"When you are faced with a decision to eat it or not, or buy it or not, what do you do in that split second to make the right decision?"

 

What a great question! A Take Back Your Temple reader emailed it to me last week and in responding to her, I saw quickly that my answer could benefit others. So I decided to turn it into an article.

 

Here is my answer: I speak God's Word at the moment of decision. That is why it is so important that you read the bible, mediate on it, and speak the scriptures. Below, I'll tell you what I say specifically so that you can use God's truth in the moment of truth!

 

Before you even come to that moment though, you must have made up your mind that you want to serve the Lord this day. You affirm every day first thing that you choose to follow the path of life and blessing. If you are still undecided about whether you want to obey God or not, then this won't work.

 

I use words similar to the following to affirm my decision and it is best that you speak them to yourself in the mirror every morning: 

"I've chosen this day that I will serve the Lord. I have chosen life and blessing so that I and my descendants may live. I love the Lord and I cling to Him for He is my life and the length of my days. Thank you Lord for giving me the grace to choose wisely with every decision I make today."

 

If you allow pride to stop you from asking for God's help, then He won't help. Scripture says that "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble (James 4:6)."

 

Because you have already affirmed that you want to follow God's will beforehand, then you can use the wisdom in James 4:7 at the moment of decision:

 

"Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."

 

Speak God's word out loud as follows when tempted:

 

"God, I submit my will to Yours. You are faithful and I believe Your word that says that you will not allow me to be tempted beyond what I am able to bear, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape. Show me the way to escape this temptation. In obedience to You, I will take the escape route you provide. Thank you Lord for your faithfulness (based on 1 Corinthians 10:13)."

 

Then, remove yourself from the temptation or remove the temptation from you!

 

I recommend that you read Matthew 4:1-11 because you will see that Jesus himself spoke God's word to Satan to deal with temptations.

 

In addition, speaking God's word empowers you to control your body's deeds: "For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body (James 3:2)."

 

To look at it another way, if you are able to control what you speak (according to James, the tongue is the hardest part of the body to control), then you can exercise self-control in other areas. So strive to bring your tongue under the control of God's word.

 

Now, a couple of things can impact God word's ability to work in you:

 

• Unbelief: If you don't believe that God's Word is true, then it cannot work for you. So you need faith in the word that you speak. If this is a problem for you, then pray to the Lord to help your unbelief.

 

• Unforgiveness: If you are holding on to unforgiveness or have a bitter heart towards someone, then God's word cannot work for you. Scripture says that you must forgive others so that God can forgive you. If you need God's help to forgive someone who hurt you, then ask for help in prayer.

 

• Anxiety and worry: This can choke the word and make it unfruitful for you. Again, go to the Lord for help. Scripture advises you to cast your cares on Him because He cares for you.

 

Do you see a pattern here? As long as you insist on trying to handle this problem by yourself in pride or continue to obey your fear and flesh, then you will continue to fail.

 

But if you humble yourself and allow God to help you, then you will gain the victory with each choice. And one more word: If you are waiting to feel good in your flesh about making Godly decisions, then you are going to be waiting a long time!

 

Your flesh doesn't like being told "No." It doesn't like self-control of any kind. Often the things that you put off doing are those things that you most NEED to do!

 

Self-control is a fruit of God's Spirit. Keep affirming that you are submitting to God when your flesh complains and eventually, it will get the message. Your new habit will become automatic and God will be glorified! 

Be blessed in Health, Healing, and Wholeness,

 

Kimberly Taylor
Take Back Your Temple
www.takebackyourtemple.com

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