7 Simple Ways I Fight Lust

This is not a sermon or a guilt trip. Just what actually works.

I want to talk about something nobody really wants to talk about, especially in Christian circles, LUST.

I think that's part of the problem. We don't talk about it, so we just keep struggling with it quietly, convinced we're the only ones.

I remember being in fifth grade, playing this old "Star Wars" game on the computer. There was a scene where your character and their partner entered a room together, and the screen went black. Nothing was shown, but it was pretty clear what was being hinted at. I was curious. So I looked something up. Nothing came up — but it was still in my search history.

My mom pulled me aside a few days later. Why did you search for this? I just started crying. I was so embarrassed. I never searched for anything like that again.

My dad told me something when I was young that I've carried ever since. He said we have to learn to control our animal instincts. And he was right.

Here's the thing — as a man, I have a natural urge to procreate. That's just biology. God wired us that way. The battle isn't that the urge exists. The battle is learning to steward it instead of letting it run you.

A lot of Christian guys don't want to admit that. Like, somehow admitting you struggle with lust means you're not spiritual enough. But that's just not true. Every man in the Bible who was called great still had to wrestle with his flesh.

So here are the seven things that have actually helped me.

1. Feed your brain good content

Lust rarely just shows up out of nowhere. We live in an incredibly sexualized world. Most of what you scroll past, watch or listen to has some kind of sexual undertone baked into it. It's just the environment we're in.

And over time, it builds. Slowly. Quietly. What you consume is what you start thinking about. And what you think about long enough starts shaping who you're becoming.

Watch what you scroll, listen to and see what's actually stirring up those emotions. That awareness alone changes a lot.

2. Train yourself to redirect your thoughts

The first look isn't always a choice. The second one is. That's the line my first mentor taught me, and it's stuck with me ever since.

Train yourself, not just physically but mentally. When a thought starts, replace it with scripture, with prayer, with something true. My mentor had me memorize this verse, and I still go back to it.

3. Stay out of isolation

Lust thrives in private. It always has. Accountability with someone you actually trust — not just a surface-level check-in — makes a real difference. Someone who can ask the hard questions without you feeling judged.

I've found that the moment I try to handle this completely on my own is the moment I'm most likely to lose.

4. Tire yourself out in the right ways

Exercise. Meaningful work. Creative output. Serving others. An idle mind is genuinely more vulnerable. This isn't about staying so busy that you never deal with what's underneath — it's about staying purposefully engaged with life instead of sitting in idle hands and idle thoughts.

King David is the example that always comes to mind for me here. 2 Samuel 11 opens with this detail that's easy to skip past — it was the season when kings normally went out to battle, but David stayed behind in Jerusalem. 

He was idle, and it was in that idleness, from his rooftop, that he saw Bathsheba. One of the greatest kings in scripture, and the door that led to his greatest failure, opened in a season of boredom, not weakness of character alone.

2 Timothy 2:22 (ESV) — "So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart."

That's not a coincidence. That's a pattern. Purpose and engagement guard you in ways that willpower alone never will.

5. Go to the root, not just the behavior

A lot of lust is actually loneliness, boredom, stress or a need for connection expressing itself the wrong way. Identifying what's underneath it is often more effective than just forcing your way through the symptom.

6. Guard your environment

What you allow access to you matters. The shows you watch, the people you're around, the spaces you put yourself in late at night when you're tired and your guard is down — all of it either makes the fight easier or harder.

You can't out-discipline an environment that's working against you every day. Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is simply remove access.

7. Stay in the Word consistently

Not as a magic formula. But this is real — hiding God's word in your heart genuinely shapes what you want over time.

When you're focused on the things above, you're not focused on the things below.

I'm not writing this because I have it all figured out. I'm writing this because I'm still in the fight, and I think a lot of you are, too. The goal was never perfection. The goal is stewardship — learning, day by day, to honor God with what He gave you.

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REFLECTION QUESTIONS FOR THE WEEK

Ask yourself where your heart is actually after, in that moment. Lust is rarely just about the thing itself — it's usually pointing at something deeper that wants to be named.

Psalm 119:9–11 — "How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word... I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you."

1. Which of these seven feels the most relevant to where I'm at right now?
2. Is there someone in my life I trust enough to actually be honest about this?
3. What is my heart usually after underneath the moments I struggle most?
4. What's one thing in my environment I know I need to change, even if I've been avoiding it?

Joe Navarro, known online as @joechristianguy, is a Christian content creator, entrepreneur, and cultural voice passionate about making faith approachable and impactful for the next generation. With over 4.5 million combined followers across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, Joe delivers bold, Gospel-centered truth through a mix of daily encouragement, short-form teachings, comedic skits, and authentic life experiences. His unique blend of theology, humor, and clarity has created space for millions of young believers and skeptics alike to engage with Scripture and real conversations about following Jesus in a digital world. In 2023, he co-created the popular card game Discernment alongside Jacob and Julia Petersen, which is now available in major retailers like Amazon, Walmart, Museum of the Bible, and Mardel. He also holds a degree in Agricultural Economics with a minor in Sales from Texas A&M.