what distracts me most ?

1 John 2:16 (nas) --- For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.

The first step to dealing with an issue is understanding that you something is an issue. Same is true with an addiction, a problem, a sickness and more. We talked in depth this past weekend about what distracts us the most. The verse above speaks about three issues, most likely the top three issues, that keep us from following Jesus and having victory in life.

First distraction is LUST OF THE FLESH which is Sexual lust. We could beat around the bush, but the fact is that our day is full of sex from one end to the other. People are not only bombarded with sex but struggling with temptations and this distractions. Satan wants us to think we are alone on this issue, but that is a big lie. Is it time to get honest, get help and get healed by Jesus. We had some honest talk about this that led many of our men, including myself, to ask God to help us deal with this distraction.

Here is one way to deal with it ...

2 Corinthians 10:5 (nas) --- We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,

The second distraction is the LUST OF THE EYES which is material lust or the desire to have more and more. This often depicts the reason why do many people are in debt, working 2 or more jobs and never having enough money or time. Just maybe this is the number one reason that most relationship are being pushed aside or flushed down the toilet. All that happens on the altar of I want more and more stuff. We can lie to ourselves about this by saying we need it or justify it. Maybe it is time to live simple lives.

My wife and I have seen huge victory in our lives since we started living by a budget (need help? go to www.josephsangl.com and use the tools). We now leave each month able to live the way God desires for us to live. That is caring for our obligations while able to give more and enjoying life.

These things, these lusts don't get us too far. In fact they will one day be gone. So why not choose to follow what will last rather than only what ties us up for only a few days or more.

1 John 2:17 (nas) --- The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.

The third distraction is the PRIDE OF LIFE or self-made pride. This talks about our desire to control our lives or think we are higher or better than others. It can also be defined as the people, like many of us, who tie who we are and our worth to what we have or what we do rather than who we are in Christ. That makes a lot of sense when you step back a bit and evaluate yourself and those you care about.

Honestly, I had a tough time with last Sunday's sermon because these things hit so close to home. But I desire God. I want Him to win through me and to win others to Himself. That being said, I need to ask a question: what distracts me most?

Romans 8:6 (nas) --- For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,

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