Video #27 - A Time to Rest

This spiritual battle we are engaged in often leaves us feeling weary, worn and wiped out.  Lamentations 5:5 describes it this way: “Our pursuers are at our necks; we are weary; we are given no rest.”  Have you ever felt that way?  I can remember so many times over the years when that 3-headed dragon of lust, porn and masturbation was relentlessly breathing down my neck.  I was exhausted from trying to fight it in my own strength. I was weak and ready to quit.  I felt I couldn’t take another step on the battlefield without dropping in defeat.  I desperately wanted rest, but I didn’t know how to get it.

Jesus said in Matthew 11: 28-30  ... "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." 

Guys - It is only in Christ that we will find our much-needed rest (cp. Psa. 62:1).  Rest for a Christian comes when we invest consistent time alone with God.  The more we are with our Heavenly Father, the more our spirit is revived.  You see, God alone “gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.  Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint” (Isa. 40:29-31).

Let me assure you that none of us are fighting this battle all-alone.  Cling tightly to God’s promise when He says, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest” (Exod. 33:14).  Stop trying to figure it out on your own.  Stop relying on yourself, or self-help methods, or the unbiblical advice of others.  We’ve tried those avenues countless times before and they never work - right?  So, what makes us believe this time is the magic bullet?  This time is different?  The very definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results.  We need to learn to “be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him” (Psa. 37:7) because only He is our “place of quiet retreat” (Psa. 119:114).

How, then, do we find this rest?  Isaiah said, God keeps in perfect peace the man whose mind is steadfast – completely focused upon Him (Isa. 26:3).  The rest you and I need is found only in God and is realized only when we place all of our trust and confidence in the God who “gives strength to the weary” (Isa. 40:29).  Only as you lean fully on the One who “will satisfy the weary soul” (Jer. 31:25) will you experience a perfect (complete) peace.

As I daily come to Christ for my strength and help, it is important that I understand “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.  HE makes me lie down in green pastures, HE leads me beside quiet waters, HE restores my soul.  HE guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.  Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for GOD is with me; His rod and His staff comfort me.  GOD prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  He anoints my head with oil; my cup overflows.  Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever” (Psa. 23:1-6).

So, the next time you are faced with temptation, the next time you battle with the desire to lust - to look at porn, the next time you struggle with the urge to masturbate, remember what Paul says in Philippians 4:6-7  ...  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus”

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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.