Good Morning Sunshine! Stop Feeding What You’re Trying To Crucify!

Romans 13:14 (NKJV) — “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”

Romans 13:14 comes at the end of a powerful passage in which Paul calls believers to wake up spiritually and live with an awareness of who they have become in Christ. In Romans 13:11, he says, “And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep.” Paul wanted believers to understand that following Christ required intentionality. They could not continue living carelessly while expecting their lives to reflect spiritual transformation.

Paul tells them to “cast off the works of darkness” and “put on the armor of light” (Romans 13:12). Then he brings the instruction directly into everyday life: “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh.” The word provision is important because it carries the idea of making preparation for something beforehand. Paul is essentially saying, “Do not prepare a place for the flesh to be satisfied.”

This takes the lesson from Day One deeper. Yesterday, you were reminded that your flesh does not get the final say. Today, you must examine whether you are unintentionally giving your flesh the resources it needs to keep speaking so loudly. You cannot continually make provision for something while asking God to help you overcome it.

Paul does not only tell you what to remove; he tells you what to put on: the Lord Jesus Christ. The Christian life is not simply about eliminating bad habits. It is about becoming increasingly clothed in the character, mind, ways, and nature of Christ. The more you yield yourself to Him, the less room you make for the flesh to control you.

Imagine having two plants sitting beside one another. Every morning you walk into the room and water one plant carefully. You make sure it receives sunlight, remove anything that might interfere with its growth, and regularly check the soil. The other plant receives very little attention. After several weeks, you notice that one plant is flourishing while the other is struggling. You would not be surprised. You already know why. The plant you consistently fed is the plant that grew.

Now imagine praying every morning, “Lord, please make this plant stop growing,” while continuing to water it every afternoon. At some point, you would have to recognize that your actions are working against your prayer.

Sometimes the same thing happens spiritually. You may be praying, “God, help me overcome this,” while continuing to water the thoughts, environments, conversations, habits, relationships, or appetites that keep it alive. God may answer your prayer by showing you the watering can in your own hand. The question for today is simple: What are you watering?

Yesterday you learned that your flesh does not get the final say. Today we have to go a little deeper because sometimes the problem is not simply that the flesh is speaking loudly. Sometimes we have been feeding it. That may be difficult to admit, but transformation requires honesty. Romans 13:14 says, “Make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” In other words, stop preparing an environment where the very thing you are trying to surrender has everything it needs to survive.

Think about the plant in the story. Whatever you consistently feed has the opportunity to grow. Galatians 6:7–8 says, “Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” Paul continues by explaining that the person who sows to the flesh will reap from the flesh, while the person who sows to the Spirit will reap everlasting life from the Spirit. There is a spiritual principle here: your repeated choices are planting something.

You cannot continually feed anger and expect peace to become stronger. You cannot continually feed comparison and expect contentment to flourish. You cannot continually feed procrastination and expect discipline to develop. You cannot continually feed offense and expect forgiveness to become easier. You cannot continually feed distraction and wonder why prayer has become difficult. At some point, you have to examine what you have been watering.

Sometimes what you are feeding is obvious, but sometimes it is hidden in your everyday routine. It may be what you watch, what you listen to, who you continually talk to, what you scroll through, what you replay in your mind, or what you allow yourself to dwell on before going to sleep. It may even be a conversation that ended days ago but continues living rent-free in your thoughts because you keep replaying every word.

Philippians 4:8 gives you a filter for your thoughts: “Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report… meditate on these things.” God cares about what occupies your mind because what you repeatedly entertain can begin influencing how you feel, how you speak, and eventually how you behave.

This is why you must learn the difference between being tempted and making provision for temptation. Temptation may come without your invitation, but making provision means you knowingly continue creating access to something that repeatedly causes you to stumble. If you know something weakens your discipline, wisdom says you do not keep positioning yourself unnecessarily close to it.

First Corinthians 10:13 reminds you that temptation is common to humanity and that God is faithful to provide “the way of escape.” Sometimes you pray for God to remove temptation while ignoring the exit He already showed you. The way of escape may look like closing the app, ending the conversation, leaving the room, changing the routine, creating a boundary, deleting the number, putting the purchase back, turning off the television, going to bed, or simply saying, “No, I’m not going to do this;” the escape may not always feel spiritual, but obedience is spiritual.

Joseph gives us a powerful example in Genesis 39. When Potiphar’s wife repeatedly attempted to seduce him, Joseph did not stand around trying to prove how strong he was. When the situation intensified, Genesis 39:12 says that “he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside.” Joseph ran. Sometimes spiritual maturity is knowing when you should pray, and sometimes spiritual maturity is knowing when you should run. You do not have to prove your strength by continually standing beside something God told you to leave. Sometimes the strongest thing you can do is create distance.

