Starving The Lust

People are creatures of habit. The more we engage in an activity the more that activity becomes a habit for us and the harder it is to break that habit. For many of us men, lust is the ultimate habit that needs to be broken. Lust grows when we feed it. Our primary vehicle for feeding lust is through our eyes. That is not to say that women do not lust because they certainly do! It is just that men are much more susceptible to lusting with the eyes. And our lust is not just confined to sexualized images. I know some men that lust after the latest toys: Cars, bikes, etc.

Our lust grows when we feed it. And there is often a smorgasbord of images that come across a man’s eyes to feast on everyday. Whether it is TV, computer, billboards, or the co-worker who is attractive we are inundated with a variety of images that potentially can fuel our lust. With such a litany of potential traps before us in this sexualized society, how can a man actually starve his lust, save from extracting his own eyes? It seems like an impossible task to many men and that is why they have given up trying. It is easier to live in the trap or so they think. Unfortunately, that is not the case and the truth is that the consequences of lust are devastating.

Lust is the demon that thrives in anonymity. It lives for secrets and creating lies to feed its selfish desires. Lust isolates the person that is involved in it. It lies to you in that it tells you that your behaviour is no big deal and that no one will know anyways. It traps you in shame and self loathing to keep your silence. Lust slowly destroys the relationships around you. Because your focus is on feeding your lust and not on growing your relationships. Lust steals from those relationships both in time and energy. And the consequences of that theft are real to the persons it affects. Relationships are broken, jobs can be lost and respect is fleeting for those who dabble in this destructive course. So how can we turn the tide aside from plucking out our eyes?

The answer comes in: starving your lust. To put to death the thing that will ultimately lead you to destruction is what must happen. I have found it very helpful to see it as starving and feeding. Do I feed my lust or do I starve it on a daily basis? I starve it by controlling my eyes and my thoughts and thereby changing my habits. Rather than my eyes and fantasy mastering me, I take them captive. It is something I can’t do on my own. Lust wants to keep you alone. The way to beat it is to get the support of others. It is something that you have to choose. Lust is put to death when it is starved.