Overcoming LustExemplo

Thought-Control

When Jesus teaches about adultery in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:27-30), He differentiates between the physical act of adultery, which is an action, and lust, which occurs “in the heart.”

Our heart, mind, thoughts, and emotions are all interconnected. Lust exists as a feeling and a thought pattern. We want to overcome not just our lustful actions but our lustful thoughts as well.

Did you know the Bible tells us we can actually control our thoughts?

Think about a purple elephant. Now, an orange tractor. Now, a green octopus. Now, a yellow dog.

See? You easily made your thoughts create all those images. You controlled them entirely.

We can’t stop every lustful thought that pops into our heads, of course. Thoughts regularly come out of nowhere, welcome or not.

We can, however, control whether we let our minds continue in that direction or whether, like in our exercise above, we redirect them to something more noble (Philippians 4:8).

One great big way we can guide our thoughts as it relates to lust is to rethink of women as…women.

Not as an object in our imagination for our pleasure. But a real, live human being, a woman who God created on purpose and whom He loves dearly.

Paul wrote to Timothy that he should look at older women as if they were his mom and younger women as if they were his sister (1 Timothy 5:1-2).

Feeling sexual attraction towards an attractive woman is a pretty typical male initial response.

Feeling sexual attraction towards your mom or sister is not.

God redefines man’s relationship with women into one of love, respect, and family, and not of self-centered physical desire.

Lust happens when we dehumanize women and turn them into objects in our minds for our enjoyment. We can easily shift our thoughts away from this at will, and instead actively choose to view them as the daughters that our Father has created, who are worthy of so much more dignity than whatever our minds might conjure up for our pleasure.

When our thoughts begin to go places they shouldn’t, godly men pull them away and focus on something better and purer. Like physical exercise, this mental muscle strengthens, and the effort gets easier over time.

It is a most worthy endeavor and no doubt pleases our Father in Heaven.

Prayer: Lord, let my every thought be captive to You. May I see all women the way You see them, with the care You hold for them. When my thoughts stray, give me the strength and discipline to redirect them. Renew my thoughts and make them holy. Amen.

Reflection: Choose a simple biblical phrase, like “God is love” or “Holy is the LORD.” When your thoughts start to wander today, in any way, reflect on that phrase, mentally repeating it over and over again and using it to bring your thoughts back to God.