This applies to more than obvious temptation. Maybe your flesh is being fed by your need to be right. Every time someone disagrees with you, you feel compelled to prove your point. Maybe it is being fed by comparison, so you continually look at what everybody else has and measure your life against theirs. Maybe it is being fed by comfort, so every time discipline becomes inconvenient you change the plan. Maybe it is being fed by procrastination, and “I’ll do it tomorrow” has quietly become a lifestyle. Whatever your it is, ask yourself: What keeps feeding it?

James 1:14 says, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” Notice that James points inward. There are times when the issue is not simply what somebody else did, what the enemy placed before you, or what happened around you. Sometimes something outside of you connected with a desire already operating inside of you. Recognizing that does not condemn you; it gives you somewhere to begin surrendering.

This is why you need to pay attention to your triggers. What happens immediately before you fall back into the same pattern? Are you tired? Lonely? Angry? Frustrated? Bored? Overwhelmed? Disappointed? Do certain conversations leave you emotionally stirred up? Do certain environments weaken your boundaries? Does exhaustion make you more likely to respond from your flesh?

Knowing your patterns can help you establish wisdom before the moment of temptation arrives. Proverbs 4:23 says, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” Guarding your heart does not mean becoming afraid of life; it means becoming intentional about what you allow continual access to you. Sometimes you need to stop calling something a struggle when you keep scheduling appointments with it.

You cannot continually return to the same environment, entertain the same thought, open the same door, ignore the same boundary, and then act surprised when the same fleshly response appears. Grace is not permission to keep creating provision for what God is calling you to crucify. Grace empowers you to make a different choice. This is where the title of today’s devotional becomes personal: Stop feeding what you’re trying to crucify.

Galatians 5:24 says, “Those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Crucifying the flesh requires more than saying, “God, take this away.” Sometimes it requires you to stop giving it what keeps it alive.

If gossip is the issue, stop sitting in conversations where gossip is continually being served. If comparison is the issue, reduce your exposure to what constantly makes you question your worth or assignment. If overspending is the issue, stop putting yourself in situations where impulsive spending is easy. If anger is the issue, learn to pause before responding. If procrastination is the issue, stop waiting to feel motivated before doing what requires discipline. You may not be able to control every temptation, but you can become more intentional about your provision.

Psalm 101:3 says, “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes.” David understood that what he continually placed before himself mattered. What enters through your eyes and ears can eventually find residence in your thoughts. That does not mean you live fearfully, but it does mean you live discerningly.

This is especially important because of where you said you want to go. If you want your next three years to be greater than your last three months, you cannot keep feeding habits that belong to the season you are asking God to move you beyond.

You cannot pray for a disciplined future while feeding undisciplined habits. You cannot pray for peace while continually feeding chaos. You cannot pray for spiritual sensitivity while constantly filling every quiet space with noise. You cannot ask God for greater stewardship while refusing to discipline your appetites; something has got to change, and sometimes that change is not dramatic. Sometimes it begins with one small decision repeated consistently.

Maybe you get up thirty minutes earlier to pray. Maybe you stop reaching for your phone the moment your eyes open. Maybe you stop participating in a conversation that continually pulls you into negativity. Maybe you prepare before you are tempted rather than trying to become disciplined in the middle of temptation. Maybe you place a boundary around something you know has too much influence over you.

Zechariah 4:10 warns against despising “the day of small things.” Do not underestimate small acts of obedience. One boundary may seem small, but boundaries repeated become discipline. One surrendered thought may seem small, but surrendered thoughts repeated begin renewing your mind. One “no” may seem insignificant, but repeated no’s to the flesh can create room for a stronger yes to God.

Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 26:41: “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Notice that Jesus said watch and pray. Prayer matters, but so does paying attention. You can be sincere about wanting change and still need to become more observant about the patterns that keep pulling you backward. Watch what weakens you. Watch what triggers you. Watch what consumes your attention. Watch where you repeatedly compromise. Watch what you excuse. Then pray about what you see.

There is another side to this lesson, because simply starving the flesh is not enough. You must also feed the Spirit. Colossians 3:16 says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.” Fill the space with God’s Word. Fill it with prayer. Fill it with worship. Fill it with healthy relationships, godly counsel, wise boundaries, and things that strengthen your desire for God. If you remove something but never replace it with something spiritually healthy, you may eventually return to what was familiar simply because the space remained empty. Jesus teaches this principle in Matthew 12:43–45 when He describes an unclean spirit leaving a person and later returning to find the house empty. The point reminds you that spiritual transformation is not merely about an empty house. God wants a filled life.

