grands, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Overcoming the Wily One - Martin Wiles

God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming to strong that you can stand up against it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT

With the wily ways of his nature, the opossum lured my chicken to her death.

After one move, I decided to buy a few chickens. I saw no need to fence them since I lived in the country, but I was wrong. Some immediately headed for the woods. Others became food for wild varmints. Finally, only one chicken remained. I did my best to protect her by putting her in a cage with small holes and placing her next to the back porch. Surely, a wild animal wouldn't get her here. I was wrong again. The next morning, the cage was completely empty. Not a feather in sight. An opossum had lured her with his charming ways and sucked her out of the cage piece by piece.

Satan came in the form of a serpent in the Garden of Eden, and Peter classified him as a roaring lion seeking to kill. Paul, however, gives us encouragement. God controls Satan's temptations.

Sometimes, I must remind myself that temptation isn't the same as sinning. Satan tempts, God allows it, and I'm the one tempted, but temptation isn't sinful. Instead, it demonstrates my desire to live obediently to God's commands. If I were already living as Satan wanted, he would have no need to tempt me.

Satan would love nothing better than for us to adopt a we-can't-win attitude. Having this mindset sets us up for defeat—and Satan loves it when a defeatist attitude overcomes us. With a defeatist attitude, we'll give in to temptation more easily. We won't be able to summon up enough energy to fight. Why bother, we'll muse. We might as well give in.

Through interaction, Satan learns our weaknesses and targets them. Once he discovers where we're prone to fail, he'll attempt to suck the life out of us like the opossum did my chicken.

But giving in to temptation isn't necessary. The one who lives in us is greater than the one tempting. Through prayer, depending on the Spirit's power, putting on spiritual armor, exercising caution, staying in the Word, and associating with Christian encouragers, our chances of winning over the wily one increase tremendously.

If Satan has duped you into thinking you can't win over his wily tricks, take heart. Through Christ, overcoming the wily one becomes possible.

Father, thank you for providing me the power to overcome the enemy's tactics.

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

How to Win Over Temptation - Martin Wiles

The temptations that come into your life are no different from what other experience. And God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can stand up against it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT

He was a mischievous boy who often succumbed to temptation.

One reason Mark Twain wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was to ridicule books produced at the time that portrayed young boys as clean-cut and always obedient to authorities. Tom didn’t fit the mold. He continually outfoxed his Aunt Polly even though she continued to believe he was a good boy down deep inside. Tom once joined the Cadets of Temperance, but only because he liked their gaudy uniforms and wanted to be the envy of other people as he marched in their parades. But the temptations to swear, drink, and smoke were too great. He eventually quit the club.

I can’t say I was much different than Tom during adolescence. Sadly, I gave in repeatedly to many of my temptations. Only later in life did I learn I could win over them.

Paul says God will not allow temptations to be so strong that we can’t endure them with his help. Evidently, I was doing something wrong. Winning over temptation involves knowing our weaknesses. Satan doesn’t know everything but learns about our weaknesses through interaction with us. Once he understands them, he zeroes in on these very things. Admitting our weaknesses isn’t easy or pleasant, but doing so is the first step toward success.

We must also trust the Source of victory: God’s Spirit within us. God doesn’t bring temptation but wants to help us overcome it--and will if we seek him. Satan tempted Jesus in every way he tempts us. But Jesus overcame and can help us see the way out of the tempting situation. All we must do is seek his guidance.

Staying away from bad sources is also a good idea. Tom didn’t; neither did I. Spending too much time with friends who have bad habits is unwise. Only God can give us the wisdom to be his light around sinful activity while at the same time avoiding the activity itself.

Additionally, putting on God’s armor is wise. Thinking about godly things, standing for truth, carrying God’s love wherever we go, walking by faith, and soaking in God’s Word are all measured steps to win over temptation.

Make sure you are winning over temptation. If you’re not, you can.

Father, thank you for the assurance that I can win over temptation. 

I invite you to try my book Hurt, Hope, and Healing in eBook or paperback. If you seek hope and healing because of the hurts you have faced, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Watch the Temptation Tree - Martin Wiles

The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. 1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT

The tree was unlike any other tree I had ever seen.

Two peach trees stood on the other side of the privacy fence, separating our small subdivision from a lot of woods and a neighboring business’s back parking lot. They belonged to our neighbor across the road. The young trees filled with blooms and small peaches every year in early spring. And every year, the squirrels and birds that lived and played in the trees in those woods ate every one of the peaches as soon as they reached the size of a golf ball.

