"And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway." (Rom 7:18-19).
As a result of death and sin in our members, this body has become very rebellious. Once your brain hears that you are trying to stop something bad, or you are trying to attain something good, it will begin to tempt you and come up with all kinds of tricks. When you are trying to focus, your mind brings in all kinds of distractive thoughts. You will find yourself struggling and struggling to quiet your thoughts. When you want to do the right thing, that is when all kinds of sinful desires will arose in you. Here is how Paul puts it;
"I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died." (Rom 7:9).
Without the law he was alive, but the moment the law came he died. When he didn't know what is good and what is bad, he was at least trying in doing the right thing. But the moment the law came to tell him what's bad and what's good, everything got worse. He just realize that he keeps craving to do the bad things. This is because once sin sees the law it holds a revival meeting and begins to burn with a renewed passion. The moment you tell yourself that, "this is the right thing and from now on I will try to do it", that is when sin will begin to burn with a greater passion, pushing you to do that bad this. It is the spirit (attitude) of rebellion. The carnal nature loves rebellion, it keeps seeking for new ways to rebel. You will find yourself diving deeper into sin the moment you realise that thing is a sin. As such you feel the law (rules and regulations or don't and dos) and your attempt to be better has only made everything worse. It is such a terrible state that Paul cried out;
"O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" (Rom 7:24).
Who will deliver us from this body of death that is so eager to rebel? Well, in Christ we have already been delivered, and to live above this rebellion you must follow the way of this deliverance. The way of this deliverance is rest and effortlessness. The moment you tell yourself that you want to stop something bad, and then you start putting effort towards stopping it, that is when that bad desire will get stronger. To overcome it, you must tell yourself that you are not trying to stop it. Yes, convince yourself that you are not trying to overcome it because you have already overcome it in Christ. You are not trying to gain another victory over it because the victory that Christ won for you is enough and all you want to do is rest in that victory. This is the principle of abiding in the ship.
Your carnal nature only has power in the realm of works. Yes, when you are working hard and making effort it empowers the carnal nature. The carnal nature is drawn to your works, and it comes to frustrate it. It enjoys frustrating good works, it preys on it. To defeat it you must leave the realm of works and enter the realm of rest where the carnal nature is powerless. You disarm the carnal nature immediately you step into rest. It preys on efforts, so when you enter into the realm of effortlessness, there is nothing for it to prey on, as such it become powerless. The only thing it could do at that point is to distract you from resting. It will tell you that you haven't gotten any victory, and that you need to work for victory. It will try to get you back into the realm of works. Don't fall for that trick otherwise you enter into its trap and end up giving it power over you again. Stand on faith (faith is trusting and resting in God) and you've disarm the power of death and the devil.
Stop trying so hard to stop that bad habit, rather believe that you are a new person and that habit or sin have never been a part of you, for old things are past away and all things have become new (2Cor 5:17). You are no longer that person who was struggling with that thing (be it sin or affliction). That person died, and you are now a new person. This person that you are is victorious over sin and every affliction of death. Believe this truth and rest in it. You don't need to keep fighting, the battle have been won, get into the victory boat and rest. Yes, rest in this ship that Christ is captaining. Right now it may seem like you do not have victory but just trust the captain of the boat (salvation). Surely, as you abide in this boat, and as this boat continues to move you will come to a point where you will see the victory being manifested so gloriously. You are simply to rest on the Holy Spirit as he floats on that river, moving you effortlessly to the manifestation of the finished reality.
This is an excerpt from my book, "Manifesting The Rich Reality In Christ".