There is an old spiritual I heard once that I am in love with.
“In the morning, when I rise, I want to rise Holy when I rise.”
I found this simple statement to be so profound. I mean think about it, when we face addiction and we have simply reached the breaking point. Eventually we have to rise. Eventually we have to get up from our mess and move along. We have to look back at our mistake and realize that there is nothing we can do about what has been done but there is enough power in the blood to change what will be done.
My favorite story in the Bible is that of the crippled man at Bethesda. Now the story goes that there was this lake or pool near a place called Sheep Gate. The Bible says there were a great many of people just laying around and waiting for the pool to bubble up because when this happened it meant it was time to be healed. And angel had come and stirred the pool up, and the first people to go into the pool were healed. Now there was one man who was lying next to the pool, a crippled man or as some translation say a shrivelled up man. I found it funny that as I read this part of the story the Lord spoke to me and reminded me that this man was crippled as we are from addiction. He was bound to his bed there next to the pool for 38 years because of his ailment and that is how many of us were or are.
Here is where the story gets good. Jesus is visiting and sees the man lying on the ground. He walks up to him and simply says, “Do you want to get well?”
He never says, “Hello” or “I’m Jesus” He simply asks “Do you want to get well?” Then the man doesn’t give him a yes or no answer. He begins to give excuses for why he has not been healed. I mean could you imagine. This man is sitting here and Jesus is offering to HEAL him, to take away his pain and suffering and the man gives an excuse to why he is where he is. God doesn’t want to hear our excuses but wants us to accept His healing.
Well Jesus basically ignores this mans ramblings and just says, “Get up!” I love that! Not only does he tell the man to get up but he then tells him to pick up his mat and clean up his mess! That my friends is what I have gotten to do with my addiction. Every day I am taking control of my life and kicking out addiction. I encourage you to clean up your mess as best you can and continue on with your life. There is no winning in sitting and waiting for 38 years complaining about what you could have done or the pain that others have caused you. Jesus was there for you for all the years you fought addiction and now its time for you to be there for him.
Pray, fast, love, hope, live in grace, live in triumph, refuse to quit, refuse to give in, fight with everything you have, fight with all your spirit, fight with a heart full of Christ….these things and so much more can be your life, just for today, if you choose it.
You can to choose just live to be ALIVE in Freedom, which is it?