What Makes You Vulnerable to Temptation?

[What Makes You Vulnerable to Temptation?]( Current Teaching Series [Re-Thinking Your Life]( [Listen to Today's Broadcast]( [What Makes You Vulnerable to Temptation?]( By Rick Warren — 11/15/2020 [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email]( “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23 (NIV) If you want to be able to fight the persistent temptations in your life, you need to know what makes you vulnerable to Satan’s efforts. Ephesians 4:27 says, “Do not give the devil a foothold” (NIV). Don’t give Satan a place in your life to start leveraging your weaknesses and get you messed up. What’s the most common foothold you can give Satan that allows him to push all these temptations? It’s any negative emotion. Anytime you have a negative emotion, you’ve just given Satan a foothold in your life, and you’re going to be more vulnerable than at any other time to temptation. That’s why the Bible says in Proverbs 4:23, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (NIV). Your heart sits at the center of your emotions. But to defeat temptation, don’t focus on your behavior and what you’re about to do. Instead, identify the thoughts you’re having and the feelings that come out of those thoughts. That’s how Satan hooks you—not with your behavior but with your thoughts. He plays with your emotions every day of your life. He hooks your feelings. He is a master manipulator of your moods. Satan gets certain emotions stirring by influencing your thoughts and causing you to doubt God’s Word. Once he’s got you emotionally involved, you’re cooked. When your emotions have kicked in, the behavior is going to happen. Satan knows your negative emotions will lead you to sin. You are far more vulnerable to temptation when you’re experiencing negative emotions. Satan knows what they are and will work them for your destruction. Shouldn’t you know what they are, too? The only way you’ll be able to fight any persistent temptation in your life is to identify the emotions that make you vulnerable. Then, refocus your mind on God’s Word so that you can replace those negative emotions with God’s love. [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>]( Talk It Over - What are some of the negative emotions that often leave you vulnerable to Satan’s attacks? - Even if you don’t consider yourself an emotional person, how have you seen your emotions lead you in the wrong direction? What have they caused you to deny or doubt? - Why do you need to fill your mind with God’s Word if you want to fight temptation? The post [What Makes You Vulnerable to Temptation?]( appeared first on [Pastor Rick's Daily Hope](. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email]( [Get The Purpose Driven Life when you give a gift to support Daily Hope]( This year’s been full of challenges and trials. And if you’re like most people, you’re just glad to be at the end of it!. But we want to help you move out of ‘survival mode’ and step into 2021 ready to live a life of greater significance and purpose by sending you a hardcover copy of Pastor Rick Warren’s classic book, The Purpose Driven Life. One of the best-selling nonfiction books in history, this 42-day spiritual journey makes the perfect Christmas gift for anyone searching for purpose—and will help you or someone you know answer three of life’s most important questions: • Why am I alive? • Does my life matter? • What on Earth am I here for? One reader shared, "Your book has taught me who Jesus really is and what my purpose in this world is. To say it was a game changer is an understatement!". [LEARN MORE]( [Complete Audio Series (Purchase)]( Includes 8 full-length messages from Pastor Rick's series Re-Thinking Your Life. [LEARN MORE]( [Series Summary]( Message 1: Why You Need to Think About What You Think About Message 2: Learning to Think Like JesusMessage 3: Choosing to Manage My Mind Message 4: Rethinking the Problem of Sin Message 5: How to Win Over Persistent Temptations Message 6: Defeating Discouragement Message 7: Changing How I Think About Pain Message 8: Recovering from Traumatic Experiences [PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST]( Pastor Rick Warren [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Linkedin]( Enjoy today's devotional? Listen to Pastor Rick’s daily audio teaching at [PastorRick.com]( Did someone forward this devotional to you? [Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional.]( As the founding pastor of Saddleback Church with his wife Kay, Dr. Rick Warren leads a 30,000-member congregation in California with campuses in major cities around the world. As an author, his book [The Purpose Driven Life]( is one of the best-selling nonfiction books in publishing history. It has been translated into 74 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. His book [The Purpose Driven Church]( was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the century. Rick also founded [The PEACE Plan]( to address five global issues—spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy—through the power of ordinary people in the local church. You can listen to Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope, his daily 25-minute audio teaching, and sign up for his free daily devotionals at [PastorRick.com](. © 2020 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe by clicking the link below. Sent to: {EMAIL} [Unsubscribe]( Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, 23182 Arroyo Vista, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688, United States