“In all labor there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury.” Proverbs 14:23

Recently, Brother Louis made a statement in conversation that has continued to echo through my thoughts. “You will become what you are becoming.” In other words, talk(desire) is good, but desire alone will never achieve anything. This principle is helpful in explaining common frustration with overcoming sin. Notice the oft-repeated pattern:

• I recognize my sin as sin.
• I want to change.
• I pray for grace.
• I fall back into the sin.
• I want to change.
• I pray for grace.

As you can see, talk (desire) tends to failure. The pattern is a Ferris wheel with no exit. The grace of God, however, involves more than just desire. It equips the child of God to overcome sin by adding God’s prescription of labor to desire. Notice the difference:

• I recognize my sin as sin.
• I desire change.
• I recognize my inability to change and my great need.
• I confess my sin to God and to those who can help. (Matthew 5:3, Proverbs 28:13, Galatians 6:1)
• I seek accountability. (Galatians 6:1, James 5:16)
• I refuse to wallow in self-loathing while believing and holding on to the power of God’s forgiving and transforming grace (Romans 6, Romans 8)
• I radically cut off access to my sin (Matthew 5:29,30)
• I recognize my need for God’s word and immerse myself in it. (I Peter 2:1,2; Matthew 4:4, John 15:4,5)
• When I fall, I do not justify; I immediately confess and return to God (I John 1:9)