Every Christian teen has met Lust.
Lust is the snake slithering through your music, your movies, your social media, and even the hallways of your school. It wraps around you and squeezes tight, filling you with desires you wish you could turn off while simultaneously choking the parts of you that desire to please God. And sometimes fighting Lust makes it squeeze tighter.
In Win The Battle Against Lust: Strategies for Christian Teens (please check it out if you haven’t already), we drew up a strategic plan for fighting Lust using the first four letters of ANTHEM: (A)voiding triggers, saying (N)o to lustful thoughts, (T)urning your mind toward Christ, and (H)olding tight to him. These steps took you away from Lust in the heat of the moment.
But you can’t beat Lust simply by trying harder. You may have overcome it this time, but what about next time? How can you transform your mind so Lust will have a harder time taking hold in the future?
Let’s talk about the final steps of the ANTHEM strategy: (E)njoy a superior satisfaction, and (M)ove on to a useful activity. You’ll learn how to overcome Lust—to cut off its snakelike head and toss its body in the fire—by turning to the source of ultimate pleasure.
Because the secret to overcoming Lust—and any temptation, really—is to desire God more than anything else, and to seek pleasure in him.
Hey, I’m Lauren, author of YA Christian fiction and blogger for teens with higher aim.
In This Article
How to Overcome Lust: Revive Your Love For Christ
Have you ever heard the saying “fight fire with fire” and wondered why anyone would ever do that?
Let me share a little insight.
My brother-in-law used to work for the Bureau of Land Management as a firefighter. Whenever a colossal forest fire broke out in Colorado or California, he was one of the guys sent in to bring it down. But in between fighting fires?
Lust happens like a forest fire. Strike a match—one little trigger—and the whole mind is ablaze.
My brother-in-law was setting them.
In a normal forest, dead grass, fallen branches, and thick undergrowth accumulate over time. Then comes a drought year, and one wayward campfire spark later, the whole forest is ablaze. To prevent this, forest managers use a technique called a controlled burn, where they burn off debris during safer conditions.
Lust happens like a forest fire. Strike a match—one little trigger—and the whole mind is ablaze. Therefore, if you fight fire with fire, then you must fight lust with . . . lust?
As John Piper pointed out in his article ANTHEM: Strategies for Fighting Lust, the reason we turn to lust is because we have so little delight in Christ.
The reason we turn to lust is because we have so little delight in Christ.
“Jesus died for my sins so I can go to heaven?” you say (as you twiddle your thumbs and yawn). “That’s nice. What should I do in the meantime?”
This is the E of “anthem:” Enjoy a superior satisfaction. God is the source of ultimate pleasure. He created us to love him and treasure Christ more than anything else—including sex, steamy movies, erotic novels, or arousing images. If you wish to overcome sexual temptation, you have to start lusting for a deeper relationship with God.
You must desire God more than anything else.
The big question is, how? How do you make yourself want something that, in all honesty, you find kind of routine and . . . boring?
The answer: You can’t. At least, not on your own.
How to Desire God More Than Anything Else
This is one of the oddest yet most beautiful aspects of your relationship with God. Rarely does someone have to force himself to want chocolate or ice cream. But to strongly desire God, you need help from God himself. The sinful nature is hostile to God, and Satan would have you believe that it is impossible to crave the treasures of Christ.
To strongly desire God, you need help from God himself.
In any relationship, whether with a brother, a spouse, or God, do not wait until you feel something before you act in love. In fact, there are times when you might feel numb, bored, or the exact opposite of loving (hence the reason for the high divorce rates today). But that doesn’t mean you can’t ask God to help you feel something.
Beg him for it. Then beg him again, and again, until you desire him more than anything else. He actually wants you to do this!
Bible Verses to Help You Desire God More
Psalm 63 is the perfect picture of someone who desires God more than anything else. Read each of the words slowly, out loud if you can. Then read it again as a prayer. Don’t give up. Study God’s word, meditate on it, and pray until you see him the way he wants you to see him.
More verses on desiring God:
“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? “
Psalm 43:1-2, NIV
“Take pleasure in the Lord, and he will grant your heart’s desires. Commit your way to the Lord. Trust in him, and he will act. He will make your righteousness shine like light, your justice like noon.”
Psalm 37:4-6, EHV
“When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.”
Jeremiah 29:13-14, The Message
You and I were made for so much more than we’ve been desiring. The earthly things we chase will never satisfy like the things God has prepared for us, if only we would ask.
Remove (Or Limit) The Things You Love More Than Him
You might love the socks Grandma knitted you for Christmas, but I hope you love Grandma more. Don’t be tempted to love the gifts more than the giver. There really can be “too much of a good thing” when you put it ahead of your relationship with God.
Pull back on or, if need be, eliminate those things that come between you and him, and follow the strategies of ANTHEM, pressing on with the final one: M, move on to useful activities that don’t put you in temptation’s way. See what kinds of opportunities open up when you desire God more than anything else and take pleasure in Christ!
You don’t have to have all the answers.
But, hey, why not?
Bring me your questions about faith, life, God, the Bible… and I’ll help you find the answers.
Ready to Take Delight in God? Resources for Teens
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Check out these other articles and resources to deepen your relationship with God and take delight in him, giving you a solid foundation for fighting all kinds of temptations.