When we think of discernment, especially Godly discernment, we tend to dispense this tool to the everyday, obvious things. Things like our career aspirations: “God, is this career path for me or is another?” or “God, is this relationship the one you want me to pursue or continue to be in, romantically or platonically?”. But I believe the part of discernment that is overlooked at times is discernment of ourselves. We tend to want to know which direction we should go, is this or that for us, and a multitude of other things along those lines but what about ourselves? I believe, at times, we should be asking God or seeking discernment for us. Are we upright in our everyday lives, and are we conducting ourselves as children of God should be? Most notably, what are our limits as Christians when it comes to what we can partake in and how much of it?
When we all came to God truly and accepted Christ in our hearts, we all experienced a form of transformation in some form or another. In that moment the shackles to our old sinful nature were broken and we finally had power to shut down the bridge to our fleshly seeking desires, especially the ways or addictions that continually tripped us up and separated us from God before we truly accepted Christ. But just because we have given our lives to Christ, and have new ones, with new and more holy desires (2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT) doesn’t mean our old sinful man don’t try to cross back over the bridge the Holy Spirit in us closed. Apostle Paul details his own battle with sin, that we all as believers in Christ still endure no matter how great the titles we hold, how long we’ve been in the faith, nor how strong we believe we may be. All who still inhabit this fallen world grapple with the daily battle that is sin itself – a battle we face until we take our last breath. Apostle Paul states in (Romans 7:15-20 NLT) that:
“I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong.”
As Christians our lives should mirror Christ himself (2 Corinthians 3:18). This doesn’t mean the very moment we gave our lives to Christ, all of our bad habits went away instantaneously, but the power they previously had over us all did. Every day we are dying to ourselves.
The greatest thing God ever did for me, that made me realize there is a God, is He delivered me from my porn addiction. Porn addiction was my master for almost a decade, it had a hold on me that I saw no solution to except to continue in it. When God delivered me from this addiction my need for it went away, but that didn’t mean my fleshly hunger for it did. That’s the thing about all the things God has or currently is working out of us, if left unchecked, they can easily slip back into the very places God banished them from if we don’t discern our limits and triggers. When I got saved, I was shocked to realize my fleshly man still hungered for my old ways. I naively thought once God saved me, they went away. I realized when I watched certain shows, partook in behaviors and activities that weren’t feeding me in the most spiritual of ways, my hunger for my old self and its desires grew and my will to deny them dwindled. I had to discern and consciously set my limits to save myself from sin, to protect my soul.
I believe we all have a battle: a battle of saying yes to the things we mean to say no to, and a battle of saying no to the things we fleshly desire to say yes to. Ultimately we all have to make that choice day in and day out. The more we know, the more prepared we shall be (Proverbs 9:10). The more we continue to grow in God the more we realize some things we just can’t do or as much of as we used to, due to it bringing out old fleshly man and its nature to a certain degree. Our love for God and ultimately all that God has done for us, makes us not want to revert back to those old ways and behaviors (1 John 3:9-10). I pray and hope we are all able to discern and realize our limits, by the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.
