GREETINGS!!

Well, it’s midnight where I am. I wonder what most of you are doing right now. Hopefully you’re not up wasting your time watching infomercials. “What are you doing?” you ask. Well, I’m writing issue 4 of THE V.O.I.C.E.. And I trust tonight’s edition of THE V.O.I.C.E. will be a great help to you.

THE W.E.D.G.E. PRINCIPLE

Last week we talked about the first point of THE W.E.D.G.E. PRINCIPLE: Write down your greatest temptations. If you are ever to break the cycle of sin and have constant victory over the temptations that will keep you from God’s richest blessings, you are going to have to start taking your sin seriously. The best way you can do that is to keep a journal that records your specific pit-fall sins. Beside each listing write a specific verse where God commands you not to commit that sin. Then, all you have to do is remember what God has commanded you and rehearse the consequences of your sin. Don’t make the same mistake Solomon made by being careless to follow God’s ways. With school just around the corner, now is the time to set down some practices that will be wedges between you and sin. It’s not likely you will find time to set some good godly routines in your life if you wait till after school starts.

ENTER INTO A COMMITMENT WITH GOD

On to point number two. Turn over in your Bible to the first chapter of Daniel. Daniel records the lives of a few of the Hebrew children that were taken captive from Judah and carried away to the pagan land of Babylon. They were carried away from their parents who many times were killed. They were taken away from the temple where they worshipped God. They were taken away from the Rabbis that taught them the law of God. They were taken away from the Bible itself. They were taken away from all spiritual influences they had growing up. This happened when most of these young men were teenagers. To make matters worse, they were transplanted literally counties away in a very wicked place. Babylon was know for its idol worship, sensuality, impurity, lust, carnality, and absolute wickedness.

Imagine if you were taken away from your parents this week. You were taken to a foreign country where no one spoke English. This new country had no churches, no Bibles, no pastors or teachers, no spiritual helpers, and no remembrance of anything you had ever seen in Sunday School, Church, youth group, or camp. No one ever woke you up on Sunday for church, because there wasn’t one to go to. No one ever asked you if you had read your Bible, because you didn’t have one. To make matters worse, imagine if this place was filled with all sorts of opportunities to get involved in sin. Every temptation you could ever imagine was available for you. How would you do? If you knew you would be going there soon, the best thing you could do is Enter into a commitment with God.

That is exactly what Daniel and his three friends did. Before they ever got to Babylon, this place of great temptation, they had already entered into a commitment with God. In other words, they had already chosen to serve God no matter what the cost. Verses 8-15 show a great test they faced immediately. The king wanted them to drink his sinful wine and eat his meat. The pressure was on. Mom and dad weren’t there to tell them not to. There was no Rabbi or priest around to explain how the law of God forbids them to do this. They had not heard a sermon on Sunday at church that helped them not to do it. They had not been to Christian camp and heard an Evangelist. Yet, they did not bow to the pressure around them. How?! They had already entered into a commitment with God.

Many of you are getting ready to go back to public school. There are a lot of similarities between going back to public school and going to Babylon. You are about to be in an atmosphere that is hostile to Christianity and the pressure will be on you to just do what everyone else is doing, to say what everyone else is saying, to get involved in what everyone else is getting involved in, to go where everyone else is going. What are you going to do when you get into your Babylon? What about when they really pour on the pressure? Will you do as Daniel and his friends did? Or will you simply bow to what the world is doing? There are three things you must do if you are to be a success at entering into a commitment with God.

• Establish convictions before entering chaos.
• Be resolved to run to remain righteous.
• Be committed to Christ no matter the outcome.

First of all you must establish convictions before entering chaos. You say, “Well, I’ll just wait until I get into a situation and then I’ll decide what to do.” You’ll be too late if you wait till you get there. Daniel was a success because he made the decision before ever being faced with the temptation. Ladies, have you already set down a conviction that you will not allow yourself to get in a compromising dangerous situation with a guy? Have you already set the conviction that you won’t let a guy kiss or touch you intimately as only your future husband should? “Well, I’ll see how far things go and stop if I get uncomfortable.” That statement is dripping with destruction. You’d better establish convictions before entering chaos. What if someone offers you a beer or cigarettes? Have you already decided your answer? Have you prepared yourself for what you will do if the talk gets dirty in the restroom or locker room? What if someone wants you to listen to their newest rock, rap, or country single? Have you already established the conviction of what you will do? Don’t wait till you get into the situation! Decide now. The only reason Daniel could keep the commitment he entered into with God was because he established convictions before entering chaos.

Secondly, you must be resolved to run to remain righteous. Decide ahead of time that if it comes down to either running or sinning that you will be running. Remember the story of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife? She continually tempted him to sin with her until finally she grabbed him. He had already decided, “if I have to run to get away from this gal, I will!” Someone might say, “Only wimps run.” Fact is, it isn’t hard to sit around and just enjoy the sin. The hard thing is turning around and running because you realize you are just human. Roy Jones Jr. is the current Light Weight Boxing Champion of the World. He is known to be the best pound-for-pound boxer of his time. He hasn’t lost many fights. He was being interviewed and was asked an interesting question, “What if you met up with a guy in an alley that was bigger and stronger and quicker than you? What would you do?” The announcer was just waiting to hear Roy tell how he would outbox his opponent and send him crying to his momma, when Roy Jones Jr. answered saying, “I’d run as fast as I could, and I am pretty fast.” The announcer said, “Oh no! You wouldn’t run. You’re not afraid of anything.” Again, Roy told him he was smart enough to run. How about you? Are you smart enough to run? What if that guy starts getting fresh with you? What if they start telling a dirty joke? What if they open a few beers? What if they turn on their rotten music? Are you smart enough to turn around and run? Don’t think for a minute that the brave thing to do is to stay and try to fight! If you’re going to enter into a commitment with God, you must be resolved to run to remain righteous.

Last of all, you must be committed to Christ no matter the outcome. Daniel 3 records the story of the three Hebrew friends of Daniel: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They were really put under the gun of pressure. They were told, “Either you bow to what everyone else is doing or you BURN!” Perhaps someone will say to you this year, “You either do what the group is doing or your reputation burns.” Maybe a guy will say, “Either do as I like or our relationship burns.” Such a guy is a loser to begin with (insult intended). These three godly men said, “We are not going to bow, bend, or burn.” The threat was given, “Then DIE!” Then they simply said, “Look, we’re committed to Christ no matter what the outcome may be.” How could they say that with such boldness? They had entered into a commitment with God, and they were committed to Christ no matter the outcome. How about you? Have you decided, “No matter what becomes of me, my reputation, my friends, my relationships, or my LIFE, I have decided to be committed to Christ no matter the outcome!”? You may lose a friend, a boyfriend, a support group or something you hold dear, but remember, just as those three godly men, you will gain a closer walk with Jesus as you walk unscathed through the fire together.

Well, it’s now 1:00am, so I must stop preaching for the night. I hope to see some responses to issue 4 and see how you are all doing. I’m wondering, whose voice are YOU listening to? See you next week.