Tag: God’s temple

Posted in Beyond Comfort Zone, CONTROLLING SELF, Motivation, Uplifting Christ

Day 2: Breaking Free from Addictions

Posted on by Uplifting Christ

The one who practices sin [separating himself from God, and offending Him by acts of disobedience, indifference, or rebellion] is of the devil [and takes his inner character and moral values from him, not God]; for the devil has sinned and violated God’s law from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3:8, AMP)

Jesus came to destroy the works of the enemy. This is the good news we have as believers. Addictive behavior roots from a pattern we programme on our mind. Then it becomes something we do, sometimes, unconsciously. We may not even realize how it affects or hurts people around us, especially when all we care about is satisfying that short term desire. For instance a spouse who cheats on the other cares more about how to satisfy his/her sexual desires than how the other feels. It hurts God too that is why Jesus came to pave a way for us to be free.

As stated in Day 1, it’s not just about more sugar, smoke, caffeine, sex, drug, etc but it’s about looking at the broader picture; how the enemy wants to destroy your special gifts, talents, purpose, strength, and/or your body.

God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. (1 Cor 3:17, NLT)

  • 3 Remedies to Consider in dealing with Addiction:
  1. Commit to Prayer:
    • The first step is to commit to prayer and fasting. This is a battle between the Spirit and the Flesh. In effect, the more you feed the spirit, the more you subdue the flesh and its desires.
    • Prayer is one way to grow spiritually. Talk God about the struggle you face with the habit(s) and let him know your willingness to change. He will answer your request and give you more strength to win.
    • Fasting will help you discipline the body and it’s very good spiritual exercise
  2. Commit to His Word:
    • The Psalmist said “I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11, NLT) Get to know the Word and what it says about your situation. Always remember that The Word will help you to win when the tempter comes.
    • Study the word daily and read more materials that will help you grow deeper in His Word. The more you study, the clearer you begin to see answers to your challenge
  3. Guard your Thought:
    • Leave no [such] room or foothold for the devil [give no opportunity to him]. (Ephesians 4:27, AMPC)
    • Every behavior starts with a thought. yeah! some small voice that prompt you that it’s time.
    • This thought becomes a foothold for the enemy to act. But as you pray and study God’s word, pray that the Holy Spirit helps you change you into a new person by changing the way you think.
    • A quick way to deal with negative thought is to replace with a good one. Therefore when the nudge comes, quickly run to the Word and direct the feeling to something positive.

Handle One day at a Time:

Do your Best each day and keep track of your progress. If you slip along the road, don’t give up. Maintain your composure and move forward. At the end of the day, it’s not about how many times you fell but about how you successfully finished your race. You can be Free. It’s just a decision away. Maybe I can help, why not send mail; upliftingchrist@gmail.com

Posted in Beyond Comfort Zone, CONTROLLING SELF, Safe with Jesus, Uplifting Christ

Day 1: Breaking Free from Addictions

Posted on by Uplifting Christ

Everyone has something to deal with, right? at least one thing, a thorn that is stuck in the flesh, that saps your energy. Sometimes you wish that you never had them but it is what it is.

You can be Free. It’s a choice, a decision

What have you been dealing with in your life? You may not be proud about it and probably knock yourself hard. Hey! calm down because I have been there before. And dozens of people have been through what you are dealing with.

I remember the many times I woke up in the morning, with tears running down my cheeks hoping I never had to do that. My story was a bit complicated because I had multiple addictions. But I will focus on energy drinks today.

The desire to have at least once daily was strong. I know the names of-head; Lucozade, Red bull, Blue Jeans, Monster, Rockstar, Boost, etc. I would have two to three cups of black coffee in a day, and topped it up with my can(s) of energy drink. Did I need extra energy for anything? No. It was just a habit I had developed and it was weighing me down. I knew too much Caffeine wasn’t good for my health but I couldn’t help it till I made a firm stand to replace that habit with good one.

It was fun when I found 49p drink, a substitute for red bull @ £1.18
  • Broader View of Addiction

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself. (1 Cor 6:19, NLT)

Being addicted to negative behavior(s) has effect on the body. And the scripture says that your body is God’s temple. God needs people for his assignments on earth and your body is an instrument through which He can operate. The enemy knows this too so his smart move is to entice you into doing things that will either destroy your body or make body unworthy for God’s assignment.

