Beyond Addiction_Promises You Can Count On

8/7/2019 Beyond Addiction_Promises You Can Count On

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Beyond Addict ion:Promises You Can Count On

Prepared by Ps Adrian Webster

www.missionenterprises.org

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Introduction

Isthereanyhopebeyondaddiction?Ifyouveeverbeencaughtintheclutchesofanysort

of addiction you may well have asked yourself this question. The good news is that there is

definitelyhope.Itispossibletofindfreedomfromaddiction.

The purpose of this study is to introduce you to some powerful Bible promises and

principlesthat,ifimplemented,willguaranteeyouofpermanentfreedomandhealing.

If you would like to access digital media on the internet that will assist you in

understandingandovercoming addiction, please visit:www.missionenterprises.org andclick on

theVideoLibrarylinkatthetopofthewebpage.

What Guiding Principles and Promises Does the Bible Offerin Regard to Overcoming Addiction?1Corinthians10:13

1Corinthians10:13

YouCanOvercome!

You may have failed a thousand times in trying to beat the

problemofaddiction.Butunlessoneadoptsapositivecan-doattitude,

the attempt to break free from addiction is doomed to failure even

beforethestart.

Scripturemakesit clear thatwhateverwe arestrugglingwith,

we are not the pioneers of that weakness or addiction. The

temptationsweencounterhavebeenexperiencedbyothers.Thus,just

asothershavebeenthroughwhatwearegoingthrough,sotooothers

haveovercomein theareawhereweare seekingtoovercome. God

has given His assurance that nothing which comes our way is

insurmountable.Hewillnotallowanytemptationtobebroughtupon

usforwhichthereisnowayofescape!(1Cor10:13).Ourassuranceof

victoryisnotbasedonourabilities,butonGodsfaithfulness.Thusif

weareexperiencingtemptationandstruggle,itcanbeovercomeno

matter how overpowering it may feel in the moment. Gods

faithfulness will prevent anything coming our way that cannot be

mastered.

LookForGodsEscapeRoute!

The last part of 1 Corinthians 10:13is absolutely clear that in

everysituationofweaknessortemptationthatwemightfindourselves

in, God has prepared an escape route. When one approaches the

problem of addiction with anattitudeof faith, one will immediately

beginseekingtheescaperoutethatGodhasmadewhenonefeelsthe

call totheoldwayofliferesurfacing. The attitudeof faithdoesnot

fixate ones attention on the intensity of the temptation thereby

magnifyingthetrial.Rathertheattitudeoffaithseeksthebackdoorof

escapethatGodhasleftopen.


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Philippians4:13;

Galatians5:16,17;Matthew11:28-30

Philippians4:8;

Romans13:14;

Colossians3:1-2

YouNeedGodsPower!

Long-termvictoryhastogobeyondmereself-helptechniques.The addict is an addict precisely because of his or her choices and

weaknesses.Iftheaddictnaturallyhadtheabilityinternallytobreak

free,therewouldbenosuchthingasaddiction.Theveryconceptof

someonebeingan addict implieshelplessness. Weneedanexternal

power source to make up for the deficiencies of our internal

weaknesses.Whenwecombineourfrailhumanitywiththeresources

ofGodsperfectomnipotence,victoryisabsolutelyassured(Phil4:13).

The teachings of the Bible consistently seek to direct our

attention away from ourselves to God when it comes to finding

freedom from sin and addiction. The popular philosophies of thepresent day seek to encourage self-trust and self-help. Yet these

conceptsareinternallybankrupt.Weneedtolookoutsideofourselves

ifwewanttruevictory.GodhaspromisedtogiveusHisowndivine

presence, throughtheHolySpirit,asthetruesourceofpowerwhich

will givegenuinevictory (Gal5:16,17). Victory isguaranteedby the

factthatthepowerofGodisgreaterthanthemostsevereweakness

theaddictmaystruggleagainst.

