Being Eternally Minded

I've been thinking lately about what God wants of my life, and what I want from my life, and the two are completely different. My human flesh says, "Go have a good time, blend in with your friends, ignore what your conscience says".
 God says,
 "1 Tim 4:12 Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but {rather} in speech, conduct, love, faith {and} purity, show yourself an example of those who believe.
So here I (and everyone on this earth) have a dilema: Our flesh and the infinite God are at odds; but for me, the choice is clear. Our flesh is frail, but God is our powerful: He created our flesh. So why do I continuously chose to do what my flesh wants. I know that all I'm doing is angering a HOLY God. (How stupid can I be)

2 Tim 2:22 Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love {and} peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

So what do I do to resist temptations and flee from lusts?
Answer: Have an eternal perspective!!

If we are constantly seeking to "Store up treasures in heaven", instead of storing up worldly belongings, then we will constantly be seeking to defeat temptation and to please our heavenly father.

Phil 1:21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

For me, this verse sums up what life is all about. Life isn't about us TRYING to appease God (and failing miserably), life IS Christ; to allow Christ to use me as an instrument in the preservation and spreading of the gospel. This doesn't mean we step back and expect Christ to make us perfect.


2 Pet 1:5-8 Now for this very reason also (because God has granted us grace), applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in {your} moral excellence, knowledge, and in {your} knowledge, self-control, and in {your} self-control, perseverance, and in {your} perseverance, godliness, and in {your} godliness, brotherly kindness, and in {your} brotherly kindness, love.
For if these {qualities} are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Because God has granted us grace, and through grace the Holy Spirit, we are to be working in our efforts to be godly. Letting Christ work in our lives requires "all diligence".

SO:

1) -It is our sin nature to do exactly what God says we shouldn't.

2) -To resist temptation we need an eternal perspective of our lives.

3) -Resisting temptation and letting Christ work in our lives also requires work from us.

Just something to think about.

-A sinner