Battling Temptation

I got this brilliant idea from (you guessed it!) Leslie Ludy (Answering the Guy Questions)!

I tried this out, and it really works!

How often are you faced with the temptation, "Wow. Check him out! I wonder what it would be like to date him..." rapidly it escalates into a dreamworld about this person when you're not even sure if he's a Christan. I get hammered with that one ALL THE TIME! Sometimes I just want to say, "Satan, can't you come up with any new tricks?" I can picture him saying back, "But you fall for this one every time!"

There's the rob. As a girl not only trying to save her physical purity for marriage, I'm also trying to save my emotions and heart for my husband. When traps like this pop up, it's SO SO SOOOOO tempting to sit and dream away when what we're really doing is staining our hearts.

I know the above is a problem with which girls struggle; guys on the other hand, I know struggle with physical fantasies more than the emotional. Wanting to look and lust is an extreme battle (as is girl's emotions.)

But... BUT! There is a remedy! It's brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! Doing this will take effort and concentrations, but the rewards are

#1 A closer relationship with God
#2 Stronger, more PURE purity for your spouse
#3 A beautifully threatening weapon against evil

Ready? (It's so simple, I don't know why I never thought about it before!) When you are faced with a temptation with someone of the opposite gender, PRAY. I know it sounds trivial, but trust me when I say IT WORKS!!! Don't pray for the person causing the temptation (that only causes your thoughts to linger and makes the temptation stronger -- I know this from experience!) but instead INTENSIVELY pray for someone you know is having a tough time.

What do I mean when I say pray insensitively? Pray specifically. If you know a family that is having some financial trouble, don't just pray, "Lord, help them, Amen." Pray like, "Lord, this family is having trouble. Help them to earn more money if they need it. Help them to learn to rely more on You if that is your reason for allowing this to happen to them. Please, make sure they have enough food to go around. Let them be able to pay all their bills," etc. Praying out loud helps too.

If you pray like this every time you are faced with a temptation of the mind, you will find yourself so wrapped up in your prayer that the temptation is no longer a temptation AND to be sure, Satan will not be happy to know that his attempts to make you fall turn you into a prayer warrior for Jesus Christ!