Feel trapped by habits that you wish you didn't have?

If you are a born again Christian, those habits become more aware to you, and may make you feel more shameful about those bad habits then ever before. It is not a shame to have problems. We are all sinners and we have all come to Jesus at different stages in our lives. Problems can and should be overcome, it won't happen overnight, but it Will Happen.

 

Although this scripture can be confusing, it is one of my favorites, as it is exactly what goes through my head constantly:

Romans 7:15-20 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[c] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

 

After all; the terrible habits in my life have been going on for two decades or more and are like a running cassette tape that has been playing in my brain for all that time, and will take time to erase. If you came here through my blog (outtedbygod.wordpress.com) then you possibly have read my struggles along with my Joys.

 

My story is that at a very young age, I realized that I was Gay. I have gone through life hearing on television, from religion, from newspapers and radio that God truly hated me, and that the only destiny for me was an eternity in Hell. Therefore, I figured that since Hell was my Destiny, I might as well live it up while I was here.. So over the course of 3 1/2 decades.. yes 35 years, I have been living a life of smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, which for the last 15 years had been to drunkeness every single night, being very sexual promiscous, using the foulest language and bursting out at anger at strangers all the time for no real reason. Yet through all this time, I would cry out to God.. why did you make me this way just to throw me in hell.

 

In October of 2012 I finally decided enough was enough. Stop crying to God about it and get yourself back to church. I soon realized that God loved me just as I am and that I needed to trust in him that I was forgiven and my sins were paid for. In my fellowship with my new Christian family and openly talking about my sins, I could get help if I needed it and didn't need to feel shame anymore. The first month that I attended church, the drinking and pornography which were a daily thing for me, didn't completely go away, but it did start to become less and less of a stronghold on me. I didn't even have to try, it seems as though the every day struggle just went away. Regarding the smoking, I really didn't want to quit, I actually enjoyed it and I found myself continually telling God.. Okay, on Saturday I will quit. Only to start up again on Monday. This just kept going on.. Same was with the once a week drinking and pornography.

 

You don't have to be ruled by your habits if you don't want to. It may not be easy nor perhaps will it be a instant miracle. It is a constant struggle. On November 17, 2013 I awoke with the image of Jesus being tempted by Satan for 40 days and 40 nights, so that he could understand how we as humans would be tempted and how difficult it would be for us. I did the math and realized that this date would place New Year's day 45 days away. I really want 2014 to be a bigger year of transformation for me, for Jesus to work in me and through me so I took the 45 day challenge to completely give up the cigarettes and alcohol, so that on New Year's Day, I could say that through the Grace of God I have given up those habits completely. Being 100% honest, on day 40 I really struggled with this, and gave in. I bought a pack of cigarettes and two 40 ounce beers. Let me say this really LOUD. Yes, I gave in, but I will not let Satan tell me that now I am worthless and I might as well just give in. That I should just stop going to church, because you will never get over this. Jesus surely does hate you now. The real truth and the real Good News is that Jesus will never foresake us or stop loving us. Here are just a few of the numerous words from God about his love, grace, mercy and forgiveness.

 

• God has forgotten my sins, even tomorrows sins. Heb. 8:12 "And I will forgive their wrongdoings, and I will never again remember their sins." Psalm 103:12 He has removed our rebellious acts as far away from us as the east is from the west. I John 1:9 But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.

• The record of my sins and their requirements have been torn up and destroyed. Col. 2:14 He canceled the record that contained the charges against us. He took it and destroyed it by nailing it to Christs cross.

• I am Gods handiwork. He did not make a mistake. Eph. 2:10 For we are Gods masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.

• God is for me! Rom. 8:31 What can we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?

