Thinx 71: Lusts

"... and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts." Romans 13.14b It's interesting how our immediate response is to think purely in terms of sexual lusts. But there's more to lust than that:  But those who are determined to be rich fall into a temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful lusts, such as drown men in ruin and destruction. 1 Timothy 6:9 We cannot put on Christ, make no provision for our sexual lusts and yet blithely go on making provision for the others. All lusts, all foolish and harmful desires, need to be named for what they are and no provision whatsoever made for their fulfillment.

Thinx 70: Do no harm

The world says, "do no harm" which in the main means "do nothing, good or otherwise." It can even be taken as far as "live and let die", which may be what people are thinking when they stand idly by and watch others get mugged, raped or murdered. Far better is the commandment in Romans 13:10: Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.  There is something that is better than inactivity: selfless love, seeking the best for the neighbour; non-random, deliberately planned and executed actions of beauty, kindness and compassion.