4 Minute Devotions: Overcoming Addiction

One of the saddest things about addiction is that the consequences of feeding a habit can destroy our dreams and annihilate our ambitions. When I left High School, I could have gone to Stirling University to study history. I met with the leading professor of the History department, and he interviewed me, along with a few other candidates, early in the spring of 1975. I was guaranteed a place and looked forward to becoming a student in the heart of historical Scotland.

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But my addiction got the better of me and I gave up my dreams. When the acceptance form came in, I ripped it up and went out to look for a job. In my heart, I wanted to go to Stirling, but I didn’t want to give up my boozing friends or the pubs I frequented. Regrettably, I set aside something special, in order to feed and maintain my alcoholism.

Bible Verse of the Day
Job 6:13 Do I have any power to help myself, now that success has been driven from me?

I’ve known people to do the same and I’ve watched them destroy themselves, year after year. I want to reach out to them and tell them that God has the power to wrench them away from their addiction, to transform their lives. I want to protect them from giving up on their dreams, nursing their fears, and embracing their disease. I want to tell them that life with God is much, much, much better than life with a bottle, a drug, or porn.

I am truly thankful to God that despite my selfishness and stupidity, He took a hold of me and turned my life around. I may not be the historian that I once desired to be, but I am happy with where God has led me. It took a lot of hard work, prayer, self-examination, and revelation to get me to this place. Anyone who is addicted can also do that, but only if they first surrender themselves to God. What I discovered was this: if you want God to change your life, you can’t hold back anything from Him.

I know that there are some of you who are reading this who have similar problems. If I can help you find God, then please email me. There are also some of you who are carrying the burden of an addicted love one. My prayers are with you. Get help. Find a church that cares. Let God carry you for a while. There’s nothing that is too big for Him. There is no problem that He cannot help us overcome.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, today we need You to live up to that Divine Title of ‘Savior.’ We need You to save us from ourselves, our addictions, our fears, and our burdens. We are tired of trying to do it on our own. We are weary and exhausted, stressed out and alone. Come to us and save us. Free us from our fears and help us to hold on to You, so that our lives, dreams, and hopes can be renewed. In Your Holy Name, we earnestly pray. Amen.

If you enjoyed this devotion, you can read more in John's devotional e-books like "The Light of Love" which has forty-two devotions inspired by the Gospel of John. You can find the book at this link: 

"The Light of Love."

Erin devotions: Joyful Dreams

Psalm 126 is one of my favorite passages in the Bible. It resonates with what I’ve experienced in my life. When I was a teenager and had no control over the sadness in my home life, I hated myself and my circumstances. This self-hatred took me away from my family and friends because I supplanted them with a love of alcohol. I put myself into danger and exiled my emotions, using beer, whisky, and wine to escape from my frustrations and fears.

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Bible Verse of the Day

Psalm 126:2 Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy.Then it was said among the nations,” The LORD has done great things for them."

And then I found the Lord and rediscovered my joy of Jesus that I had in my heart when I was in elementary school. I still struggled with alcohol for a while, but eventually I was able to let it go because I became addicted to God, Jesus and the Gospel. It was like coming out of a self-imposed nightmare and going into a God given dream.

Throughout my life I’ve seen people struggle with the same demons of drink and emotional attacks. I’ve tried to help them overcome their addiction and show them the joy of the Lord. I’d love to say that I’ve been successful every time, but sadly some people are more self-destructive than others and eventually they ruin their relationships, empty their emotions, and destroy their bodies. When that occurs, I feel heart broken because I know that things could have been so much different if they truly let Christ into their lives.

If you’re struggling with an addiction or an obsession, or you know someone close beside you who is, get help. Don’t leave it until it’s too late or ignore it, hoping that it will all go away. There are lots of good counselors and godly pastors, specialists and experts who could empower and enable you to overcome. With their help and Christ in your heart, you can turn those horrible nightmares into hopeful dreams. Seize the day and let that transforming moment begin in your life now.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, You know everything about us, so we can never hide or conceal anything from You. You are completely aware of our weakness and addictions, secrets and obsessions. Help us to find help and seek assistance in overcoming those demons of deception that want to destroy our hearts and happiness, our spirits and souls. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Rescue

Colossians 1:13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.(NIV)

I was talking to someone the other day about my struggle with alcohol when I was a teenager. I grew up in the West of Scotland where the culture imposes a lot of pressure on young people to get as drunk as often as they can, just to prove that they are normal and can handle liquor. I started drinking when I was thirteen and five years later, I became addicted. I honestly cannot remember going more than a day without drinking beer, vodka, or whisky from when I was eighteen to twenty.

Typically, there was a great shadow or sadness over my soul and the only way that I could find to get rid of the darkness was to brighten up my spirits with intoxicating spirits. But alcohol is a depressant and when my ‘spiritual’ high was over, I was worse off than before.

People who loved me hinted that I had a problem, but no one really confronted me or intervened. It’s not that they didn’t care – I’m sure that my parents and some of my friends wanted me to stop – it’s just that I was so strong-willed and stubborn, they didn’t know what to do or say. My addiction made me powerless to give it up; and it paralyzed my loved ones who wanted to help.

It took intervention to rescue me – divine intervention. God got a hold of my attention and when I pleaded for help, He heard my prayer. I had to hit rock bottom before I could start on the road to recovery. I had to fall on my knees and ask for help before any turning point could begin in my life.

Since those dark days, I’ve known others to be in the same predicament, who have wrestled with the dark demons of addiction. Some of them have lost that battle and died prematurely, but I’m glad to say that there are others who have found God and conquered their dependency on alcohol. They have also experienced that precious moment of divine rescue in their lives when God has saved them from themselves.

Perhaps some of you who are reading or hearing this are struggling with an addiction. Maybe you have a loved one who is wrestling with nicotine, alcohol, drugs or pornography. Ask God to intervene; pray for divine rescue; plead for deliverance from the darkness. He has the power – all you need is the prayer for perseverance.

Prayer: Lord God, when we do damage to ourselves through solvent abuse and chemical dependency, rescue us. When we try to overcome addiction and obsession from things that harm our bodies, minds, and souls, deliver us. And when we or our loved ones have taken the wrong path, made foolish choices, or have slid back into fallen ways, restore us, O God, to Your light, Your life, and Your love. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. Amen.