“Fine. I’ll take care of it myself.” With a clipped tone, I ended the conversation and snapped my cell phone shut. Realizing I had done the very thing I had not wanted to do, my frustration increased. Not 30 minutes earlier, I had shared with a friend how God was teaching me to trust my husband’s heart rather than reacting. But here I was again. Would I ever learn?

Scripture tells us that as long as we are alive on this earth, two desires will battle inside us (Galatians 5:17). Through His death on the cross, Jesus destroyed sin’s power over us. But our struggle with sin doesn’t end when we receive salvation (Romans 7:18). Jesus made it clear to His disciples that obedience and surrender are daily decisions (Luke 9:23).

Trying to convince us that we’re going nowhere fast, the enemy tells us we’ll never be free. See, he’ll whisper, nothing has changed. God’s power isn’t real in your life. Ashamed and angry at ourselves for doing things we shouldn’t, we wonder if his lies are true.

We can’t overcome our sin nature on our own. Salvation comes only by grace (Ephesians 2:8). However, when I choose His grace, my life no longer belongs to me. Galatians 2:20 says, “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” I gain the ability to overcome temptation when—by grace—I yield my flesh to Christ and He lives through me (Romans 6:6-8).

God’s Word promises freedom. But we can’t walk where we haven’t chosen to go. We will either feed or crucify our flesh. A spiritually dead person has chosen to reject the freedom and life found in Jesus.