You Have the Power to Say ‘No’

[You Have the Power to Say ‘No’]( Current Teaching Series [The Invisible War]( [Listen to Today's Broadcast]( [You Have the Power to Say ‘No’]( By Rick Warren — 02/17/2024 [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email](mailto:?subject=I'd%20like%20to%20share%20a%20Daily%20Devotional%20from%20Pastor%20Rick%20with%20you&body= “You are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you.” Romans 8:9 (NLT) Some people today insist that we should just give in to any desire that comes our way. If it feels good, do it! If it serves you, go for it! If everyone else is doing it, why not? As long as it doesn’t hurt anyone, have at it! It’s a destructive mindset. Just because you have the desire to eat an entire chocolate cake doesn’t mean it’s good for you. And just because you think doing something won’t hurt anyone doesn’t mean you’re free of the consequences of your choices. Romans 8:9 says, “You are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you” (NLT). Before you became a believer, you only had willpower to fight against temptations. But it was never enough. You were relatively powerless against the cravings that drove you to make unhealthy and destructive choices. As a believer, you now have the Holy Spirit—and a new ability to say “no.” You still have the same compulsions, desires, lusts, and impulses you had before you began a relationship with Jesus. But now the power of God resides in you. Now you have the power to say “no.” The Bible says, “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves” (Galatians 5:16 NLT). It doesn’t say you won’t have sinful desires after you become a Christian. You’re still going to be a sinful human. But you do have the Holy Spirit, who will help you choose not to satisfy those desires. If you ever hear people say, “I’m a Christian, but I couldn’t stop myself,” they’re lying. They can stop themselves! They simply never called on the power of the Holy Spirit in the moment of temptation. They didn’t surrender to his guidance in their lives. You have the greatest power in the universe available to you. It’s your choice to use it to say “no” to anything that does not honor and please God. [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>]( Talk It Over - What do you have to do or say to get the Holy Spirit’s help in a time of temptation? - What factors (like friends, family, work, and other external stresses) make it difficult for you to say “no” to temptations you’re facing? How can you reduce some of those factors? - Who can encourage you and help you say “no” to temptations? The post [You Have the Power to Say ‘No’]( appeared first on [Pastor Rick's Daily Hope](. 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[LEARN MORE]( [Series Summary]( Message 1: When You Feel Like Giving Up Message 2: Winning the Battle Inside Me Message 3: Set Free from Me Message 4: Making the Hard Changes in Me Message 5: Why is Life in This World So Hard? Message 6: Being Faithful in A Faithless World Message 7: When Your World Falls Apart Message 8: Never Fight Your Battles Undressed [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.]( Rick Warren is the founding pastor of [Saddleback Church]( one of America’s largest and most influential churches. Pastor Rick is the author of the New York Times bestseller [The Purpose Driven Life](. His book [The Purpose Driven Church]( was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. 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