The Fall

           Vera Czermak lived in Prague, Czechoslovakia. She found out her husband was having an affair. She became enraged. She thought about committing both murder and suicide.

            Finally, she chose to kill herself. Impetuously, she jumped out the window-located on the third floor of her house.

            Vera was fortunate–she suffered only minor injuries. Her husband, however—not so much.

            Vera landed on him, an act that killed him. Reflecting upon the event, someone wrote, “Sometimes, in this life, there is justice.”

            Perhaps so, but that are better ways to pursue it than by counting on God to kill our enemy when we throw ourselves out the window.

Source: THE 7 SINS OF HIGHLY DEFECTIVE PEOPLE by Rick Ezell

Eyes Sewn Shut

               Dante in his writing on purgatory portrayed envy as blind beggars sitting by a wall–their eyelids sewn shut. The symbolism was to reveal that envy is a blinding sin—an envious person has sewn himself up with his poisonous thoughts.

            God wants his people to be content: “11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances”(Phil 4:11.) NIV

            Let's rid ourselves of envy.

Source: THE 7 SINS OF HIGHLY DEFECTIVE PEOPLE by Rick Ezell

    

Satan Tempts a Monk

            Envy is one vice that everybody has experienced. The story is told in of a monk whom several demons of hell desired to tempt.

            It seemed to them that a big church would swell his heart with pride. But it did not.

            Their next strategy was lust. They sent a gorgeous woman his way; however, that temptation was not successful.

            Satan watched their failure with bemusement. He used it as an opportunity to teach those demons a lesson. He informed them, “Permit me to show you how it is done.”             

           He whispered to the monk, “Your brother was just made Bishop of Alexandria.”             Immediately, a cloud of envy transformed the monk’s face.

            “That is what I recommend,” the Devil told the demons.

            James was well aware of the work of the devil. He writes, “For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.”(James 3:16.) ESV

            Let's rid ourselves of envy.

Source: THE 7 SINS OF HIGHLY DEFECTIVE PEOPLE by Rick Ezell

  

The Statue

            In ancient Greece, they told the story of a city’s desire to honor a great Olympic athlete. The decision was made to erect a statue of him.

            A competitor grew so envious, he committed himself to ruining the statue. Every evening, under the cover of darkness, the competitor took a hammer and chisel and chipped away at the base of the statue.

            One evening, the competitor succeeded in his envy-fueled mission. The statue fell… directly upon him.

            The competitor had literally killed himself with envy.

            The ancient Greeks had a proverb: “Envy slays itself by its own arrows.”

            The ancient Jews had a proverb that went like this, “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones”(Prov. 14:30.) NIV 1984

Source: THE 7 SINS OF HIGHLY DEFECTIVE PEOPLE by Rick Ezell

The Photo

            Defeating the sin of gluttony is hard. I read about a woman who decided that her added weight reflected the fact that she ate too much. Consequently, she did everything she could to lose weight. 

             She tried diets; she tried exercise; she even tried pills. Nothing worked… until she placed on the door of her fridge a 12 x 16 photo. The photo was of a physically striking woman: thin, beautiful, perfect figure… dressed in a bikini. Whenever the lady craved a snack and went to her fridge, that photo motivated her greatly.            

            Over the course of the next month, she lost 10 pounds. 

            Unfortunately, her husband gained 20 pounds!

            When it comes to regulating your appetite for food, the same plan of attack does not work for everyone. The important thing that applies to all is the understanding that our relationship with food is an outward manifestation of our inward relationship with God.

            When we control our appetite for food, it demonstrates that God is controlling us.

Source: THE 7 SINS OF HIGHLY DEFECTIVE PEOPLE by Rick Ezell

The Load

           A boy was helping his father bring wood into the house for the fire. The wood was heavy, and the boy’s knees buckled under the load.

            “Why don’t you use all of your strength?” the father asked.

            Gloomily, the boy replied, “I am.”

            The father gently encouraged him, “No, you have not. You have not asked me to help you.”

            Then the father stretched out his hands and picked the boy-and the log in the boy’s arms-up.

