Video #21 - Are Desires Bad?

One of the greatest struggles we face in the war against sexual impurity in our lives is on the battlefield of misplaced desires.  You see - we do what we do because in our heart we want what we want.  The lie of Satan is that “I need,” I want,” “I have to have,” and “I deserve.”  When we allow those types of thoughts to have free reign in our hearts - selfish behavior is quickly to follow

If we’re not on guard, we can easily get caught up in believing that our sinful sexual desires are somehow justified because our particular situation is “unique.”  We are convinced that “feeling good” will help us cope.  We think  ...     I know it’s wrong, but God will understand.  I know it’s wrong, but at least I’m not (fill in the blank).  I know it’s wrong, but I’m only going to do this one more time ... after that I’ll stop.

Listen carefully to what David says in Psalm 19:10-11.  “More to be desired are (God’s Words) than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.  Moreover, by (God’s Word) is your servant warned; in keeping (God’s commands) there is great reward.”  Over these last few weeks we’ve seen that God’s Word is perfect, it’s sure, right, pure, it’s clean and it’s true.  When you saturate your mind, when you fill your heart with God’s Word it revives your soul, it makes you wise, it rejoices your heart, and it enlightens your eyes.  Why on earth would we desire ANYTHING more than we do a close walk with God?

So let’s ask this simple but important question: are desires bad?  A simple question ... not so simple of an answer.  You see, it depends on the focus of your desires.  Remember, we do what we do because in our heart we want what we want.  If your desires are focused on making King Me happy, your behavior will be focused on making King Me happy.  That’s idolatry.  That’s sin.  Hence, those desires are bad.

On the flip side, if your desires are focused on glorifying God, bringing others to Christ, making your Heavenly Father the central figure of your life, your behavior will be focused on those desires.  That’s good.

Unfortunately, we have learned to focus our thoughts and feelings on pleasing self instead of pleasing God.  We are on a never-ending quest to find personal satisfaction instead of being on a holy mission to honor our Creator, Savior and Friend.  As a result, we don’t see God (or His Word) as someone (or something) that will “meet my needs” and “provide me with pleasure.”  This in turn creates in me a wrong desire.  That desire leads me down a bad path where I will make sinful choices.

David says God’s Word is to be “desired.”  He’s referring to taking great pleasure in something – namely, God’s Word.  Do you take great pleasure in God’s Word?  Can you say as David did, “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day” (Psa. 119:97, 127)?  He began the book of Psalms by saying that the man who experiences God’s blessing on his life is the man whose “delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night” (Psa. 1:2).

More to be desired is God’s law, God’s truth, God’s standards of righteousness and holiness than any lustful thought or sexual fantasy.  I know that to many it sounds boring, dull and mind-numbingly pointless.  After all, how can I possibly find reading my Bible to be more pleasurable than lust, porn, fantasies, masturbation and other sexual impurities?

The reason we battle with this, the reason we struggle with comprehending something that seems so incomprehensible is because we don’t really know God.  We haven’t invested our time into digging for the treasures He has buried for us in His Word.  We are too focused on the here and now, the tangible things we can touch, see and feel in the moment.

Guys - open your Bible, dig into the Scriptures daily and meditate on the Word of God - seeking the God of the Word.  I assure you, as a man who spent 30 years of his life pursuing sexual pleasure, God’s word is truly sweeter (more pleasant) than any nude image, sexual fantasy, act of masturbation or extra-marital affair. 

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About Steve Etner
Steve Etner is a National Men’s Speaker, Author and Purity Coach (www.thepuritycoach.com). He has authored many books, including “Extreme Mind Makeover: How to Transform Sinful Habits into God-Pleasing Patterns of Life”; “The Pure Man’s Devotional Guide: A Biblical Toolbox for Purity”; and “Are You A Super Man? Becoming God’s Man of Steel.” 

Steve’s conferences, seminars and retreats focus on what God has to say about the way we think and the impact it has on our behavior. By teaching men how to live in moral purity by equipping them with Biblical answers, Steve’s goal is for men to have a re-ignited passion for Jesus and learn how to prepare their minds to successfully overcome their temptations and thus live pure lives for Christ.