Recently, I was reflecting on my weight-loss journey to better understand the process of how people come to lose focus, thus losing control of handling vices. For many, this is a touchy subject, but one that I believe is necessary in order to see victory in other areas of their lives.
Whenever it comes to overcoming vices such as drugs, alcohol or other types of addictions, we need to gain a biblical perspective.
The Bible says in James 1: 12-15,
“12 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him. 13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”
I John 2: 15-17 states,
“15 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Fatheris not in them. 16 For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”
I Corinthians 6: 12-13 states,
“12 I can do anything I want to if Christ has not said no, but some of these things aren’t good for me. Even if I am allowed to do them, I’ll refuse to if I think they might get such a grip on me that I can’t easily stop when I want to. 13 For instance, take the matter of eating. God has given us an appetite for food and stomachs to digest it. But that doesn’t mean we should eat more than we need. Don’t think of eating as important because someday God will do away with both stomachs and food.
But sexual sin is never right: our bodies were not made for that but for the Lord, and the Lord wants to fill our bodies with himself.”
What the enemy does is first, introduce us to something that brings pleasure to us. It could be food, drugs, alcohol, sex, or any other vice. Next, we acquire an appetite for that thing. For me, food was something I enjoyed very much. Like most of us, we have those favorite dishes that we or others make. The issue occurs when we use food or anything else as a coping mechanism. This is where abuse occurs. ANYTHING that is not being used in its proper context is ABUSE.
As we saw earlier in James Chapter 1, each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
This is why Paul declares in I Corinthians 9:27,
“But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.”
It is important for us to recognize any triggers in our lives that cause us to resort to food or vices. Commit those things to God and allow Him to bring about the necessary disciplines to overcome them, or in the case of food, allow Him to help us not continue to be a slave to our appetites.
This is Leslie Eaddy Brooks, Think about It.
Leslie Eaddy-Brooks 