Eliot Spitzer resigned as the governor of New York yesterday. The news of ongoing involvement with high-priced call girls and prostitution ring with potential violation of federal laws caught up with him. News media reports that Spitzer spent over $80,000 of his family fortune of over $5 million to feed his out of control sexual appetite. The initial reaction to this behavior was shock and awe that a highly visible "corruption fighter" known for his bull dogged pursuit of crime and justice had fallen to such a base response to human cravings. He won a landslide victory by promising to run the state of New York with the same law and justice mindset. During his career as Attorney General he searched out and prosecuted prostitution rings.

Female newscasters in particular expressed disgust that he "dragged along his wife" into his public humiliation by having her by his side when he "confessed" and later resigned. The anguish in this beautiful woman's eyes was painful to observe.

Why would a man with everything we define as success risk it all for any reason, let alone to satisfy his sexual appetite?

Web news sites carry picture after picture of high and mighty men who have fallen to sexual sin. Included are formerly powerful and respected Christian leaders like Ted Haggard. Some lost everything that made them influential and some, a la Bill Clinton, somehow held on to their powerful positions.

Late night shows are having a field day. The victims in the Spitzer case are Mrs. Spitzer and his three daughters.

What we see is not new. Powerful men (and women) give in to base behavior "because they can." They believe the "fan mail" that inflates their ego and become "gods" in their own universe. Perhaps most stunning to me is the ability of these people to lie without any glimmer of their deception. I previewed Ted Haggard's initial response to the threat of being "outed." If I had not known the rest of the story, his performance would have convinced me that he was being unfairly targeted for political reasons. Think back to Bill Clinton's public declaration of innocence. God tells us in scripture that habitual lying will be a sign of the "last days."

But before I "tsk tsk" our way through the day, God whispers in my ear that I need to be careful of throwing stones. I am taking a long hard look at my own heart and asking myself, "If I knew I would not get caught and had the means to do the very same thing as Spitzer did, would I do it? Better yet, would I want to do it?"

I have become convinced the longer I serve the Lord that most of us are truly not aware of what evil we are capable of committing? My heart is indeed desperately wicked. Who can know it? There has to be another force in play to stem the tide of these lusts of the flesh - that is, the fear of God. Do I really fear Him or am I merely afraid of being caught.

What about you?