She Refused to Play Along
Theme of the Week: Avoiding the Samson Trap
Mark Johnson
Monday, April 30, 2007
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Key Bible Verse: Once we, too, were foolish, disobedient … slaves to many wicked desires and evil pleasures (Titus 3:3).Bonus Reading: Judges 14:1-7
Through his 20s "Stan" struggled with compulsive trips to gay bars. He recommitted to the Lord just before asking "Connie" to marry him; that way, he figured, he would not experience these impulses.
Stan knew what being a Christian was supposed to look like. To maintain that image and keep God satisfied, he got up early to pray and got rid of his pornographic magazines. Still, Stan frequently snuck adult videos home about sexual liaisons between men. He started finding male prostitutes on the side.
Connie never suspected, and his church attendance never faltered. But Stan became more sexually demanding of Connie. His sin nature insisted that if she'd excite him more, he wouldn't need to act out homosexually. One night Connie refused to play along, sayng he had a real problem.
Facing the truth, Stan's heart softened into genuine sorrow. A sense of forgiveness came with prayer. Connie stuck by Stan. He began to talk openly with her. He joined a support group to help homosexuals find Christ-centered solutions. As Stan read God's Word daily, it came alive.
—Mark Johnson in How to Succeed Where Strong Men Fail
My Response: What sin do I wrestle with? Who will help me confess and conquer it?
Adapted from How to Succeed Where Strong Men Fail (Shaw, 1997) by permission.
Copyright © 2007 by the author or Christianity Today/Men of Integrity magazine.Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity.
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