Today\u2019s devotional might be one of the most important of all. Please, read it with alertness and a reflective heart.
When people fall into the temptation of watching porn, it doesn\u2019t just happen suddenly. There\u2019s a mental battle that begins. It could last for minutes, sometimes hours, or even days\u2014before the fall finally happens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most people aren\u2019t aware of this battle until they\u2019ve already given in and said, \u201cI\u2019m just going to watch it.\u201d<\/em> The real battle isn\u2019t about lust first. It\u2019s about identity<\/strong>\u2014the mindsets you secretly believe about yourself. Here are some common phrases people tell themselves before they relapse:<\/strong> These are harsh words you wouldn\u2019t want someone to say to themselves \u2014 yet, you probably do. You must fix this, too. \ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffd Prayer<\/strong> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Today\u2019s devotional might be one of the most important of all. Please, read it with alertness and a reflective heart.When people fall into the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4607,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-devotional"],"acf":{"choi\u0441e_menu_page":"global_settings","full_width":false,"header_transparent":false,"header_white":false,"menu_type_page":"default","menu_align_page":"default"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4539"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4539\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5350,"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4539\/revisions\/5350"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4607"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therootcourse.com\/devotional\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
And from that moment, their mind becomes strangely calm. They could go hours without watching, but in their heart, they\u2019ve already surrendered.
Even if they get busy with other things, nothing will stop them from watching it later.
I\u2019ve discovered the devil\u2019s secret strategy and it\u2019s what he uses to weaken most people during this mental tug-of-war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These are not words you\u2019d say out loud, but quiet lies you\u2019ve believed deep inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSomething is wrong with me.\u201d
\u201cI can\u2019t change.\u201d, \u00a0I can never change
\u201cI\u2019m a failure.\u201d
\u201cI hate myself.\u201d, I deserve to hate myself,
\u201cI\u2019m hopeless.\u201d
\u201cI\u2019m not good enough.\u201d
\u201cI\u2019m unseen and forgotten.\u201d
\u201cNobody likes me.\u201d
\u201cIf people knew the real me, they\u2019d reject me.\u201d
\u201cI\u2019ve never been good with discipline.\u201d
\u201cMy stupid brain is addicted to porn.\u201d
\u201cI\u2019m worthless.\u201d
\u00a0I’m a loser,
I’m\u00a0ugly\u00a0, I’m unattractive,
\u201cI deserve a break.\u201d
\u201cIf I can\u2019t do this perfectly, I can\u2019t do this at all.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For me, the biggest one was: \u201cI\u2019m not good enough.\u201d<\/strong>
At that point in my life, I had taken so many bold steps to build something I believed God had called me to do.
But after years of effort and little to show for it, I began to doubt myself.
That doubt opened the door for shame, and shame always pushes us back toward sin.
When I realized that this was the devil\u2019s trap \u2014 the mindset that kept me going back to porn \u2014 condemnation lost its power<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You must be kind to yourself.
Speak only what is true about who God says you are.
God has so much in store for you, and an addiction to porn is not the end.
You are loved.
You are seen.
You are not a failure.
And the God who started your healing will finish it.
\ud83e\udde0 Reflection<\/strong>
What thoughts about yourself have you silently agreed with that God never said?
Which of those lies seem small but quietly drain your strength each time temptation comes?
Take a moment to list them \u2014 then ask, \u201cWhat does God actually say about me?\u201d<\/em>
You\u2019ll notice the difference.
Freedom begins where truth replaces the lies<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Father, help me see myself the way You see me.
Expose every lie I\u2019ve believed and replace it with Your truth.
When condemnation whispers, remind me of Your grace.
When weakness speaks, remind me of Your strength.
Teach me to be kind to myself and to fight with Your words, not my feelings.
In Jesus\u2019 Name, amen.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n