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Good morning, sisters. Spring has sprung. And with it comes so many hopes and dreams. The season of new life sounds promising, and so does new life for our souls. Let's talk.
We've been sharing about addictions. No matter what yours is, it needs to go, because it's controlling you, isn't it? It could be that big one some of us struggle with…food. But it could be the giant of hard drugs and alcohol. Whatever, we feel hopeless to change it, and that's because we haven't gotten down to the core of the problem. It almost always stems from an inadequate feeling. We don't measure up. We feel unloved, unappreciated and rejected. Thus, we turn to whatever the choice addiction may be for us. We have pain. We decided that if we can identify the pain that is controlling us, we can begin to find the cure for our addictions. Did you identify yours? Most often, we really don't need to dig deep. We know what it is.
When our world gets turned upside down, nothing feels right or makes sense to us. We may have become lonely or angry or tired or annoyed or frustrated or fearful or betrayed or lost or disgusted or grieving or just knocked off our base. These feelings are the very things that lead us astray, to the addiction. The addiction makes us feel better, and we will run to anything to relieve the hurt inside. If only we could just cope. So, we turn to that thing that will make us feel better. And maybe we do feel relief for a short time. We get a buzz, a thrill, a rush or a sense of empowerment. For once, we feel in control. But it doesn't last, and then the low is so much worse than that short-lived high.
We all know the cycle of over-eating. We feel sad, lonely, depressed or whatever, so we eat 'til we might explode, only to get a sugar-high that dips so low afterwards, and then we crash. It didn't solve anything, and only makes us feel even worse about ourselves. All addictions are this way. So, what's behind all this?
Usually, we can track it down, not to a thing, but to a person. Someone made us feel inadequate. Other people have expectations of us. When we don't meet those expectations, we look for something to hide our pain behind. And all of this makes us feel vulnerable. We simply don't want to be known for who we feel we truly are, a failure. So, here's the cycle: vulnerability makes us feel weak, and weakness makes us try to cover up and cope, and when we try to cover up and cope, we run to our addiction. In the end, this cycle only brings death to every good thing around us. If we don't defeat it, it will utterly destroy our relationships and our lives. What is the solution?
Jesus. Jesus takes down the giant of addiction. I just heard that. You all are groaning. You're saying, "Seriously?" Sisters, isn't Jesus ultimately the answer to everything? When we turn to Him in our vulnerability, instead of to our addiction, we can feel safe, secure, loved and confident in our relationship with Him. He simply loves us unconditionally, failures and all. We don't need to measure up. We simply need to love Him and trust Him to empower us to beat this thing. Yes, yes, the struggle will continue, but for how long? That's up to you, really. Everytime we struggle with that addiction, we turn to Him, again and again and again, until we have victory. Just digest this for today. Tomorrow, we'll go deeper.
Lord, we do love you and see our need to trust You with everything that controls us that is not of You. Help us, Lord. Help us be bigger than anything out there. Give us the desire and then the power to stand strong in the presence of our enemies. In Jesus' name, I Pray. Amen.
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Debby Renninger is a freelance writer and inspirational speaker. She holds a Bible study in her home in McVeytown, where seeking women are always welcome. She may be reached at (717) 250-7086 for speaking engagements.