Clean Thoughts Today's Three-minute Bible Study Print, Study and Apply Title: Clean Thoughts ------------------------------------- Date: 4/17/2002 Keywords: "clean” “motives” “purity" Welcome to eXXit, the web site designed to help you stand strong in the face of sexual temptation. Passage: Proverbs 16:2* All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight, but the Lord weighs the motives. Questions 1. How is your thought life? Do you struggle with unclean images and thoughts?   2. How is your prayer life? Do you think there is a connection between quality of prayer and quality of thought?   Practical help The Apostle Paul makes the point in the book of Romans, chapter 7, that he once was alive in ignorance to God’s law. But once he understood what God expected of him, he immediately recognized that he fell far short. Here is how he put it. “I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died….” You may have come to pornography before you were a Christian. Back then, it seemed like a benign choice that didn’t hurt anyone. Now, as a Christian, you see the world more from God’s vantage point. You see how porn corrupts the people involved as well as those who lust after it. You see the damage to wives and children when husbands and fathers play out their fantasies. And you see Jesus going to the cross to die for those entangled in it. Those who are the center of their own lives live for the gratification of themselves. Those who center their lives on what pleases God live in an atmosphere of love. First they are in a position to understand and receive God’s love for themselves, and secondly, they have the capacity to care for others selflessly. Check your motives today as you consider what are good things to spend your time doing. Remember that, in the end, God will have the final word. Have a great day! eXXit homepage Index of three-minute studies Copyright 2002 by eXXit *"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, © Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission." ---