By David Hegg In my world of evangelical church ministry, we recently suffered a substantial spiritual earthquake. A man nationally and internationally respected for decades of faithful biblical teaching was exposed as an unfaithful husband, deceitful leader and arrogant hypocrite. To make the news of his failure even more devastating, he was the fifth nationally respected clergyman to disqualify himself morally this year.  And it got me thinking. How does this happen? How do people with everything going for them start down the road to ruin? My query sent me back to the Old Testament story of King David, who, despite being described as “a man after God’s own heart,” incrementally eased himself down the path that led to adultery and murder. Well, I’ll tell you how and give you the steps to take if you want to ruin your life. It might be good to read the story of David and Bathsheba in the Bible, found in 2 Samuel 11.  Step No. 1: Convince yourself that living an undisciplined life poses no risk  As the story opens, David, Israel’s commander-in-chief, should have been with his army on the battlefield, leading his men in combat. Instead, he was on the elevated roof of his house, escaping the heat of the day, taking a nap.  No longer was he the disciplined shepherd, soldier, or God-fearer whose life was shaped by his passion to reflect the character of his God. His fame and popularity with the people had grown so high that he felt nothing could tarnish his reputation, especially if he had the power to keep his behavior hidden.  So, he arose from his bed and wandered around surveying his city from the heights of his home until he spotted a beautiful young woman bathing on her roof. A godly man, a committed husband, and a gentleman with respect for women would have turned away. Integrity demanded it. But David, having already slipped the bonds of discipline, allowed himself to linger. So, David lingered over the view. And he told himself that taking the next step would be permissible and quite enjoyable.  Step No. 2: Allow yourself to act according to your impulses rather than your commitments.  That’s what David, the king – the most powerful man in the realm – allowed himself to do. Forgotten were his commitments to God, his family, his people, Bathsheba’s husband, who was listed as one of David’s squad of mighty men, and clearly to Bathsheba herself as a vulnerable young woman. But, having escaped the safety net of personal discipline and self-control, David willingly and intentionally pursued his prurient impulses and went from looking to having.  If you read the story, you’ll be shocked at the boldness of David’s actions. He sent a servant to inquire about Bathsheba and then sent messengers to fetch her to him. The text is quite simple. “She came to him and he lay with her … and the woman conceived, and she sent and told David, ‘I am pregnant.’”  Oh no! David was now responsible and certainly knew his immoral behavior would be exposed. But then again, he’s the King, so he proceeded to Step No. 3.  Step No. 3: When your hypocrisy and deceitful ways are about to be exposed, pour all your energy into covering up rather than confessing.  This third step was easy for David simply because the road to ruin runs downhill. First, he recalled Bathsheba’s husband from the battlefront, knowing that he would want to sleep with his wife. But Uriah was a man of commitment. He refused to enjoy a soft marital bed when his comrades were bivouacked on the battlefield. Then, David invited him to tip a glass and watched him get drunk. But, even when intoxicated, Uriah refused to enjoy his home and his wife. Finally, David wrote an order to Uriah’s commanding officer to put him in a place where death at the hands of the enemy would be inevitable. And in what could only be called cold-hearted arrogance, he asked Uriah to carry the note back to the army’s encampment. The King, who had abandoned his commitments and morals, was now trusting Uriah’s integrity not to open the note that carried his death sentence. David’s arrogance-driven hypocrisy knew no bounds.  But as news came to the King that Uriah had been slain, David could take the final step that ensured his ruin.  Step No. 4: When you are sure you have escaped discovery, convince yourself you got away with your deceit and debauchery … so that you are free to do it all again.   As the story went on, David’s cover-up worked. With Uriah dead, David took Bathsheba as his wife, and their child was born. No one seemed to notice or care.  However, at the end of the story, we find this: “But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.”  When arrogance overwhelms integrity and self-control gives way to deviant impulses, there are always negative consequences. For David, the rest of his life was a tedious, uphill climb. One son died in infancy, another sexually abused his sister, and still another rebelled and attempted to wrest the throne from him. Simply put, David never fully recovered from his incremental slide down the path of ruin.  So, what do we learn from all this? Just this. The most satisfying life is one where integrity, humility, and a solid ethical foundation are prized above the pleasures of sinful passions. It is a life that understands finishing well, with your reputation intact, is the most useful in life, and certainly the most honorable legacy when your time on this Earth is over.  Local resident David Hegg is senior pastor of Grace Baptist Church. “Ethically Speaking” appears Sundays.  The post David Hegg | How to Ruin Your Life appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.