What to Do When Lust Begins to Rule Your Life

So much of our Christian walk comes down to one question: Who rules?

Who rules your money, time or relationships? Who tells you whether you are your own god, or God is your God? Whomever you obey is the current ruler of your life.

Being human can cause you to vacillate on who rules in your life. When it comes to lust, it can only rule when God doesn’t. It can happen in a second, minute or hour. When you choose to submit to lust’s dominance, you choose lust to rule your life.

There are a few things you can do when lust starts to rule your life. First, remind yourself that lust doesn’t rule you. Second, call on God to rule you. Stop, pray to God, and ask Him to rule your heart and mind, and to fill you with His Spirit, love and a sense of the value of people. Tell lust that Christ rules you regardless of the opportunity, that you give God the authority and when it comes to lust, you are no longer authorized to make that choice.

If lust persists, call in the troops. Call your accountability partner, let him know you want to be ruled by the Spirit of God. Your desire to be ruled by God can bring good to you and give you insight into situations you might need to avoid. When God rules your life daily, living lust-free is a normal lifestyle.

Here are some more tips to take up the fight against lust when it is overwhelmingly persistent. For this type of battle, you need to get angry at the evil enemy. Lust deserves your rage and wrath.

In my office, I have had to encourage people to get angry. People usually have to get angry at their dysfunctional parents or perpetrators. I have them write an anger letter and hit a block to release all this rage.

Lust perpetrates all your life: your spirit, soul and body. Lust has evaporated months of your life and caused separation in your relationship with God, your wife and family members. Lust has lowered your self-esteem and probably impacted you financially.

Even when I explain this concept, many men are very passive about this destruction. Rarely do I see men get angry at lust like they would an intruder in their home. It’s healthy to get angry at lust. It’s healthy to work to extract the entity set on destroying you, even though in the past you have celebrated it. Now that you know lust is the enemy, it’s time for you to get angry.

Lust presents itself as a plaything for you, but as you have learned, it is vicious. Lust is not just about lying; lust has waged war. Since war has been declared, you have to make a few primary decisions. Are you willing to fight? Are you willing to kill? Are you willing to be killed?

In the Old Testament, God gave the promised land to the tribes of Israel as an inheritance. But to get their inheritance, they had to go to war and kill to receive what God had already given them. In the New Testament, God has given us the lust-free nature of Christ. We just need to go to war with lust in order to receive that nature.

It’s a war you have to be absolutely willing to fight. You have to kill the enemy and any part of your flesh that wants to hold onto it. You have to be able to kill lust’s existence in your life for good, not just for a little while.

So get angry at lust. You are at war. This isn’t a game. Your destiny and your family are at stake. It’s your choice: kill the enemy or embrace the enemy. Now that you realize you are at war, act like it and declare your freedom.

If you are dedicated to this fight and want to learn more about the weapons available to you, you may be interested in the Integrity Journey Conference coming up in July here in Colorado Springs. This is a national conference dedicated to cleansing the church of lust, porn and immorality. Join me in this fight. {eoa}

Doug Weiss, Ph.D., is a nationally known author, speaker and licensed psychologist. He is the executive director of Heart to Heart Counseling Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the author of several books, including Lust Free Living. You may contact Dr. Weiss via his website, drdougweiss.com or on his Facebook, by phone at 719-278-3708 or through email at [email protected].