The Greatest Illusion- My Sin Isn't That Bad Day 4

We watched a video in our youth group in the early 2000s. Think of this video as something that was grainy even in the 2000s, as I am sure it was old even then! The video starts with runners lining up at the starting line on a track.  As the gun sounded, the students started running, and some stopped the race and went off to go into the party scene, some ran off for a boyfriend/girlfriend, some for food, some for shopping, and on and on. Only one of the students stayed on the track and managed to get all the way through the race of temptations. When it came time to hand out the trophy, the runner who made it through did not get onto the podium. Surprised, the runner saw another person who never even lined up on the track get the trophy. The announcer let the runner know that the true runners avoided the pull of temptation all together.

Jesus is not being literal, he is making a point. The best defense is a good offense.


If social media is eating up all your time, delete your account. If you are struggling with money or credit card debt, delete the app that you keep spending money at. Don't walk around the TJ Maxx in your free time, or cut up the credit card all together. If it is alcohol, don’t even go get food in the same place that serves it. Remove yourself from the race with temptation.

The most important part of trying to win any game or battle is having a plan, stick to the plan, and whatever you do, don’t try to do it alone.

This is one of the most important parts of why the Church was created. Yes, we are on a mission to share the gospel with everyone, but it is hard to do that if we are constantly battling the sinful desires of our hearts. (Seems like maybe the Devil has a game plan, maybe we should also!)

If you are not a part of a life group, you should be! Find a group that you can trust to share your heart with, your struggles, and they can be praying for you and help with accountability.

f you are not in a lifegroup, then you are not receiving the blessing of having others carry your burden, and you are removing the blessing for yourself, since you can't help carry the burdens in the group without being there!

God,
Help us to face our sin head on by making a plan, finding a life group to help us carry the burden, and lean more every day on you. Help us to be brave, share the struggles, and by getting the sin out of the darkness, allowing it to no longer grow. We know you work all things for good, and trust you to take our fear of judgment and rejection, and turn it into the stepping stone for others to also be brave.