I held one of my sons as he wept over his sin this week. His heart was grieved that he had grieved the heart of God.
I understood.
And we talked about learning to stand against temptation and refusing to listen to the lies of the enemy. We spoke of the temporary gain of sin that ultimately ends in loss. We remembered that God has called us to holiness, because He is holy.
And then I gave him this encouragement....it will get worse before it gets better.
"The enemy thinks he has you now, thinks he knows that you will play into his hand. He will come again, and soon, and he will whisper for you to agree with him and partner with him in the very act that has made you cry. And you will need to fight to be free of him. You will need to stand firm. And when he comes again, you will need to stand firm again. And again. And again. Until he knows you will not play by his rules. And do you know what else you can do to beat him? You can come to me, or to your Daddy, and tell us. And we will pray with you. We will pray together that you will be able to stand and fight and win."
Just today, it happened. He told me immediately when he got in the car after school. "I was tempted, Mom. I stood firm, though."
And with that, his sword grew a little steadier in his hand.
"Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you (James 4:7). Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective (James 5:16)."
