When Undesirable Calls

Jeremiah 30:17 "But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds," declares the LORD. Why do we allow ourselves to be brought down by things that are undesirable? Let's take temptation for an example. Why do we flirt with temptation when we honestly want nothing to do with what it is offering? Or what about a situation that has hurt you. Why do we constantly dwell, re-live, or attempt to handle situations that we have been trying over and over again to get rid of? We know that we want nothing to do with those undesirable thoughts, but we continue to accept the undesirable.

You might be saying, "What do you mean by undesirable?".

Well... undesirable is anything that does nothing but damage, that haunts, that we understand brings us down, but we accept it anyway. Synonyms include: Unwelcome, objectionable, and unwanted. Why does it seem that we as humans always fall so easily into these undesirable traps? To answer is a puzzle that will only get harder to solve when we try to figure it out by ourselves... that is if we try to figure it out without asking for help from the Lord. What would happen if we try to figure it out with help from the Lord? What is the best way to directly attack the things that bring us down?

Well lets see...

I think of this situation like a spiritual war... On one side you know that you want NOTHING to do with it... but on the other side you are so desperate, that ANYTHING that might help in any way (even though it will hurt more than build up) you will accept it. I think of this side as the side of Satan. If you know anything about Satan, then you will know that it's never easy to directly go head to head with him, especially when alone. Satan will use ANYTHING to take away one's solid faith in the Lord. So what shall one do the next time the undesirable calls? I came up with three steps that I believe will help truly get rid of the undesirable.

Step 1.) ADDRESS the undesirable head on! (Remember the four A's...)

1. Admit to the Lord what's going on (although of course the Lord already is well aware of what's going on, but by talking to God and confessing it out loud, we will hear it thus making us more aware. The more that one is aware of a spiritual attack... the greater chance of overcoming).
2. Ask the Lord for help (to simplify... let the Lord know that one is aware that the fight can't be fought alone and help is NEEDED).
3. Allow the Lord to heal your mind (but even through this, NEVER let your guard down for a minute, remember... temptation is a spiritual attack that will try... and try... and try till one gives in!)
4. Accept that the situation is in the Lord's hands (once the healing hand of the God has gotten rid of the undesirable that is pulling your eyes, mind, and/or heart away from the Lord... let it go! The worst thing one can do is bring back up in their mind what just has happened. Even if you think that the undesirable is gone for gone... you can never think that. NEVER let your guard down.

Step 2.) REMOVE ANYTHING that is bringing back up the undesirable!

- The Bible goes into extremes when talking about getting away from anything that is unpleasing to the Lord. Honestly, anything that is taking you away from focus on the Lord isn't needed, thus it is not only undesirable to you... but also undesirable to the Lord. For example, in the case of adultery the bible states in Matthew 5:29,

"If your right eye causes you to stumble, gauge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. "

I would say, based on this verse, that if ANY thought, object, memory, person, etc. is causing you to lose sight (no matter how small), then you MUST FLEE and surrender it to the Lord. For it is doing nothing but allowing something undesirable to rise and take control of you.

Step 3.) Accept RECOVERY not Relief...

- It is much easier when confronted with something undesirable to give in and let it take one over.

This is one part were I constantly fail. Once one understands that the undesirable thought, temptation, etc. is only there to please our own selfish desires (or "wants"), one can truly seek true satisfaction for what is missing.

Today's world is based on relief... got a headache?.. take an aspirin... hungry?... hop in the car and get some fast food... Tired of being unhealthy?... buy the newest pill that tricks your body and continue doing what you are doing. Point is? Through all of these situations, none of the TRUE problems were addressed! One didn't think about WHY a headache is there, and that the reason that they have become unhealthy is because of what is being put into their body followed by doing the same things! Haven't you heard that if one does the same actions... then they get the same results? So although these examples are almost comical, they are PERFECT ILLUSTRATIONS of relief vs. recovery!

Here are the differences... Let's just simply take a look at their definitions... Relief-The easing of a burden or distress, such as pain, anxiety, or oppression. Recovery- A return to a normal condition.

So It comes down to this, what are you willing to settle for? Other people, things, pleasures to temporarily provide relief?

Or

We are going to begin to go to the Lord and depend on him to provide long-term recovery...

So what do we do when undesirable calls? We address it, we remove it, then (last but definitely not least) we allow the Lord to recover us. The Lord desires our all... but it is impossible to give him our all when we allow something that is undesirable (to ourselves and the Lord) to take pieces of us. Take enough of something, and over time, there will be nothing left. I pray that the Lord heals us from the inside out.

Remember... Only you can break the chains that bind... but only the Lord can destroy them. Nothing has chained you except what is common to man. Allow your chains to be gone, allow the Lord to set you free.

Jeremiah 30:17 "But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds," declares the LORD.