            When Paul wrote to the Philippians, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13 ESV), he was not doing so in order that a guy who was five feet, two inches tall could be inspired to someday dunk a basketball. Instead, Paul was giving a church hope that by the power of Jesus, they too could overcome sin and demonstrate the qualities of Jesus in their lives.

            I believe this teaching applies today.

            Empowerment by God typically does not mean that God will MAKE us do the right thing… or that he will take away the temptation to do the wrong thing. Neither does it mean that if we strain hard enough, we can overcome sin exclusively by our own power and live out the qualities of Jesus.

            What it does mean is that God gives us the power to collaborate with him in his work, and God’s grace and love motivate us to offer everything within our means to participate with him in his work.  

            Here is a mathematical equation for you:

Jesus—the marriage of God and flesh=The Christian—the marriage of God and flesh.

Source: THE 7 SINS OF HIGHLY DEFECTIVE PEOPLE by Rick Ezell

The Bad Thing About Lust

            Actually, there are probably a lot of bad things about lust. But the following, according to one practical book, is one:

            Lust treats people like football players treat a football in a ball game. How does a running back treat a football?            

            He cradles it; he cuddles it; he risks life and limb to take that ball to the goal line. But once that football crosses the goal line and he scores a touchdown, what does he do? He will spike it. He'll pound it to the ground; he'll dance around proclaim his conquest. Finally, when the game is over, he will ignore it.

            The purpose has been served. It has simply been an object to accomplish a goal. If you have been the object of someone's lust, you know how demeaning it feels.

            Make no mistake; it is the lust in the heart that drives one to dehumanize people. Maybe that is one reason Jesus said,  “You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Mt. 5:27-28.) NLT

Source: THE 7 SINS OF HIGHLY DEFECTIVE PEOPLE by Rick Ezell

The Switchyard and Purity

            There was a large railroad switchyard in St. Louis, Missouri. One switch, which commenced with a slender piece of steel, headed a train from one main track onto another.

            The first track, if followed, would have taken the train to New York City. The other track took the train to San Francisco.           

            The thoughts we choose are like that. The choice we make concerning potential thoughts may seem insignificant (like a slender piece of steel seems insignificant). However, one “train of thought” could lead us to purity; another could lead us down the track of impurity.

            Carefully guard your thoughts 
because they are the source of true life (Prov. 4:23.) CEV

Source: THE 7 SINS OF HIGHLY DEFECTIVE PEOPLE by Rick Ezell

The Severed Arm

            Rick Ezell recounts the fable of a prosperous investment banker, who was driving his new BMW sedan on a mountain road during a snowstorm. He encountered trouble, lost control of his vehicle, and began sliding off the road toward the edge of a cliff.             

            Reacting instinctively, he flung himself out of his door and leaped from the car. The car careened down the mountain and burst into flames.

            The man escaped with his life, but he had experienced a grotesque injury. As he was jumping, the hinge of the door ensnared the banker’s arm. Consequently, the arm was severed at the shoulder.

            A trucker saw the accident and pulled his rig over to the side. He ran to see if he could help. He found the banker standing by the roadside—looking down at his car burning away below.

            The banker cried out, “My BMW! My new BMW!”

            The trucker pointed at the banker's shoulder and said, “Buddy, you've got bigger problems than a car. We've got to find your arm. A doctor might be able to sew it back on.”

            The banker looked at the spot where his arm had been, and began to moan, “Oh no! My Rolex! My new Rolex!”

            Sometimes, fables can reveal important truth. In our society, people are obsessed with material things. That is not a 21st-century phenomenon. People have always been what the Bible calls “greedy.”

             Those who trust in their riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf—Prov. 11:28.

Courage and the Tooth

            Rick Ezell tells a story of a woman and her husband who interrupted a vacation to see a dentist. “I want a tooth pulled, and I don't want Novocain because I'm in a big hurry,” the wife said. “Just extract the tooth as quickly as possible, and we will be on our way.”

            The dentist was very impressed. “You're certainly a courageous woman,” he said. “Which tooth is it?”

            The wife turned her husband and said, “Show him your tooth, dear.”

            It is easy to be courageous when it comes to another person’s tooth. It is much more difficult when it is one’s own.

            God never calls us to be courageous vicariously. Courage, for God, is always personal.

            “Be strong and courageous…” (Josh. 1:6a.)