What if I've already sinned so much that it's impossible to change?

Many Christians let their past failures accumulate to the point where they have a hard time resisting temptation. They think, "What difference would one more sin make?"

There's a way to beat that. 2 Cor 5:17 says, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come."  That's a beautiful statement, but God alsosays, "you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus." (Rom 6:11)

We ARE new creations. We ARE dead to sin. But we have to actually believe it—we have to consider it, buy into it, and act in faith on that. Do you really consider yourself as dead to sin? If not, start today. 

When should I stop getting drunk?

Boy oh boy, God is a heavy hitter when it comes to His people. Take a look at this gauntlet that He throws down in front of us and tell me if ya like it! I know that I thought it was flat-out impossible and insane for a while:

"For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries.  In all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same excesses of dissipation, and they malign you." (1 Pet 4:3-4)

So God just tells it like it is, huh? There are no excuses! Time's up, now move on into Godliness! By the way, my main point for this is actually that, if you have bad habits and stop, you might see your old party/sin buddies get kinda mean. Guess what! That's a good thing. Time to make new buddies! And it's a sign that you're growing. If the old crew doesn't see a change in you, you've got a problem! :)

I can watch as much porn as I want!

Something awesome about being a Christian is that I can do home and watch as much porn as I want. I can drink as much alcohol as I want!  Wait, are you confused? Is this some grace-type post? Nope! It's even better.

The Psalmist pleaded, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me!" (51:10)  So beautifully, God promised in Ezekiel, "Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh." (36:26)

That new heart is invaluable. 20 years after starting in AA, an alcoholic will introduce himself as still being an alcoholic—the desire is still there.  As Christians, God's power can change our very desires, if we embrace it. We can go home and think, "There is no way that I'd want to drink. There's no way I'd want to ever watch porn!" Our heart can feel sick at the very thought. And that is a huge blessing. 

An unbeatable sin?

Ever had a sin that was SUPER tough to beat, maybe UNBEATABLE? Wait! Even though Goliath was MUCH bigger, more imposing, and super tough, David did not concoct some "special Goliath plan." To do so would actually be to honor the enemy. Nope! All sins are to be understood and processed through David's simple logic with Goliath: Dishonor to God. Affront to God. It must die; cut its head off.

Don't elevate sin's power by making is some super-special thing. God says it's nothing but what's common to man, and He provides a way of escape. When stuff is really clobbering us, we want to make excuses not to fight it, just like people would try to not fight Goliath. "It's too hard to beat. I'm not ready. I don't have the tools."

Don't do that. Knocking out the big ones does something special. You see, after David lopped Goliath's head off, "the Philistines saw that their champion was dead and they fled." (1 Sam 17) So take on that Hulk of a sin in your life and realize how empowered that conquering it will make you! Knock out the big ones and the rest will start toppling like dominoes.

"See the young man sittin' in the old man's bar, waitin' for his turn to die."

"See the young man sittin' in the old man's bar, waitin' for his turn to die." That's a line from the Goo Goo Dolls' song, "Broadway," and I think it's ultimately tragic, because it's ultimately true. Millions and millions are living their lives with just one ultimate goal: death, decay; dust. It is sadly true when God says,

"For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. Their love and their hate and their envy have already perished, and forever they have no more share in all that is done under the sun." (Eccl 9:5-6)

As Christians, we need to see the plight of those who, though they are sad for the moment in grief over a lost loved one, or happy drinking and partying with friends, are really simply waiting for their turn to die. We need to get out of our comfort zones and show them the spiritual reality behind this physical facade because, "the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (1 Cor 1:18)

Coefficient of Spiritual Friction

 Have you ever, in your heart of hearts, felt like you should be out making new Christians? Felt like your Christian life is going nowhere, but you know that it can reach the stars? Felt like you just can't get it moving for some reason?

Ever tried to push some heavy object across a floor—a box, a fridge, or somethin'—and it doesn't budge at first, but then all of a sudden it's like something releases and it moves forward with very little exertion on your part? In physics, that's called the coefficient of friction. A certain amount of force has to be applied before the object being pushed seems to "unlatch" and move forward.

The same is true with our spiritual lives. Jesus said, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." (Mt 4:19) Once we apply enough pressure to get your spiritual shows on the road, THEN we can start being fishers of men and seeing results. And you want to know what's awesome about applying that pressure to get it moving? You've got plenty of brothers and sisters ready to help you push forward! Go for it!