Page 82 - Overcoming Addiction

Chapter 12 - Christ, Our Counselor

t is normal when struggling with some addictive desire to want someone to give
Iyou a specific set of ordered steps that you can follow in order to attain victory.
What we have seen thus far in this book are some foundational things that must be
attended to in order to have any hope of overcoming addiction. There are also
things a person should be doing every day in order to build up the spirit man. But
overcoming is not found in a series of ordered steps. It is found as we walk in the
Spirit.
The church has a tendency to package things into a nice neat packet of rules
to follow, or principles to adhere unto. I listened to a preacher named Dudley Hall
share a revelation on this matter. He said that he had a conversation with a friend
who had told him that he had finally found a list of ordered rules that truly
worked. When asked what they were, Dudley’s friend replied, “The first rule is ‘Do
the next thing the Spirit tells you to do.’” He then stated, “The second rule is ‘Then
do the next thing the Spirit tells you to do.’” He concluded that all the steps were
the same.
I thought this was wonderful advice, and it is in keeping with the counsel of
the word of God.

Romans 8:14
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

It is not Yahweh’s desire that His children should be led by a book full of
rules and regulations. Living in such a way tends to lead men to distance
themselves from the presence of God. When we look to a body of legal code to tell
us what to do in every instance, then we neglect to seek the face of God. Our
Father desires that we should be in communion with Him daily. He wants us to
ask Him for understanding, and to seek Him for direction. As we do so, we are
kept in communication with Him.
Consider the following analogy. Suppose your earthly father gave you a book
when you were young, and he had written down instructions to guide you in
everything you were to experience throughout your life. When some situation
arose in which you were unsure of your father’s will, you would get out the book
and find some instruction that would guide you in that particular situation. The
result of operating in such a way is that you would spend far less time in the
presence of your father. This is not a result that Yahweh desires. Practically, such a
book would be impossible to write. Even the Bible does not contains specific
instructions regarding the Lord’s will in all situations.
For example, consider a young man that is considering marriage. There are
Scriptures that lay out some general principles on marriage. A Christian is only to
marry another Christian is one such instruction. But the Bible does not tell you
what specific person you should marry, or even if you should marry at all. Perhaps
you are struggling with knowing whether you should marry Susie, or if it would be
better to marry Sally. The Bible will not tell you, and God has designed it this way
for a purpose. He wants us to speak directly with Him. He doesn’t want His
children to walk apart from His presence.