Oneofthemosthelpfulandimportantconceptstounderstand

inseekingtofindvictoryoveraddictionisthattruevictoryisnotabout

trying harder. Rather it isaboutcommuning withGod moredeeply.Thisisnottosaythatthereisnosenseofstruggle.Rather,permanent

victory comes from internal change and transformation. If one is

seeking to change oneself from the outside in (i.e. behaviour

modification),thestrugglewill alwaysbe losteventuallybecausethe

internalweaknessesareleftunchanged.Yet,ifonehasfoundinternal

transformation, then the outward actions and behaviours change

naturally.ThisiswhyJesusinvitationtothosewhoaretrying,working,

strivingandfailingistocometoHimsothatHecangivetherestthatis

soneeded(Matt11:28-30).Truevictorycomesfromspendingtimein

the presence of the life changing God. His grace changes us at theheart of our being and gives true rest and contentment. Once this

experience has been found, addictions lose their power as they no

longerhaveanansweringcordattheheartofourbeing.

YouNeedNewInfluences!

The Bible is emphatic about the fact that very conscious and

deliberatechoicesneedtobemadeinregardtotheinfluencesthatwe

allowintoourlives(Phil4:8).Justlikeawindthatcancauseatreeto

growskewbyconstantlyblowinginacertaindirectionovertheyearsof

the trees growth, so too the influences we allow into our life

experiencewillexertashapingforceuponourcharactersandwaysof

thinking.


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Genesis1:27;3:8;

Colossians2:8-10

1John1:9

Foranaddictwhoisseekingtoleavetheoldlifebehind,some

difficult but essential decisions may need to be made in terms offriendship circle, musical choices, places of entertainment etc. It is

possibletosetoneselfupforfailurebyassociatingwiththeoldfriends

whosemindsarenotsetonrecoveryfromaddiction,orbylisteningto

themusicthat one usedtoparty to, orby frequentingtheclubsand

partieswherethesubstancesoneisseekingtoseparatefromareused.

Weneedtoensurethatwemakenoprovisionforfailure(Rom13:14).

If an addict intends to break free, it is essential to choose positive

spiritual influences to replace the old influences that will constantly

triggertemptation.Anewgoaldemandsanewfocus(Col3:1-2).

YouNeedJesustobeComplete!

Oneofthebiggestfactorsthatdrivespeopleintotheworldof

drug addiction is personal disatisfaction with ones life or

circumstances.Thedrugofabusebecomesameanstodumbdownthe

pain or to create an alternate reality where one feels bright and

sparklyforafewhours.

InseekingtoexcludeGodfromdailylife,humanbeingslivein

denial ofthe verypurpose for theirexistance. Godspurpose inour

creationwasthatHewishedtoshareHimselfwithus.Thisiswhywe

werecreatedinHisimage(Gen1:27).Godsoughtoutthecompanyofhumanbeingsafterthecreationeventinthecooloftheday(Gen3:8)

aswellaseveryseventh-day(Gen2:3).Inotherwords,builtintoour

designplanisaneedforfellowshipwithGod.AslongaswedenyGod

the permission to fill the God-shaped vacuum that He has created

insideofus,wewillneverfeelcompleteorcontentedatthecoreofour

being.Wemayrunfromonefadtoanotherandfromoneaddictionto

theotherseekingtofillthevoidwhichonlyGodcanauthenticallyfill.

This iswhytheBiblewarnsustobecarefulaboutbeingdeceivedby

worldly ideas andphilosophies that cannotbring true fulfillment (Col

2:8). Our completeness will only ever be realized once we allowourselvestoconnectwiththeGodwhomadeusforthisverypurpose

(Col2:8-10).

When the cravings of the heart are satisfied through ones

relationship with Jesus and the soul has found a place of rest and

contentment, the very driving force of so many of ones addictions

simplyceasestoexist.Whileaperiodofphysicalwithdrawlmaystill

needtobeendured,therootcausehasbeencuredandthuslong-term

victorywillresult.

