There is only one who has the power to deliver us: to overcome our sinful nature and the wrath it deserves. It is only by Jesus that we can be saved. I will then trust in Him and the means He has provided for our growth. He has promised to conform me to His image. I cannot do it alone; I cannot do it at all, but with God, all things are possible.

I thought I could do it alone, but I found out I could not do it at all. Every time I fell, I would get up and promise myself it would be the last time. I would find the point of weakness, put a fence around it, and promise to stay away, but the fences had holes. A little more willpower, a few new strategies, or a new ascetic practice, none of it was of any value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

It was like trying to strangle myself with the power of my own two hands: it could not be done. Either self-preservation would kick in, and I would stop, or if I managed to make any progress, as the strength of my flesh would start to die, so would the very strength I needed to finish the job. You cannot subdue the flesh by operating in its power.

Someone else must do it.

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