Todd D. Hunter - Our Favorite Sins: The Sins We Commit and How You Can Quit

PRAISE FOR OUR FAVORITE SINS

In Our Favorite Sins, Hunter combines modern language and research with classic understanding in providing a fresh look and at our most deadly sins. His suggestions for ancient and fruitful practices will be very helpful to many in reorienting desire toward living life with God.

GARY W. MOON, M.DIV., PH.D., executive director,
Martin Family Institute and Dallas Willard Center
for Spiritual Formation, Westmont College;
author of Apprenticeship with Jesus

One of the most persistent and least talked about questions for Christians are these: If sin is so bad, then why are we drawn to it? If it wrecks human liveswhich it does, every timethen what is so appealing about its temptations? Is there any help for those who want to find freedom from sin? Todd Hunter has delved deeply into this matter, and in this excellent and accessible book Hunter offers us not only insight into why we sin, but how we can begin to turn from its false promises. The body of Christ needs this book.

JAMES BRYAN SMITH,
author of The Good and Beautiful God

The most deceptive part of sin is its ability to blind us to its reality in our lives. Todd Hunter offers sane and helpful guidance about the way out.

JOHN ORTBERG, senior pastor, Menlo Park
Presbyterian Church; author of The Me I Want to Be

It is so easy to miss our potential in life due to getting caught up in our weaknesses and temptations. Todd helps us understand not only how to recognize the subtle sins that can distract us, but how to be like Jesus when facing them.

DAN KIMBALL, author of
They Like Jesus But Not the Church

Todd Hunter draws on ancient practices in order to provide insight and strategy to face temptations in our lives. This book will help you think about how you can not just ask God to deliver you from temptation but be intentional about finding a way of escape.

MARGARET FEINBERG, www.margaretfeinberg.com,
author of Scouting the Divine and The Sacred Echo

Todd Hunter gets it: Nothing should stand in the way of full devotion to Christ.

BILL HYBELS, senior pastor, Willow Creek
Community Church; chairman, Willow Creek Association

This book speaks powerfully to some of my own deepest spiritual struggles. In offering candid, informed counsel on our favorite sins, Todd Hunter has given me, and multitudes like me, an important spiritual treasure.

DR. RICHARD MOUW, president, Fuller Seminary;
author of Praying at Burger King

Todd Hunter is the only man I know who can talk about sin with an appealing easiness and, at the time, with an equally appealing candor. I can almost guarantee that youll enjoy his conversation and end up very grateful for having had the chance to read it.

PHYLLIS TICKLE, author of The Great Emergence

One of the greatest intellectual achievements of the Christian tradition is its notion of original sin. People will make a mess of anything, of everything. Todd Hunter has gifted us with an inspiring book that suggests habits of holiness for everyday living and moving and having our being amid human suckitude and stinkiness. But most of all, Bishop Hunter gives us hope that where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.

LEONARD SWEET, best-selling author, professor,
and chief contributor to sermons.com

OUR
FAVORITE
SINS

OUR
FAVORITE
SINS

The Sins We Commit & How You Can Quit

TODD D. HUNTER

2012 by Todd Hunter

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.

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Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblia, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan Worldwide. All rights reserved. www.zondervan.com

Scripture quotations marked MSG are from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the KING JAMES VERSION.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are from Holy Bible, New Living Translation. 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked AMPLIFIED BIBLE are from THE AMPLIFIED BIBLE: OLD TESTAMENT. 1962, 1964 by Zondervan (used by permission); and from THE AMPLIFIED BIBLE: NEW TESTAMENT. 1958 by the Lockman Foundation (used by permission).

Scripture quotations marked CEV are from THE CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH VERSION. 1991 by the American Bible Society. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are from THE NEW KING JAMES VERSION. 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are from NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE; The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Hunter, Todd D., 1956
Our favorite sins : the sins we commit and how you can quit / Todd Hunter.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-1-59555-444-4
1. Sins. 2. Christian life. I. Title.
BV4625.H86 2012
241.3--dc23

2011048461

Printed in the United States of America
12 13 14 15 16 QG 6 5 4 3 2 1

For Jacqueline Rae Hunter.
Passing through lifes patches of dense,
disorienting fog, she made her way to the Light,
becoming light, love, and strength to those she loved.

CONTENTS

by Dallas Willard

ONE
The Tyranny of What You Want

TWO
Disordered Desires

THREE
The Insider Report

FOUR
Anxious Annie

FIVE
Procrastinating Preston

SIX
Eating Eddie

SEVEN
Media Mary

EIGHT
Lazy Larry

NINE
Modern and Futile

TEN
Ancient and Fruitful, Part 1

ELEVEN
Ancient and Fruitful, Part 2

TWELVE
Liturgical Prayers and Offices

THIRTEEN
Sacrament: God Is with Us

FOURTEEN
The Lectionary: Seeing Sin in Context

CONCLUSION
A New Beginning

Appendix: Temptation by the Numbers:
The Barna Survey

Walking out of our favorite sins makes perfect sense after you have done it. But you need a biblical, psychologically sophisticated, pastoral guide to get you to that point. That is Todd Hunter. Sin is basically stupid and repulsive. But when you are in its snarefew arentyou cant see that. The best thing about Our Favorite Sins is, it really does enable you to see sin for what it is. And then it gives small doable steps you can take to walk away.

Do you want to quit? You can. Just meditatively study this book and put it, gently but persistently, into practice. Dont worry about perfection. If you ever get there, it will be safe for you. Its when you arent there that it is dangerousdeadly! This book will do wonders for serious disciples of Jesus, and it would be great for small groups. But were talking world revolution here, which is exactly what Jesus had in mind: Teach the disciples to do everything I said. What else is there to do?