Working on Purity
I recently had the privilege of speaking to a group of men who are working on their purity. Some of these men have been kicked out by their wives. They have made some bad choices and are trying to get back on track.
I used to be in their seats. Fifteen years ago I was struggling with pornography and my wife wanted a divorce. I had no hope for my life and saw no way of that changing. As I prayed during this time, I felt God was calling me his choice servant. I felt like the biggest failure, but God still saw the good in me.
Thankfully God worked things out between my wife and me. We are working on our nineteenth year of marriage, and it keeps getting better. But that time of our lives implanted this one truth very deep in my heart: God never gives up on you.
Strengthening My Hope
Over the last few years, I have led men’s groups and have seen men at their lowest points. As I prayed for them, I always felt God thought they were amazing. He seemed to see what they were capable of being and chose to relate to them at that higher state.
The amazing thing was the more I prayed and related to these men in this higher state, the more their lives began to look like that. I’ve had guys that cheated on their wives, had children die, were clinically depressed, doubted their manhood, and just felt life couldn’t get any better. In each of these men’s lives, God always liked them, saw the good in them, and saw a future that could be wonderful.
That future may take some effort to get at, but God never gave up on them. He is not giving up on you either. He didn’t give on Adam, Abraham, Jacob, David, Peter, Paul, or others in the Bible. You are no different. God thinks you are amazing. Let’s stop fighting him and agree with what He thinks of us. There is always hope. You have a future. Go be amazing.