Prayer of Surrender

Lord God: I am powerless to be the man of purity I so desperately want to be. I want to be in control and show how strong I am. But all of the strength belongs to you Lord. And so I surrender …

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Rockin’ the Jesus Prayer

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. + 1 Thess. 5:16-18 — I recently saw a documentary where a greek monastic discussed the practice of praying without ceasing. He said that he could pray no matter what he was doing [...]

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“Not in my Feelings”

I accept not in my feelings – but with my will, the Will of God. I accept His will – not only for time but for eternity. + Mother Teresa, Letter dated August 1,1964

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Word from the Battle – You Know My Folly

O God, you know my folly; the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you. Do not let those who hope in you be put to shame because of me, O Lord God of hosts; do not let those who seek you be dishonored because of me, O God of Israel. + Psalm 69:5-6

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Turtle Check-In: Moving Forward

It’s time to check-in and reflect on progress (or lack thereof) in the Battle for Purity. HOW AM I DOING PHYSICALLY? I have to say that I am feeling good today.  I am enjoying a successful recovery to the knee surgery I had in December.  That means I can run again and get that physical [...]

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Make Me Clean!

A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, ‘If you choose, you can make me clean.’ Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, ‘I do choose. Be made clean!’ Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. + Mark 1:40-42 [...]

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Prayer for Sexual Integrity

Lord, I thank you for the gift of my sexual desires. I surrender this lustful desire to you and I ask you please, by the power of your death and resurrection, to “untwist” in me what sin has twisted so that I might experience sexual desire as you intend—as the desire to love in your [...]

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Though Not Adequate, We Must Take Action

But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and the gaps were beginning to be closed, they were very angry, and all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. So [...]

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The Four Step Fire Drill

One of the tools we were given in our Purity Platoon is the Four-Step Fire Drill — steps to take when we are confronted with sexual temptation: STEP 1: SPEAK ALOUD Speak aloud these words. “I will not sacrifice my purity no matter what! I will not sacrifice my purity for [name the temptation].” STEP [...]

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A Turtle’s Confession

So here I am again. Down on my knees again. Hanging my head again. Crawling again. Struggling again. Ready to get up again. … and start over. … again. I have been silent on this blog (or relatively quiet at least) for several months. There are a number of factors, not the least of which [...]

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