Turning
Hearts
Today's
Three-minute Bible Study
Print,
Study and Apply
Title:
Turning Hearts-------------------------
Date: 11/9/2002
Keywords:
"Bible" "heart"
Welcome
to eXXit, the web site designed to help you stand
strong in the face of sexual temptation.
Passage:
Psalm 119:33-40*
33. Teach me, O
LORD
, to follow your decrees;
then I will keep them to the end.
34. Give me understanding, and I
will keep your law
and obey it with all my heart.
35. Direct me in the path of
your commands,
for there I find delight.
36. Turn my heart toward your
statutes
and not toward selfish gain.
37. Turn my eyes away from
worthless things;
preserve my life according to your word.
38. Fulfill your promise to your
servant,
so that you may be feared.
39. Take away the disgrace I
dread,
for your laws are good.
40. How I long for your
precepts!
Preserve my life in your righteousness.
Question
Do God's laws seem harsh
and cold to you?
Practical
help
The Bible may seem
outdated, even useless, in today's world.
For us porn strugglers, for
example, there's no explicit discussion of Web smut
sites.
So how are we supposed to
understand the mind of God concerning porn if he
doesn't say boo about it? Maybe we're left to worldly
wisdom to figure our options, because the Bible is
silent about it.
Or is it?
Actually, the Good Book has
plenty to say about the core issues of porn (such as
lust) and even more to say about righteous
alternatives (such as marriage).
It just takes a willing,
inquisitive mind to unlock what the Bible says about
porn and countless other subjects.
Unfortunately, willing,
inquisitive minds are hard to come by.
The writer of the psalm above
knew this all too well. He was incapable of
appreciating God's statutes (another way of saying the
Bible) on his own.
His solution was asking God to
give him an appreciative heart (verse 36). God honored
his request.
God will do the same for us if
we ask.
So if we're bored or confused
about what the Bible says about porn or anything else,
we can ask God to open our eyes.
As with the psalmist above, God
will turn our hearts toward his Holy Word.
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2002 by eXXit
*Scriptures are from The Holy Bible: New International
Version, © Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by
International Bible Society. All rights
reserved.
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