Christians make miserable addicts

www.notofthisworldministry.com

For many years, I was a Christian drunk living a double life.I knew getting drunk was a sin, of course. Coming from an evangelical Christian background, I was familiar with the Bible verse, “Do not be drunk with wine, but be filled with the Holy Spirit.”Alcoholism, I assumed, was simply the sin of drunkenness repeated over and over again. I begged God for forgiveness. And then I asked God to help me not do it again. But I always did. As the cycle of my over-drinking, repentance, trying harder, and over-drinking again became a pattern, I often despaired. Didn’t I love God enough to quit? Didn’t God love me enough to deliver me? And I’m not alone. Thousands, if not millions, of us Christians have made the same mistake and been caught in the vicious cycle of addiction. Embarrassed by our lack of self-discipline, we try harder. We pray and repent until we’re blue in the face. When our efforts continue to fail us, we feel ever more guilty and ashamed. And confused, too. As new creations in Christ, we’re supposed to have been set free from the power of sin, right? So to even admit that we have become addicted feels like a betrayal of Christ’s work on the cross. No wonder most of us go to great lengths to hide our problem. There’s our reputation to protect, after all. And God’s. Ironically, our desire to maintain a good witness gradually turns us into champion sneaks, liars, and hypocrites. This is how once joyful Christians become jaded, miserable ones. Today, instead of seeing addiction as either sin or sickness, I believe it involves both. When we battle obsessions, we make choices that are fair to call sin. But when these behaviors progress to the point of addiction, we’re dealing with a condition that includes very real physical and psychological problems. How else but sick in body, mind, and spirit could you describe a husband and father who drinks so much he can’t recall anything his wife or kid told him the night before? Who, if he hasn’t had enough alcohol, can’t hold a cup because his hands shake too much? Who, though he imagines he would die for his wife and children, can’t quit drinking for them? I think labels like “sin” and “sickness” matter, especially for those in the faith community. Because how we define a problem largely determines how or if we reach for a solution. I’m not saying that prayer and repentance are never sufficient, or that God can’t miraculously deliver an alcoholic to permanent sobriety.he did me. But taken alone, the label—sin—can keep people from reaching out for the kind of help they need. Today, I also know I’m a sinner saved by grace—not just once so I can get into heaven, but every day so I can live sober, happy, and free.

God bless
Pastor Tim