Rom 8:6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,
Rom 8:7 because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,
Rom 8:8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

I would have to say that one of the biggest wrestling matches in my life is the one between me and my flesh. Not a day goes by where something doesn’t trigger me and my fleshly desires want to take over. There are a ton of things that cause this, and reading God’s word helps me to see that I am not alone in this battle.

1Pe 2:11 Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.

Eph 2:3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

Luk 21:34 “Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap;

The more I dive into God’s word the less I struggle with the desires of the flesh that battle within me. Being enslaved to the bondage of sin is a miserable place to be and the freedom from the slavery of sin is the freedom that can only be found in Christ. So, as I meditate on these verses today I am encouraged in several ways.

• First: I am not alone in my struggles against the flesh.
• Second: I will be victorious when I set my desires in the things of the Spirit.
• Third: Christ has set me free from the “yoke of slavery.”

Gal 5:1 It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.

Gal 5:16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
Gal 5:17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.

2Ti 2:22 Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

Lord, I pray that you will protect my heart from fleshly desires. I want to be a pleasing vessel to you. I know sometimes I will trip up and I ask for you to please forgive me when I do. Thank you Lord for being patient with me and loving me in spite of my stupid choices.