• Nothing and no one is able to separate me from Gods love. Romans 8:38,39 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from His love. Death cant, and life cant. The angels cant, and the demons cant. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell cant keep Gods love away. Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

• So many others: Hebrews 13:5,  Phil 4:19,  Romans 6:22,  Ephesians 1:6,  1John 2:1,  Romans 8:9-11,  Gal.4:4-5, Phil 4:13

 

God is for us. Don't let your thoughts which are most likely Satan get the best of you. I have learned that you just need to get up and start over. Don't knock yourself down and most of all, Do Not let it take you away from church, studying the Bible, etc.. because you feel unworthy to do so. That is a constant lie that Satan likes to tell you.

A favorite illustration of mine is the one seen here on the right.

The arrows represent us,and no matter where you are at on your walk

with Jesus; as long as you are one of those moving towards Jesus,

seeking him, learning about him, and trying to become like him, I feel,

that you have nothing to worry about. Just keep moving forward.

 

In order to change those habits, we need to first admit to ourselves & confess

to God that we are sinners.

We must also really want to change those habits.

We should confide in someone we can trust & ask them to be a compatibility

partner. Someone you can call when you feel you are going to give in.

Recognize the triggers that are causing you to dive into your habit, then

stay away from those triggers.

When the thought of a habit comes up, stop it,  don't let it stay in your mind,

submit yourself to the word of God, and tell satan to get behind you, that you

don't want to listen to him. Now spend time with God and call upon his name.

Don't make excuses. Refuse to think that you can't change & nobody is perfect.

 

 

The person who entrusts his or her life to Jesus Christ receives, not only forgiveness for our sin, but victory over slavery to sinful behavior. Put differently, Jesus not only pays our sin debt so that we can be forgiven by God and go to heaven after our physical body dies, but also provides the power, through the Holy Spirit, for good conduct and great joy while here on earth. A person who places his or her trust in Christ is set free from slavery to bad habits and a lifestyle that is destructive to himself and others.

 

Christ Himself is the One who sets us free. Just as Jesus was crucified, buried, and then rose from the dead; those who place their trust in Him are crucified and risen with Him. That is, our old self and sin patterns are crucified and buried. We are raised to new life—Christ in us—through the Holy Spirit. Our unrighteousness is replaced by Christ’s righteousness.

 

Theoretically, the old self patterns will crumble merely by reckoning ourselves dead to them and thanking Jesus for the new life He has given us. For most people, though, struggles in life that bring suffering are required to train us to submit to the control of Christ, to seek fellowship with God instead better circumstances on earth, and to live by faith in God's awesome power and love. Ask God to give you understanding of the following verses, particularly the connection between our weakness and Christ's power:

 

Suffering makes us realize who God is and who we aren't. Humility is not merely modesty; humility has nothing to do with our words or actions. Genuine humility results from being brought into reality with the truth. Say a 16-year-old boy was boasting about his basketball skills while playing one-on-one against a 7-year-old. He steels the ball from the 7-year-old, blocks all his shots, and crows about his superior ability to score on the 7-year-old at will. Then Michael Jordan walks onto the court. The 16-year-old boy freezes; he is silent. No more boasting. Instantly humble. Why? Because he is faced with the reality of who his not. He is no longer able to trust in basketball as his identity and source of value. Similarly, suffering often clarifies to us that we are dependent on God. We get a glimpse of the ugliness of our efforts to be self-sufficient instead of trusting God.

 

We cannot change bad habits and live holy lives in our own strength. We were never meant to do so in our own strength. Nor were we meant to do it by our best effort plus God's help. We were never meant to do it at all. Only Christ can live the Christian life. We simply need to get out of the way so that Christ can live through us by way of the Holy Spirit.

 

Trust Christ to make you righteous and live through you. Don't be deceived by the feeling that the task is impossible. It is indeed impossible for you but it is not impossible for Christ:

 

• Jer 32:27 "Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?"

• Mark 10:27 Looking at them, Jesus said, "With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God."

 

Remember that Christ specializes in impossible situations—like feeding more than 5,000 people when only a few scraps of food and little money were in sight. When we trust in God, He loves to perform works in and through us that we think are impossible. It glorifies Him. We can do nothing more than submit our wills, say Yes to God's request to control our lives, and simply thank Christ for filling us and working through us.