"I believe that if one man were to live out his life fully and completely, were to give form to every feeling, expression to every thought, reality to every dream - I believe that the world would gain such a fresh impulse of joy that we would forget all the maladies of medievalism, and return to the Hellenic ideal - to something finer, richer than the Hellenic ideal, it may be. But the bravest man amongst us is afraid of himself. The mutilation of the savage has its tragic survival in the self-denial that mars our lives. We are punished for our refusals. Every impulse that we strive to strangle broods in the mind and poisons us. The body sins once, and has done with its sin, for action is a mode of purification. Nothing remains then but the recollection of a pleasure, or the luxury of a regret. The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself, with desire for what its monstrous laws have made monstrous and unlawful. It has been said that the great events of the world take place in the brain. It is in the brain, and the brain only, that the great sins of the world take place also.”
- Lord Henry Wotton in Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray
(Reproduced without permission from anyone! I'm a WILD Man!)
Oscar Wilde's philosophy is quite attractive. It’s attractive because we want to believe it. And the dirty little secret it that many of us do. We figure, “Hey, there’s no way you’re going to last under this temptation… and when you finally do give in, all the time you spent resisting it will be a waste. So you may as well give up now, and spare yourself the torture.”
The truth is, temptation is like a heavy weight attached to us. 
So what does that mean? There’s no way to get rid of temptation? Your choices are to either put up with it all your life, or keep falling and never move ahead?
Sadly, yes. And of those two choices, it’s actually a tough choice. Clearly the ‘putting up with temptation all your life’ path is the only one with the positive outcome… but the ‘keep falling’ path is a whole lot easier to do! Going though life being constantly tempted and never giving in seems like an impossible task. No one can possibly live like that.
Enter Jesus.
‘Oh Sure!’ you say. ‘But Jesus was God! He couldn’t sin! So what’s the point of quoting Him as an example to follow? He didn’t feel the real strain of temptation, like I do!’
Uncle Varghese Chacko spoke at CYF (Christian Youth Fellowship) about three weeks back, and he put it this way:
Let’s say a scrawny guy goes up to a twenty kg weight and tries to lift it. 
He then says it’s impossible to lift it.
Then, a person who has trained himself to lift the weight comes along.
He too, strains against the weight, but manages to lift it. 
The truth is, the person who really feels the weight is the one who stands under it… not the one who can’t.
There's a thought.
The sad part is, no one has ever stood under the weight all his life.
Except Jesus.
The good news is, Christ gives you the ability to do the same!
That’s the secret to dealing with temptation... stand under it, not in your own strength… (You can’t, remember?) But in the strength of the one who can.
So don't listen to the voice inside your head that's telling you to give up. It's lying. This song by Casting Crowns really helps me when I'm struggling...
Oh,what I would do to have
the kind of faith it takes
To climb out of this boat I'm in
Onto the crashing waves
To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown
Where Jesus is,
And he's holding out his hand
But the waves are calling out my name
and they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
time and time again
"Boy, you'll never win,
You you'll never win
But the Voice of truth tells me a different story
the Voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
and the Voice of truth says "this is for My glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of truth
Oh, what I would do
to have the kind of strength it takes
To stand before a giant
with just a sling and a stone
Surrounded by the sound
of a thousand warriors
shaking in their armor
Wishing they'd have had the strength to stand
But the giant's calling out
my name and he laughs at me
Reminding me of all the times
I've tried before and failed
The giant keeps on telling me
time and time again
"Boy you'll never win,
you'll never win."
But the voice of truth tells me a different story
the Voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
and the Voice of truth says "this is for My glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of truth
But the stone was just the right size
to put the giant on the ground
and the waves they don't seem so high
from on top of them looking down
I will soar with the wings of eagles
when I stop and listen to the sound of Jesus
singing over me
But the Voice of truth tells me a different story
The Voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
And the Voice of truth says "this is for my glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me (calling out to me)
I will choose to listen and believe (I will choose to listen and believe)
I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of truth
I will listen and believe
I will listen and believe the Voice of truth
I will listen and believe
'Cause Jesus you are the Voice of truth
And I will listen to you.. oh you are the Voice of truth
Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.