Monday 24 June 2013

Flames of the Flesh

Hands on fire

Source: Lydia Kang

Have you ever put your hands over a lit candle? or your hands mistakenly came in contact with an open fire. The results are burnt hands, swollen skin, wearing of the flesh and increased chances of infection. I remember when I was younger, my mom always warned me to stay away from open fire so that I don't get burnt but the look of fire was so attractive with its orange highlights and yellow roots that I could not stop going closer, trust me I got burnt.

Job 31:11-12- Such wickedness should be punished by death. It would be like a destructive, hellish fire, consuming everything I have. 

Lust in Society

In modern society, the idea of lust is promoted through the media, peer groups, schools, friends and family. The influence from these social institutions makes it seem that, the use of uncontrolled  lust is part of human life and if you are not indulging in this activity, then you are a deviant. Firstly, the definition of lust needs to be understood so that we would not be mislead with the wrong thoughts or misconceptions.Lust is an intense sexual desire or craving for a sexual partner or it is an overmastering desire or craving for something or someone. This definition has given an insight in what I am about to say. Lust is like fire when controlled and used wisely, it will be a useful tool that produces good results and when uncontrolled it will result in fatal conditions, it will burn and destroy you. Lust is not limited to sexual desires but the desire or craving to gain power, become rich, be famous and have acceptance in what so ever you are doing.Therefore, let no one tell you that lust is restricted to sexual immorality and as most religious institutions portray it to be in their sermons. God made Adam and Eve, he told them to increase and multiply and when they disobeyed the Lord. He punished Eve by increasing the pain of child birth even in his anger, he showed love because once a woman bears a child, the joy of seeing her offspring will make her forget the pain it took her to bear her child.

Genesis 3:16- The Lord said to woman, ''I will increase your pain in pregnancy and giving birth to a child. In spite of this, you will still have desire for your husband, yet you will be subject to him''.

Even God knows that there is need  for chemistry between man and woman to fulfill his intentions of increase and multiply the number of human beings on earth.Sexual desire is that chemical that unites a man and his wife for the purpose of bearing children and experiencing intimacy in the committed relationship.He expects this activity to be in a committed union of marriage between man and woman but people have misused lust to the point that it has become a deadly sin but lets not forget the serpent is involved in this destruction. In the story of Adam ad Eve, Lust was manifested, when the serpent told Eve to eat of the fruit of the tree of good and evil, he promised her that she would be like God [that she will be as knowledgeable as he is] to know good and evil, because of that, she desired the fruit of the tree even more.For more information on this story: Genesis 3: 1-7. It is clear that lust is not only when you have sexual feelings but when you desire power, fame and fortune and you do anything to achieve your desires. To reflect on the story of Adam and Eve, we could see the evidence of lust on Eve's part but I am not here to judge the first man and woman on earth because the made a mistake and they were deceived by the serpent. However, the main focus of this writing is to highlight the causes and consequences of lust in society.

Issue

I have noticed that most people in society especially teenagers are pressured into premarital sex. This seems like a right of passage from childhood to adulthood for most teenagers and if you resist this widely accepted view, you will be treated like a deviant from society, who is either self-righteous, unattractive to the opposite sex or same sex as the case may be or even a obsolete mind who is unaware of the age they live in . This problem has been an issue for quite a while and sometimes teenagers are advised  that if they will partake in pre-marital sex, they should use protection which I find bittersweet because most parents want to secure their children's future and are aware of the peer pressure and hormones that influences their children into wanting a sex life. Apart from the issue of premarital sex, lust has been manifested in different ways such as constant watching of pornography, masturbation, homosexuality, bestiality to mention but a few. I would like you to know that, I am not speaking about this matter from a high handed position but I would like to share with you, my own views of encountering lust.The issue of lust is to look at it from this point of view, lust is a desire or craving and it is not bad to have desires, lust is like hunger for food, it is not wrong to desire food but it is wrong to eat when you have made an obligation not to eat, it is wrong to lose control over your appetite when your hungry. The issue with lust is the ability to control your desires, these desires are natural after all we are only human and it is inborn in us to desire sex, food, success and some degree of power in society but it is the way we handle these desires that goes along way to measure our level of self-control. However, I am aware that we all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory, we have fallen in are journey towards salvation and it is only by the guidance of the Holy Spirit that we may produce his fruits in our hearts to overcome the burning desire of acting out on uncontrolled lust, that its why, we should pray constantly for the Spirit guidance because we don't know when our bodies would betray our characters. Brothers and Sisters, I urge you to keep your guards up and watch for the time that your purity will be put to the test.  I also, recommend that if you have fallen into the trap of acting out of uncontrolled lust, please talk to someone, don't keep the burden of your guilt in your heart, speak to someone that you trust is understanding and non-judgmental on this matter, someone who will set you towards the right path, don't listen to those who glorify their lust by stating that its a way of life, your sex life should be seen as sacred not a dumping area that any random stranger to drop his waste and if you have no one to talk to, please contact a counselor who would help you in this problem.

Evaluation

The issue of lust for sex, power, fame or recognition should not be kept silent by the social institutions in society. It should be a topic that to be taught in schools, homes, religious centers and even in social media especially the lust for sex that is predominant with young adults who are still in the developing stages of their life . The constant denial of lust as a cardinal feeling in our lives is the sole problem in society were people are afraid of being judged because of their actions, sexual desires is a part of us, it is present in our minds, we shouldn't act like we don't have it or we are evil for having such desires, we should just pray for the guidance from God to exercise self-control in our lives.

In conclusion, I encourage you the readers who are experiencing the insecurity of losing control over your lustful desires to please don't be discouraged but seek help from counselors,  pray to God for guidance and if you want to share your problems please contact me via my Facebook account Click here, I believe that a problem shared is a problem half solved. Most importantly, don't lose faith because of your fall, get up and keep on walking in faith and you would see the changes sooner or later.

Thanks for reading and have a blessed life

Best Wishes,
Peace.







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