SEVEN DEADLY SINS

I woke up one morning with seven deadly sins very much on my mind. I had never heard of them before as such, but God was telling me to put the seven deadly sins on this website. I have a tendancy to err on the side of caution, so rather than rush into things I first browsed the net to see what I could find. I was amazed that there is so much about the seven deadly sins out there. Still not totally convinced of the Scriptural authenticity of naming the seven sins as such, I checked it out with my Pastor. He gave it the thumbs up, so here we are. Sorry Lord, for taking so long to obey.
	The Sin	Opposing Virtue
	PridePride is excessive belief in one's own abilities, that interferes with the individual's recognition of the grace of God. It has been called the sin from which all others arise. Pride is also known as Vanity. Pride and vanity are competitive. If someone else's pride really bothers you, you have a lot of pride.	HumilitySeeing ourselves as we are and not comparing ourselves to others is humility. Being happy with who we are because that's the way God made us. Knowing that God has begun a good work in us, but will continue it until the day Jesus returns. It is also being happy for those who are better than us.
	EnvyEnvy is the desire for others' traits, status, abilities, assets or situation. It fails to be content with God's provision, and looks to materialism to give satisfaction in life, rather than allowing God to be God of their life. Envy resents the good others receive or even might receive. Envy is almost indistinguishable from pride at times.	Love "Love is patient, love is kind…" Love actively seeks the good of others for their sake. Love is not self seeking, but rejoices in the success and well being of others. Love will happily work towards the betterment of others. Love is kind, considerate, patient, generous and has many other attributes.
	Gluttony Gluttony is an inordinate desire to consume more than that which one requires. It delights in excess, whether that excess be food or drink, or some other form of indulgence.	Temperance Temperance accepts the natural limits of pleasures and preserves this natural balance. This does not pertain only to food, but to entertainment and other legitimate goods, and even the company of others.
	Lust Lust is an inordinate craving for the pleasures of the body. This includes cravings for sex, pornography, and even looking upon a member of the opposite sex with desire. Lust is the self-destructive drive for pleasure and has a tendency to become obsessive and is likely to earn the offender the title of 'creep' or worse.	Self Control Self control is best achieved by putting God in His rightful place in your life. There are many pleasures to be had in life, and when these are in their rightful place they are enjoyable from a selfless point of view. Self control allows one to enjoy healthy relationships with God and other people.
	Anger Out of control anger is dangerous and destructive to all involved. Left uncontrolled anger can flair up with little provocation. It leaves the angry person with little self control and can easily end with violence or other regrettable results. It takes a selfish view rather than a Godly view of the circumstances that provoke it.	Kindness Kindness takes the time to look at a situation objectively, looking for the opportunity to gain the very best results from a situation. There is such a thing as 'Godly anger', but this is controlled and has God's stamp of approval. Often it is best to walk away from a situation that makes us angry until we have had time to pray about it and think it through. Anger, given over to God, usually results in patience and understanding.
	Greed Greed is the desire for material wealth or gain, ignoring the realm of the spiritual. It is also called Avarice or Covetousness. Once again, it is self seeking and has little or no consideration for others. It is never satisfied and always desires more. Greed wants to get its "fair share" or a bit more.	Generosity Generosity is more interested in meeting the needs of others than in personal gain. It gives, taking no credit for giving, but rather, giving glory to God. It is happy to work behind the scenes without receiving the credit.
	Sloth Slothfulness is the avoidance of physical or spiritual work. It often lies in late in the mornings and is late going to bed. It achieves little and will go to great lengths to avoid anything resembling work. It degrades a person emotionally and spiritually. It often suffers from boredom, but is too lazy to do anything about it.	Zeal Zeal is the energetic response to life with a relationship with God being at the fore. It delights in being actively involved in life and all it has to offer. It is usually happy and enthusiastic, having a positive uplifting effect on those that it comes in contact with.

The seven deadly sins are very real and the greatest problem with them is that they become as God to the people that have them. They are obsessive and controlling and will, in time, destroy those that they control.

God has given us an answer in Jesus Christ. A life surrendered to God will eventually take on the attributes of God, leaving the unhealthy sins behind. For more information on how to achieve this God centered life, please go to this page.

The Bible says
James 4:7 Therefore submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

It is a good idea to put some thought into an area that causes you concern and to plan an escape route. When temptation confronts you there is a moment where you can say no before giving into it. Resist the temptation and use the escape route while you can. The escape route could be something such as making a phone call, going for a walk, playing a game or the like. You could also opt to spend time with the lord in prayer or praise and worship. The choice is yours, but I would encourage you to put some thought into your escape route before temptation comes your way again.

If you are a Christian and recognise that you need help with one or more of these areas of sin then it would be wise to talk to your Pastor or Minister, or and elder at your church. If these options are not available to you, then please feel free to email me and I will pray for you and help you as much as I am able.