YouNeedPeacewithGod!

The lack of peace with God is another contributing factor to

beingdissatisfiedwithoneself.Whenonefindsarelationshipofpeace


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James1:22

with God, one also finds a place of acceptance. The experience of

acceptancerelievestheneedandthedrivetocontinuallybetryingtoshape oneself and ones circumstances to meet internal or external

pressures and standards. Peace with God alleviates the internal

pressureanddissatisfactionthattoooftencausesonetoself-medicate

withvarioussubstancesthatultimatelybecomeaddictive.

ThesecretandmethodoffindingpeacewithGodissosimple.

Ourpartistostoprunning,tostophiding,tostopfaking.Ourpartis

simply to go to God in honesty of heart and confess to Him our

weaknessand our brokenness. The promise is thatwith this simple

recognition of our true state, He will give His forgiveness and

acceptance(1John1:9).ThuswefindaplaceofrefugeinHisloveandforgivinggrace.

Inthestruggleforvictorytheremaybeapointatwhichweare

overcomebriefly.Wemightlightupanothercigarette,ortakeanother

drink.Themostimportantthingtodoafterafall,istogetbackupand

startagain.Whateverourfeelingsmaytellusaboutourunworthiness

orourhopelessness,thepromiseofGodisthatifwewillacknowledge

our fall to Him, He will forgive us. We may hear the voice of

despondencyinourmindtellingusthatitsnotworththefightorthat

Godhaswrittenusoffsothereisnotuse intryinganymore. Atthat

pointwefaceanimportantdecision.Arewegoingtolivebyfaithorbyfeeling? Faithandfeelingare toodifferent things. Butmanypeople

confusethem.FaithtakesGodatHiswordnomatterwhatourfeelings

maybesaying.Wemayfeelhopeless.WemayfeelasifGodwillnot

acceptus.Wemayfeelunworthy.YetthepromiseofGodsaysthatHe

will forgive us if we will confess our sin. If we choose to trust the

promiseofGod and ignore our feelings, we are acting in faith. The

attitudeoffaithresultsinvictory. Listeningto feelingswillonlyresult

inadownwardspiralandasenseofdespondency!

YouNeedtoTakeAction! It is notgoodenoughtosimplypursueintellectualanswers to

why one has fallen prey to addiction. Mere theorizing about the

problemdoesnotnecessarilybringfreedom.Agreeingtothelogicof

how addiction worksand what the underlyingproblemsare that are

triggering this stateofbeing isnot sufficient tobringdeliverance. A

definiteplanofactionisneeded.Knowledgemustbetranslatedinto

practicalactions(James1:22).


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Summary & Appeal No matter how far one has fallen, the arms of God are open

wide toaccept and to transform the addict froma slavetoa victor!

The road is not necessarily without trial or struggle. But by a daily

experienceofspendingtimeinthepresenceofGodgenuinechangeis

broughtaboutatthecoreoftheaddictsbeing.Thisinternalchange

willflowoutinnewbehaviours,wordsandhabits.

Bysubstitutingthetheoldwaysofthinkingwithnewspiritual

influences,suchasmemorizing andrepeating theBiblespromisesof

victory, new habits of thought are trained and a new focus will be

gained. Byconsistantlymaintaininga new focusand anew goal thedailypattern ofbehaviours will inevitably change over the course of

time.

TheBibleispackedwithpracticalprinciplesandpromisesthat

giveassurancethatthereishopebeyondaddiction.Thereissimplyno

addiction that ismorepowerfulthan the graceofGod tosave. The

most important principle in recovery to remember and put into

practiceisthatultimatehealingcomesfromconnectionwithGod.If

thisconnectionisnotcultivatedandmaintained,thepowerforchange

willnotbepresentandregressionwillsetin.Thismeansthatrecovery

isastep-by-stepandday-by-dayexperience. Stay close to Jesus and there will be nothing that you cannot

riseabove!

Documents

Beyond Addiction_Promises You Can Count On