  • 3 ways Addiction impacts you:
    1. It destroys your body, which is God’s temple: Addictive behavior(s) gradually affect your physical health and spiritual being. 
    2. It distracts you from your main purpose: That is Energy and resources needed to be highly productive is wasted on dealing with guilt and repairs. Your focus will gradually shift from what’s truly important.
    3. It distant you from God. That is you tend to feel unqualified to be in His presence. The wider the gap, the more vulnerable you become.

Therefore its not just about the bottles of alcohol, or boxes of chocolate, or grams of sugar, or quantity of caffeine, or number of smoke, or sex, or porn, or gossip, drug, etc but its about how satan wants to destroy your precious body.

  • What happens when you destroy God’s temple?

God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. (1 Cor 3:17, NLT)

In my next post, I will talk about three things you can do to help curb satan’s ways/tricks to destroy your body. God bless you

https://youtu.be/uKrLg1AC9Pw
Posted in CONTROLLING SELF, HOLY SPIRIT, SOUL FOOD

YOUR BODY, GOD’S TEMPLE

Posted on by Uplifting Christ

  “Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” Genesis 2:7

God has designed your body to be His temple; a place where He lives. So often we go to church to worship God, praise His holy name, adore Him, etc. All is good but we should also remember that God doesn’t live in physical structures. “…the Most High does not live in houses made by men” Acts 7:48  He lives in us. Most Ministers of the Gospel spend millions designing the church but pay little or no attention to how members of the church live their lives. My body is His temple, so is yours. the bible says “for we are the temple of the living God. As God has said; “I will live in them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

Friends, God lives in us. He is with us everywhere we go. He feels our pains. He knows our sorrows. He sees our cry, and it isn’t as if He can’t perform the miracles we need. He wants us to communicate with Him every minute and second. The truth is most of us were brought up to believe that the church is the best place to pour our needs to God. Some of us go to church almost 7 days just to tell God what they need. “My people perish for lack of knowledge.”  I am not against church going. In fact, I love going to church. David said “I was glad when they said unto me let us go to the house of the Lord”

Today, know that God is within you and He wants to have one-on-one relationship with you. He wants you to ask, seek and knock personally. He is your Heavenly Father and knows what you need before you even ask. See Him as a loving Father who is ready to give you what you want.

If you see God as a God, He will be a God to you. However, if you see Him as a loving father, He will be a father to you. As He lives in you, and works in you, He expects you to keep the temple clean. God is neat. He wants to live in a clean environment. He wants you to present your body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to  Him. He considers that as your spiritual act of worship.

Its easy to say “this place is dirty. I can’t sleep here, eat here, and entertain visitors here”. We love decent and clean surroundings. God wants the same from us. Where would He live if we destroy His temple with sin? God is holy. On the cross of Calvary, He couldn’t look at Jesus because of our sins. He hates sin. And if we continue to destroy His temple, He will destroy us. In 1 cor 3:17 “If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; For God’s temple is Sacred, and you are that temple.” Satan knows this that is why he makes us sin conscious to keep us sinning. If you are sin conscious, you become a slave to sin.

In these last days, among the things satan uses to destroy God’s temple is sexual immorality, worldly songs, and lying on phone. On the internet, tv, magazines, radio, our communication, etc. Everything is corrupt. Hollywood has painted the picture that one way to show our love is through intimacy. It has also design clothes that show almost every  part of the body. Music has power. God loves music and lucifer is aware. Instead of using our potentials to sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in our hearts to God, we do the opposite which hurt the Father when He sees from above. Lastly, lying on phone is the order of the day. Some of us, including Ministers of God lie on phone all the time. “The lips of truth shall be established for ever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment.” Proverbs 12:19. “The Lord detests lying lips.” Proverbs 12:22. The scripture encourages us to “come out from them and be separate”1 cor 6:17. we don’t have to live like the rest of the world because God lives in us.

Friends, since we know that God is our father and He lives in us, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God. God loves you. When your fellow human breaks your heart, the pain is so intense that you find it hard to forgive. God loves you. He gave His only son to demonstrate His love for you and me. We have broken His heart so many times in our ignorance. Now we know. If you continue to destroy His temple, your body, He will destroy you in the eternal lake of fire