1. Avoiding Slippery Slope
“Love is cursed by monogamy…”
Kanye West, No church in the wild
“I enjoy sex as much as Joe Namath, only I do it with one girl.”
Roger Staubach (best quarterback ever. Period)
Sex sells. News about sex sells. News about leaders’ sexuality sells even more. Jimmy Swaggart.
Bill Clinton. Eddie Long. While everyone, regardless of position, is tempted, leaders that fall
negatively impact the cause of Christ to a greater degree. If you are a leader, you have a big
target on your back. Let’s look at six factors that contribute to the decision to go outside God’s
ideal for our sexuality.
I. Six factors in infidelity:
1.______________________. “I did not think about consequences” is a common response of
unfaithful leaders. As Chuck Colson says, “we never sin alone”. It always affects others.
2. ___________________________.While not every fantasy results in infidelity, you would be
hard pressed to find infidelity that was not preceded by fantasy.
3. ____________________________.I often tell leaders to avoid both ditches that leave you
muddy and stranded:Too much work. Not enough work.
4. ___________________________.A CEO, an owner of a company, a teacher, a clergy person,
areusually good at what they do. That elicits admiration from followers, employees, members,
that admire the “persona,” but not the person.
5. _______________________________. Infidelity used to be a male problem, more than a
woman’s. That is changing.
6. ____________________________________.Many leaders have unresolved issues from the
past that affect the way they see themselves, almost craving affection and attention.
Recognizing your weakness and surrounding yourself with an accountability partner goes a long
way.
II. Dangerous Strategies in dealing with temptation.
1. __________________________________.The devil loves Lone Rangers and Secret Agents.
It's naive (even dangerous) to think we are good arbiters of our capacity to withstand
temptation. The book Avoiding the Slippery Slope mentions 4 reasons we keep secrets:
a. We want to __________________________ doing what we are doing.
b. We think by ___________________________ it from people we are hiding it from God.
c. Keeping it a secret leads to __________, and that is preferred to dealing with the truth.
d. We worry about what people will ____________ about us if they found out.

2. 2. ______________________________. Basically, that is when we believe and act like one area
in our life does not have much (if any) relationship with another. Why does that happen? Here
are three reasons:
a. We have been deceived into thinking that there are "secular" and "spiritual" areas.
b. We believe that what we do in one area does not affect other areas of our lives.
c. We fail to consider the consequences.
3.____________________________________. This simply means, looking (or making up)
excuses for the infidelity. Instead of dealing openly, spiritually, and honestly with temptation,
we rationalize behavior with thoughts like these:
a. I deserve this.
b. I'm not getting at home what I should.
c. I'm always taking care of others. Now it’s time to take care of me.
d. I married the wrong person.
III. Action steps:
1. Recognize personal frailty and family history.
2. List consequences. List at least 10 reasons why going outside God’s plan will damage your
life, family, church and witness.
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3. Get an accountability partner. This person should have the following characteristics:
a. Same sex
b. Discreet
c. Mature spiritually
d. Available
4. Be aware of traps right after mountain top experiences.
5. Focus on your marriage first.