Fill your mind with His Word. Fill your mouth with praise instead of constant complaining. Fill your schedule with things that support your assignment. Fill your environment with reminders of who God is calling you to become. Fill your heart with truth until truth becomes louder than the desire you are trying to surrender. Day One asked you to recognize that your flesh does not get the final say. Day Two asks you to look at what you are doing between the moments of decision. What are you feeding when nobody is watching? What are you making provision for? What are you repeatedly watering? Do not ask God only to change the fruit while refusing to examine the root.

Your next three years are being influenced by decisions you are making today. The future you are praying for will require you to stop feeding some things and intentionally begin feeding others.

So today, do not just say, “I’m going to stop.” Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what needs to replace it. If you stop feeding anger, feed forgiveness. If you stop feeding comparison, feed gratitude. If you stop feeding distraction, feed focus. If you stop feeding procrastination, feed discipline. If you stop feeding fear, feed your faith with the Word of God. You do not overcome darkness by becoming obsessed with darkness. You turn on the light. Take another look at the plant in the story. The one you water is the one that grows and you need to be intentional about what receives your water.

Let’s Pray:

Father, in the name of Jesus, thank You for another day and another opportunity to grow. Thank You for loving me enough not only to show me where I need to change, but also to give me Your Holy Spirit, Your Word, Your grace, and Your wisdom to help me change. Father, search my heart today and show me anything I have been feeding that You are asking me to crucify. Reveal the habits, thoughts, conversations, environments, relationships, routines, and appetites that continually strengthen something You are calling me to surrender. Help me see clearly where my actions may be working against my prayers. Your Word tells me to make no provision for the flesh. Give me wisdom to understand what provision looks like in my own life. Show me the doors I need to close, the boundaries I need to establish, the conversations I need to leave, the routines I need to change, and the places where I need greater discipline. Father, help me recognize my triggers without becoming controlled by them. When I am tired, frustrated, lonely, angry, disappointed, overwhelmed, or tempted, remind me that I still have a choice. Teach me to pause long enough to hear Your Spirit before my flesh responds. When You provide a way of escape, give me courage to take it. Do not allow pride to make me remain in places I should leave. Give me Joseph’s wisdom to run when running is necessary. Help me understand that creating distance from temptation is not weakness; sometimes it is wisdom. Father, forgive me for the times I have repeatedly watered something and then asked You why it kept growing. Forgive me for excusing patterns You have been confronting, ignoring boundaries You have been showing me, or continually returning to something You have been helping me leave behind. Thank You that Your conviction is not condemnation. You reveal things because You desire to transform me. Teach me not only to starve the flesh but to feed my spirit. Give me a greater hunger for Your Word. Deepen my prayer life. Strengthen my worship. Surround me with people and environments that encourage spiritual growth. Let the Word of Christ dwell richly within me so that when temptation speaks, truth is already living inside of me. Father, where I have fed anger, teach me to feed forgiveness and peace. Where I have fed comparison, teach me gratitude. Where I have fed fear, strengthen my faith. Where I have fed procrastination, develop discipline. Where I have fed distraction, restore my focus. Where I have fed pride, grow humility within me. Where I have fed my need for control, teach me to trust You.  God,  I want my next three years to be greater than my last three months, but I understand that greater will require different choices. Help me stop feeding habits that cannot sustain the future I am praying for. Prepare me for what You are preparing for me. Holy Spirit, help me watch and pray. Make me aware of what I allow into my eyes, ears, mind, heart, and environment. Give me wisdom concerning what deserves access to me. Help me stop treating boundaries as punishment and begin seeing them as protection for the person You are helping me become. Father, I surrender my watering can to You. Show me what deserves my time, attention, energy, and nourishment. I do not want to continually water something You are telling me to uproot. Today I choose to feed my faith, my prayer life, my discipline, my obedience, my peace, my purpose, and my relationship with You. I choose to make room for Your Spirit instead of making provision for my flesh. Continue transforming me from the inside out. Make my private choices agree with my public prayers. Let my habits begin agreeing with the future I say I desire. And when my flesh asks me to feed what You told me to crucify, give me strength to say no and wisdom to feed what You want to grow instead. In the Name of Jesus Christ, I pray, Amen.

Nugget ~ You cannot keep watering what you are praying will stop growing. Stop feeding what God is asking you to crucify, and start feeding what the Holy Spirit is trying to grow in you.

Blessings…

Love, Dr. Jean…