There is one thing that everyone who has the pilgrim’s mentality shares in common…they live holy lives.  Since those who view themselves as pilgrims realize that this life is temporary and they have heaven as their primary goal in life, they do everything they can to reach that goal, especially living a life that is pleasing to God.

1 John 3:2–3 (ESV)
² Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. ³ And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

The word purifies used by John means “to make clean” (Strong).  It is the responsibility of every child of God to remain spiritually clean.

2 Corinthians 7 (ESV)
¹Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

God sanctifies us through the gospel, making us holy, but it is our job to bring holiness to completion by living pure lives.  This is what those who have hope do.  We keep ourselves spiritually clean by not making a habit of sinning.  Yes, we all sin, but those who have their hearts focused on going to heaven do not let any sin dwell in them.

Romans 6:12–13 (ESV)
¹²Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. ¹³Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.

These passages on spiritual cleanliness tell us that living a pure and holy life is determined by us.  Being consistently holy is not something God does for us; it is something we make up in our minds to do.  Who are they who make such a conscious decision to live a life of holiness?  They are the ones who see themselves as pilgrims in this world, heading to a better place.  They decide that eternal glory is more valuable than the temporary pleasure that sin can offer.  Paul lived his life this way, and it allowed him to overcome severe persecution.

2 Corinthians 4:16–18 (ESV)
¹⁶So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. ¹⁷For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, ¹⁸as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

As we sojourn through this life, the devil will continue attacking us, doing everything he can to separate us from God and destroy our souls.  If we do not have the right mindset, he will eventually succeed.  If we have the mentality of a pilgrim, having the proper perspective of this world and the things in it, and are always focused on our eternal home of glory, we will continue on an upward trajectory toward heaven, and defeat the devil.

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.