As the weather begins to change, illness begins to increase. Colds and flu become more prevalent. But there are things that we can do to prevent or avoid illness and stay healthy. The key to staying healthy is to treat our bodies right. This means making sure that we eat well, exercise, get enough sleep, get enough fresh air. Preventative measures for avoiding illness also include things like getting a flu shot and washing our hands before and after handling things like door knobs.
We can think of sin as a spiritual illness that affects the soul. Just as there are ways to prevent or avoid physical illness, when it comes to sin, there are also things that we can do to avoid it and prevent it. The first thing is to meditate on God’s Word, reading it daily and studying it. The Bible tells us that Scripture is God-breathed. Because it comes from God, it is useful for teaching, for correction, and for learning to live righteously (2 Timothy 3:16). Scripture, God’s living Word, also helps us to avoid sin when we store it in our hearts (Psalm 119:11).
A second way of avoiding sin is to have a prayerful dependence on God. We need to seek His help in avoiding sin and temptation. When Jesus taught His disciples the Lord’s Prayer, part of that prayer was seeking God’s help in avoiding temptation and being delivered from evil (Matthew 6:13). On the night before He died, Jesus warned His disciples to watch and pray in order that they could avoid entering into temptation (Matthew 26:41). Temptations will come, but God is faithful. When we are dependent on Him, when we seek His help in prayer, He will provide a way out of temptation so that we do not sin (1 Corinthians 10:13).
A third thing that we can do to avoid sin is to actively seek to do good rather than evil. Psalm 34:14 tells us that we should turn from evil and seek good; we should seek peace and pursue it. The Bible tells us that the wages of sin is death ( ). But, if we seek good and turn from evil, we will live and God will be with us. We should not just avoid evil, but hate it while loving good (Amos 5:14-15). As believers, it is important that we imitate good rather than evil. When we do not just seek to do good, but actually do it, we are from God (3 John 11).
Meditate on the Word, be dependent on God through prayer, and actively seek to do good. When you do these things, you can avoid the spiritual illness of sin and stay spiritually healthy.
A Worshiper's Journal 