One year, as I rounded the fence on my daily walk, something in the tree startled me: a snake. Not one to overly fear snakes, I walked closer to see whether it was poisonous. That’s when I noticed it wasn’t a real snake at all. Our neighbors had placed a rubber snake three feet up in the tree, hoping to scare off the squirrels and birds.

The trees continued to change as I walked each day. I suppose the snake wasn’t enough—or, at least, the neighbors didn’t think so. They wanted peaches … badly. The following items were tin pans. They had cut them in half and tied them to various limbs in the tree—a trick I had used in my gardens. A trick that also had not worked when it came to keeping out deer. Perhaps it would work for squirrels and birds.

One day, as I rounded the corner of the fence, I jumped, thinking someone was standing near the tree. They weren’t. Our neighbors had stuck a tomato cage in the ground near one of the trees and decorated it with clothes. Another “person” hung in the other tree, waving like a Halloween ghost.

But even all of the above wasn’t enough. Our neighbors perched a fake owl on the fence. They also hung pieces of hose in both trees, along with other implements—even a plastic gorilla. So many things, in fact, that it was difficult to see the small peaches anymore. The wife wanted to make sure this tree wasn’t a temptation tree for squirrels and birds. She wanted peaches and set out to do whatever it took to get them.

Satan has a way of acting like my neighbor: decorating things up a bit so they look good and beneficial. That way, I don’t see how harmful they might be to my body, soul, and spirit.

But my neighbor prepared, which is the only way to adequately face temptation. In the heat of the moment, without any forethought, I’ll make the wrong choice every time, but when I’ve stored up a pattern of spiritual disciplines—Bible study, prayer, meditation, worship, fellowship—I’ll be more prepared to face and reject what Satan uses to entice.

Accepting Christ results in a new nature—as well as a new want—which leads us in new directions. Paying attention to God’s Spirit as he works through this new nature helps keep us away from the pretty things Satan hangs in our life’s trees to entice us.

When we decide not to sin against God, he will give us the power to do just that—at least sinning will not be the norm. He promises to show us a way out when we look and assures us he won’t allow the temptations to grow so intense that we could say, “God, I couldn’t help myself.”

Don’t let life’s temptation trees take your eyes off obedience to God.

Father, give me strength to overcome the temptations Satan hangs before me. 

Tweetable: Which temptation tree tempts you? 

I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Freezing Out Temptation - Martin Wiles

Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. James 1:14 NLT

The humungous concrete trough begged us to place our parched toes in its tantalizing coolness.

Life on the farm was different every day. My cousin and I could find more adventures than we had time for. We sat around this particular day, thinking about what we could do. Where we sat was on a ledge just above a concrete trough filled with green water.

Running around barefoot wasn’t uncommon. Why not plunge our dirty, parched feet into this water? We did. Within a few days, I noticed a circle on my foot. When I showed it to Mom, she immediately took me to the doctor, who froze it. The stagnant water had produced ringworm.

While the freezing process was somewhat unpleasant, this infestation wasn’t as deadly as the one James speaks of. The sinful nature we’re born with leads us into temptations of various types and degrees and drags us into sinful activities and thoughts. Of course, Satan and his demonic hordes are involved, but we don’t need any help being bad.

Satan, however, often provides the stagnant water that draws our attention to areas we should avoid. With Eve, it was fruit from the one tree God told her and Adam to leave alone. For King Saul, it was a jealous spirit. With David, it was sexual lust. For the religious leaders of Jesus’ day, it was power and an attitude of spiritual superiority.

God, however, provides the strength to freeze out a pattern of sinful activity. We must put forth the effort. We know our nature and what our weaknesses are. Satan learns them and uses them to his advantage. When we live with a desire for holiness and purity, We’ll make a valid attempt to stay away from people and situations we know will pull us down and entice us to sin.

Even as a young boy, I probably had better sense than to put my feet in stagnant water—but I did it anyway. When we’re determined to live a holy lifestyle, we’ll depend on God to give us direction and stop us from putting our feet—and eyes and hands--where they don’t belong.

Let God help you freeze out temptation.

Father, remind me you will never let me be tempted beyond what I can bear with your help. 

Tweetable: Are you freezing out temptation? 

I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are an editor who wants to hone your grammar skills or someone who just wants to improve your writing or speaking, this is the book for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.