Overcoming Addiction: Make a Plan and Pray

You have to set your mind. Your mind must be sitting firm in what you have decided to do. You need a plan.

If you haven’t prepped your food, you are probably going to fail in your eating goals unless you have a place where you know you can eat safely. You need a plan in which you know what you are going to eat and when you are going to eat it.

I have been failing a lot this last week, and I think it is because I don’t have the food prepared. In my mind, I think, “I’ll just eat this or that.” Or I tell myself, “I can just stuff something in at the last minute.” But this doesn’t really work. Since you don’t really have the food and you really aren’t sure what you are going to eat, you are allowing room for temptation to breed.

My pastor today preached a great message. He said that temptation is an invitation to trust and rely on God, not to fall on temptation.

I cannot tell you how many times I have fallen. I’ve truly convicted myself of that today. I knew the way I was eating wasn’t right. I am not going to live under guilt and condemnation, but I am not going to be a slave to sugar anymore, either. I’m not going to be an addict.

Yet I have come to recognize that I went from one slavery to another. There is a middle ground, and I am going to find it. The Lord and I are going to find it.

I want to encourage you that when you are in bondage to something, it is important that you have a plan. Prep your food to meet that plan. Know what you are going to eat and know where every meal is going to be. If you are going to allow yourself a few bites here and there, decide in advance when they are going to be instead of letting your taste buds and your desires lead you to eat on impulse. That is what gets us in trouble—impulse eating and gluttony.

I encourage you not to be in slavery to anything. Whether your intentions seem good or bad, don’t be in slavery. You were bought with a price—you are a bought servant of Jesus Christ. The one and only God should take center stage in your life, not any idol of any kind.

So be careful. Tread carefully on the water and make sure God is in his rightful position so you can endure this race. The everyday, continual placement of food first must end now. Don’t let food be an excuse not to take care of your temple.

I want you to know where I am: I am in a struggling season right now, but I am an overcomer. My mind is strong in the Lord. I take my thoughts captive. I am finding my way through this every day, step by step, in Jesus’ name. I just praise Him for that.

The way forward is here. It’s not tomorrow. It’s today—and it’s with God.

If you need me to pray for you to break free from any addiction, please leave a note below. I would love to do that for you. Thank you!