MISDIRECTED WORSHIP:
THE TRAGEDY OF
ADDICTION
Lets us walk with decency, as in the daylight:
not in carousing and drunkenness.
-
Romans 13:13
FOCUS FOR TODAY
You must guard your heart against
addiction....or else.
The dictionary defines addiction as "the compulsive need for a habit-forming substance; the condition of being habitually and compulsively occupied with something." That definition is accurate, but incomplete. For Christians, addictions have an additional meaning: it means compulsively worshiping some thing other then God.
Ours is a highly addictive society. Why? The answer is straightforward: supply and demand. The supply of addictive substances continues to grow; the affordability and availability of these substances makes them highly attractive to consumers; and the overall demand for addictive substances has increased as more and more users have become addicted to an ever-expanding array of substances and compulsions.
You know people that are full-blown addicts - probably lots of people. If you, or someone you love, is suffering from the blight of addiction, the following ideas are worth remembering:
1. For the addict, addition comes first. In the life of an addict, addiction rules. God, or course commands otherwise. God says, "You shall have no other gods before Me," and He means precisely what He says. (Exodus 20:3) Our task, as believers, is to put God in His proper place: first.
2. You cannot cure another person's addiction, but you can encourage that person to seek help. Addicts are cured when they decide, not when you decide. What you can do is this: you can be supportive, and you can encourage the addict to find the help that he or she needs. (Luke 10:25-37)
3. If you are living with an addicted person, think about safety: yours and your family's. Addiction is life threatening and life shortening. Don't let someone else's addiction threaten your safety of the safety of your loved ones. (Proverbs 23:3)
4. Don't assist in prolonging the addition: when you interfere with the negative consequences that might otherwise accompany an addicts negative behaviors, you are inadvertently "enabling" the addict to continue the destructive cycle of addiction. So don't be an enabler. (Proverbs 15-31)
5. Help is available. Lots of people have experienced addiction and lived to tell us about it. They want to help. Let them. (Proverbs 27:17)
6. Cure is possible. With God's help, no addiction is incurable. And with God, no situation is hopeless. (Matthew 19:26)
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
RELAPSE? PROBABLY
If you are on a new health regimen, you may relapse back into your old, unhealthy habits. If so, don't waste time or energy beating yourself up. If you've "fallen of the wagon," simply pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and back back on it. God was with you when you were riding that wagon for the first time, He was with you when you fell, and He'll welcome you back on the wagon when you're wise enough to climb back on.
MORE FROM GOD'S WORD
Proverbs 23:20-21
New International Version (NIV)
20 Do not join those who drink too much wine
or gorge themselves on meat,
21 for drunkards and gluttons become poor,
and drowsiness clothes them in rags
Ephesians 5:18
New International Version (NIV)
18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,
Luke 21:34
New International Version (NIV)
34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap.
1 Peter 5:8
New International Version (NIV)
8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
3 “You shall have no other gods before me.
Exodus 20:3
New International Version (NIV)
MORE THOUGHT ABOUT
TEMPTATION
Temptation is not a sin. Even Jesus was tempted. The Lord Jesus gives you the strength needed to resist temptation. - Corrie ten Boom
The chains of habit are too weak to be felt until they are too strong to be broken. - Samuel Johnson
Do not fight the temptation in detail. Turn from it. Look ONLY at your Lord. Sing. Read. Work. - Amy Carmichael
If you want to form a new habit, get to work. If you want to break a bad habit, got on your knees. - Marie T. Freeman
A man may not be responsible for his last drink, but he certainly was for the first. - Billy Graham
SAFETY MATTERS
We live in a world that can be a dangerous place, especially for those inclined toward risky behaviors. Some risk takers are easy to spot: they jump out of little airplanes, scurry up tall mountains, or race very fast cars.
Most risk takers, however, are not so bold; instead they take more subtle risks that endanger themselves, they smoke cigarettes, or they neglect to fasten their seat belts, or they engage in countless other behaviors that, while not as glamorous as mountain climbing, are equally as dangerous.
This world holds enough hazards of its own without our adding to those risks by foolishly neglecting our own personal safety and the safety of those around us. So, the next time you're tempted to do something foolish, remember that the body you're putting at risk belongs not only to you, but also to God. And He hopes that you'll behave wisely.
This world holds enough hazards of its own without our adding to those risks by foolishly neglecting our own personal safety and the safety of those around us. So, the next time you're tempted to do something foolish, remember that the body you're putting at risk belongs not only to you, but also to God. And He hopes that you'll behave wisely.
YOU'RE RESPONSIBLE
Remember that ultimately you and you alone are responsible for controlling your appetites. Others may warn you, help you, or encourage you, but in habits that you yourself have formed. Thankfully, since you formed these habits, you can break them - if you decide to so so.
WORKING IT OUT
SOMETIMES, YOU CAN'T DO IT ALONE
If you can't seem to get a handle on your appetites, the time to address your problem is today, not tomorrow. Gather your courage and pay a visit to your pastor, to a counselor, or to a local 12-step group. Help is waiting, but you'll need to ask for it. So ask.
STRENGTHENING YOUR FAITH
ADDICTION DESTROYS
You must guard your heart against dangerous temptations and life-sapping addictions...or else.
MORE FROM GOD'S WORD
ABOUT GOD'S GRACE
Ephesians 2:4-5
New International Version (NIV)
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
2 Corinthians 12:9
New International Version (NIV)
9 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.
1 John 4:14
New International Version (NIV)
14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.
Ephesians 2:8-9
New International Version (NIV)
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding.
Ephesians 1:7-8
New International Version (NIV)
NOTES TO YOURSELF
Make a short list of the unhealthy foods or drinks that are most tempting to you. Then, ask God to help you avoid them today.
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