I HAD TO HAVE HER

Now flee from youthful lusts- 2 Timothy 2:22a (NAS)

      "Well, Randy, she’s all mine." Bill said as he kicked back in a a chair and put his feet on Randy's desk. "Who? Your wife?" Randy asked as he looked up from his sermon notes. "Julia!" Bill replied with the biggest grin. "Julia? Who's Julia?" Randy asked a little puzzled?

     "Julia," Bill started to brag, "Is the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen. When I first saw her it was instant love and I knew I had to have her." "Um," Randy injected, " Is Julia a new dog?" " No Way!" Bill laughed, "We already tried the dog thing with Muffy. No. Julia's much more than a dog, she’s what every man should have, and I’ve got her."

     Becoming a little concerned, Randy wondered, "So what does your wife think of her?" "Um," Bill gulped, "She doesn’t know about her but I think the kids might have seen me looking at her once or twice."You know, Bill," Randy said shaking his head, "Things are going to get ugly." "Ugly! No way!" Bill shouted "Not Julia, she’s so, so, sleek looking." Sleek?" Randy quizzed. "Yeah," Bill continued, "Sexy didn’t sound quit right." "I'd say not." Randy said in disgust

     "You know," Bill continued on, "I’d go by and see her everyday at lunch time and, say, maybe you would like to see her." "I'm not sure I would want to." Randy answered. and Bill continued on "Maybe we could even take her fishing." "Fishing?" Randy questioned, "You don’t have a boat." "But I’ve got Julia now," Bill told him, "And can she ever move. She even comes with a depth finder and an underwater camera if I can figure out how to turn them on."

     "Don't you mean 'Her on?''" Randy chortled, "Oh," Bill smiled big, "I know how to turn her on. Her keys are always in the ignition." "Keys in the ignition?!" Randy said a bit puzzled "You need keys to turn her on?" "Of course," Bill replied, "And boy do I love to turn her on." "But you're married!" Randy shouted. " Stunned and a little puzzled by Randy statement, Bill just needed to know, "What does being married have to do with turning on a boat?"

     "I’m not talking about a boat!" Randy said, "I’m talking about Julia, the other woman you’ve been seeing." "Other woman?" Bill answered back, "Julia is the name of my boat." When he heard that, Randy started to laugh, "You bought a boat named Julia? I thought.... Never mind what I thought." But Bill never heard him "Wow! Wow! Wow!" Bill said, "Did you see that boat named Frankie go by? I've got to have that boat." and with that Bill forgot all about Julia and started chasing after Frankie.

     Radio personality Paul Harvey tells the story of how an Eskimo kills a wolf. The account is grisly, yet it offers fresh insight into the consuming, self-destructive nature of sin. "First, the Eskimo coats his knife blade with animal blood and allows it to freeze. Then he adds another layer of blood, and another, until the blade is completely concealed by frozen blood. "Next, the hunter fixes his knife in the ground with the blade up. When a wolf follows his sensitive nose to the source of the scent and discovers the bait, he licks it, tasting the fresh frozen blood. "He begins to lick faster, more and more vigorously, lapping the blade until the keen edge is bare. Feverishly now, harder and harder the wolf licks the blade in the Arctic night. "So great becomes his craving for blood that the wolf does not notice the razor-sharp sting of the naked blade on his own tongue. Nor does he recognize the instant at which his insatiable thirst is being satisfied by his own warm blood. "His carnivorous appetite just craves more - until the dawn finds him dead in the snow!" (Chris T. Zwingelberg, Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations)

     The Oxford dictionary's 1st definition defines it as strong sexual desire and while that is what is often thought of when one thinks of lust, according to Oxford it is also a passionate desire for - something. In the Bible I find it often portrayed as evil desires.

     Lust by either definition can be very dangerous

• Lust Is Not From God and that alone should be a red flag - 1 John 2:16 - for all these worldly things, these evil desires--the craze for sex, the ambition to buy everything that appeals to you, and the pride that comes from wealth and importance--these are not from God. They are from this evil world itself. (TLB)
• Lust Wars Against The Soul - Dear brothers, you are only visitors here. Since your real home is in heaven, I beg you to keep away from the evil pleasures of this world; they are not for you, for they fight against your very souls. (TLB)
• Lust Entices - James 1:14 - But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desires. (HCSB)
• Lust Enslaves - Titus 3:3 - Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. (NLT)
• Lust Corrupts - 2 Peter 1:4 - Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. (NIV)
• Lust Leads To Sin - James 1:15 - Then our evil desires conceive and give birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. (TEV)
  • The sin of adultery - Matthew 5:28 - But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (HCSB)
  • The sin of murder - James 4:2 - You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.(ESV)
• Lust Confuses - Often times lust is mistaken for love

     In response to Lust we need to take Paul's advice to Timothy - Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. - 2 Timothy 2:22 (NAS)

      Here's something to ponder

• What are the things you desire or lust after?
• How do you respond to your desires?