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10-06-2008, 09:10 AM
An addiction is something that controls you, or as the dictionary puts it, "being enslaved to a habit or practice". Addictions come in many forms besides alcohol and drugs. Many people suffer from anxiety, depression, gambling, shopping, food/eating disorders, anger, finances - debt, grief, etc. They rob you of the peace God intended for you to have from the very beginning.
There are many reasons people suffer from addictions...pain, anger and fear being just a few. We feel that if we numb the pain, we will be ok, so we use temporary solutions such as alcohol, drugs, food, etc to mask our pain. The problem is when we do this, we end up feeling even worse than we did before, sending ourselves spiraling out of control.
There are times when we go through spiritual warfare, which can lead us down the path to addiction. We must combat this by wearing the full Armor Of God. In Ephesians 6:10-18 it states:
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
When we take our pain and problems to God, he offers permanent solutions to our problems. All we have to do is have faith and believe this can happen which isn't always as easy as it sounds. Yet Christ says:
I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
Matt 17:20-21
A mustard seed is very small, so imagine how much can be done with much faith, allowing God to break the chains of addiction that binds you to this world! When we begin to face our problems and realize we are not in control and allow God to take back control of our lives, that is when healing and recovery begins. Recovery is a day to day process and God is ready to walk that road with you.
A good idea when struggling with anything is to seek out an accountability partner...someone you can call when you feel low and are feeling temptation hit you. Here are some tips to finding an accountability partner:
When looking for an accountability partner, let me give you a few things to look for:
1. Must always be the same gender
2. Does their walk match their talk?
3. Do they have a growing relationship with Jesus Christ?
4. Do they show compassion, care and hope, but not pity?
5. Are they a good listener?
6. Are they strong enough to confront your denial or procrastination?
7. Do they offer suggestions?
8. Do they share their own current struggles with you?
An accountability partner will never trip you up in your recovery from your addiction. If anything, they will encourage you to face your situation and provide biblical scripture to back things up. They will listen and encourage, but not do the work for you.
Ecc 4:9-12
9 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:
10 If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Below are some verses to fall back on while on your road to recovery.
Quote:
"Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything.
1 Corinthians 6:12
Quote:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows
2 Cor 1:3-5
What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him. The blind man said, "Rabbi, I want to see.
"Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.
Mark 10:51-52
Quote:
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.
1 John 2:15-17
Quote:
For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world- our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
1 John 5:4-5
Quote:
Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
James 4:7
Quote:
Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
1 Cor 3:16-17
Quote:
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
Matt 7:7-8
Quote:
I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
John 16:23-24
Quote:
A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life
Galatians 6:7-8
Quote:
The fear of the Lord leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble. Proverbs 19:23
Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe. Proverbs 29:25
Quote:
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
1 Peter 5:7
Quote:
When tempted, no one should say, `God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
James 1:13-15
Quote:
There was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, `My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
2 Corinthians 12:7-9
Quote:
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
James 1:2-6
Quote:
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
1 Cor 10:13
Author Unknown
There are many reasons people suffer from addictions...pain, anger and fear being just a few. We feel that if we numb the pain, we will be ok, so we use temporary solutions such as alcohol, drugs, food, etc to mask our pain. The problem is when we do this, we end up feeling even worse than we did before, sending ourselves spiraling out of control.
There are times when we go through spiritual warfare, which can lead us down the path to addiction. We must combat this by wearing the full Armor Of God. In Ephesians 6:10-18 it states:
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
When we take our pain and problems to God, he offers permanent solutions to our problems. All we have to do is have faith and believe this can happen which isn't always as easy as it sounds. Yet Christ says:
I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
Matt 17:20-21
A mustard seed is very small, so imagine how much can be done with much faith, allowing God to break the chains of addiction that binds you to this world! When we begin to face our problems and realize we are not in control and allow God to take back control of our lives, that is when healing and recovery begins. Recovery is a day to day process and God is ready to walk that road with you.
A good idea when struggling with anything is to seek out an accountability partner...someone you can call when you feel low and are feeling temptation hit you. Here are some tips to finding an accountability partner:
When looking for an accountability partner, let me give you a few things to look for:
1. Must always be the same gender
2. Does their walk match their talk?
3. Do they have a growing relationship with Jesus Christ?
4. Do they show compassion, care and hope, but not pity?
5. Are they a good listener?
6. Are they strong enough to confront your denial or procrastination?
7. Do they offer suggestions?
8. Do they share their own current struggles with you?
An accountability partner will never trip you up in your recovery from your addiction. If anything, they will encourage you to face your situation and provide biblical scripture to back things up. They will listen and encourage, but not do the work for you.
Ecc 4:9-12
9 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:
10 If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Below are some verses to fall back on while on your road to recovery.
Quote:
"Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything.
1 Corinthians 6:12
Quote:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows
2 Cor 1:3-5
What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him. The blind man said, "Rabbi, I want to see.
"Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.
Mark 10:51-52
Quote:
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.
1 John 2:15-17
Quote:
For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world- our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
1 John 5:4-5
Quote:
Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
James 4:7
Quote:
Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
1 Cor 3:16-17
Quote:
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
Matt 7:7-8
Quote:
I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
John 16:23-24
Quote:
A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life
Galatians 6:7-8
Quote:
The fear of the Lord leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble. Proverbs 19:23
Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe. Proverbs 29:25
Quote:
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
1 Peter 5:7
Quote:
When tempted, no one should say, `God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
James 1:13-15
Quote:
There was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, `My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
2 Corinthians 12:7-9
Quote:
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
James 1:2-6
Quote:
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
1 Cor 10:13
Author Unknown