Will God help make me want to stop drinking?

[theniceiceman]

I feel this is kind of a touchy question, so read at your own risk! I'm a new Christian (for the second time), and I'm not sure how it all works yet.

I've got a question about 'deliberate sinning'. We all struggle with things here, many with things of an addictive nature: drugs/alcohol/food/sex. So, in my case, it's food and alcohol. Yesterday, I gave my life over to God, again. I was saved as a kid, but I fell out of faith and had a revelation yesterday. However, today, I want to eat. I want to drink.

I've spoken with my mom, and she said that God doesn't expect me to get saved on Monday (for example) and be perfect on Tuesday. He doesn't expect my behavior to drastically change overnight. She said that I'll need time to grow in Him, time to develop a relationship with Him again and be able to stop those behaviors, willingly, through him.

Frankly, I don't want to stop those sins. Alcohol and food are what I have used in my life as an anti-anxiety, antidepressant. Now, I realize that I can pray to God for relief from those things, and I've been doing so. I've prayed more yesterday and today than I've prayed in the past five years. However, I'm not very *close* to God yet, because I've not had time to develop a proper relationship with him. I've prayed to God and told Him that I don't want to stop drinking, that I'm just not ready to, and I've told Him that I'm going to need His help to make me want to, because right now, I *really* don't.

Thoughts? If I do go and drink, is that a damning sin? Will I lose my salvation if I drink one, two, three, four, five times, even though I have God in my ear telling me on my way to the liquor store, when I'm pouring my glass, when I'm taking a sip, 'Don't do this'? It's not like I'm sinning without even thinking about it--I know it's a sin, but I still want to do it. Tomorrow I'll ask forgiveness for it and pray to God to continue helping me find it within myself, through Him, to help me not desire to sin any longer. Am I doing this right?

 

[DiscipleHeLovesToo]

you're confused; there's a difference between salvation and spiritual rebirth.

spiritual rebirth occurs when you choose to believe that Jesus died to pay the price for all sins (transgressions of God's laws) for everyone for all time (John 2:2), then rose from the dead, and will raise you up from the dead one day if you trust in His sacrifice alone to make you righteous before God (not His sacrifice plus your perfect performance) - since Jesus went to the cross before you were born, all your sins were future sins from His perspective - even the sins you haven't committed yet are paid for, from God's perspective, but you must believe Him about that in order to receive forgiveness and be free from condemnation going forward from the instant that your spiritual rebirth occurred. spiritual rebirth happens instantly; and once reborn, you are a new creature, and old things have passed away (2Cor 5:17), including the reasons that you are anxious and depressed. no one can become a Christian a second time, because no one can resurrect their old dead self first. you obviously haven't rejected God, so if you were reborn in Christ, then you still are - but this doesn't mean that your thinking and actions change automatically simply because you've received spiritual rebirth.

salvation is a life-long process where you overcome those things in this life that bind you and steal your life - such as drinking to excess to stop feelings of fear and depression. the way you overcome these things is by focusing on God's word - renewing your mind with His words of life and peace will remove the fear and fill you with Joy - then the excessive drinking will stop as a side effect (Rom 2:1,2; 2Cor 10:3-6).

this will help:

http://www.awmi.net/audio/audio-teachings/#/awm_1014aa_gospelI.mp3

http://moorelife.org/listseries.php?xml=rss/TruthOrTradition.xml

http://www.awmi.net/audio/audio-teachings/#/awm_1033a_blessed.mp3

 

[com7fy8]

Alcohol and food are what I have used in my life as an anti-anxiety, antidepressant.

And how well have pleasures put an end to your anxiety and depression? Making yourself feel nicer does not make our deep problems go away.

Will I lose my salvation if

I think this can be a decoy question. Satan can want you to commit yourself to deciding there will be no hope for you if you do a certain thing; then he will drive you to do it, so then you will decide there is no hope for you.

Tomorrow I'll ask forgiveness

I understand that part of the package deal of forgiveness is how our Father expects us to forgive, also > the way He has so generously forgiven us

"And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." (Ephesians 4:32)

This does not mean only that we make ourselves "saved" by doing "works" of forgiving. This means we have trusted in Jesus (Ephesians 1:12) and now we are seeking our Father's correction (Hebrews 12:4-11, James 4:7, Colossians 3:15) so He makes us loving like this, and in this love is His forgiveness. We truly benefit from His forgiveness by living in His love for any and all people > because God's forgiveness lives in His love So, forgiveness includes how we are loving while we forgive!!!

Therefore, you need to deny yourself, and take up the cross of all-loving love, and not be concerned mainly or only about your own self > Luke 9:23-24.

old things have passed away (2Cor 5:17), including the reasons that you are anxious and depressed.

Yes, if I understand this right . . . God will change you out of what makes you deeply able to be anxious and depressed. God's love makes us strong against fear and personality torments which are because of fear > 1 John 4:17-18 > so, we need to be corrected and grow in how to be in God's love, caring about any and all people as ourselves, instead of being tormented mainly or only about me, myself, and I.

if you were reborn in Christ, then you still are - but this doesn't mean that your thinking and actions change automatically simply because you've received spiritual rebirth.

"if" we are > Paul says for us to examine ourselves to make sure about if we are in the faith > 2 Corinthians 13:5 > and I trust this examination to our Heavenly Father who is more honest than we are, and He cares about us better than we care about our own selves. When I have messed-up in sin, I have offered myself to God to be the Judge of what to do with me. And I got peace with encouragement to love and forgive any and all others, and have compassion on them, and keep seeking His correction of my character so I become more genuinely loving and not so able to sin. He has had mercy on me, and now He expects me to have mercy on others, as He has had mercy on me.

salvation is a life-long process where you overcome those things in this life that bind you and steal your life - such as drinking to excess to stop feelings of fear and depression. the way you overcome these things is by focusing on God's word - renewing your mind with His words of life and peace will remove the fear and fill you with Joy - then the excessive drinking will stop as a side effect (Rom 2:1,2; 2Cor 10:3-6).

Very good, I would say And as you grow in God's way of loving, there will be other things . . . even things which are not actually wrong . . . which will drop away because they won't mean so much to you as the loving you will be discovering with God and our Jesus family people and in caring for ones who need Jesus. Learning how to love is the most interesting and beneficial challenge and investment >

"'Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.'" (Matthew 11:28-29)

Note how Jesus calls to "all", here > so, Jesus has hope for "all", and this includes you

And learning takes time, "a life-long process" . . . like your mother and Disciple He Loves, Too have said; go God bless you and we are praying for you

 

[Gentle Lamb]

Wise words from your mom. Yes, God WILL help make you want to stop drinking and using food as comfort if you ask Him. Ask Him and tell Him that you don't have the desire to stop and will He please give you the desire and strength. Prayer is the most essential thing you can do, and all it is is a conversation with God that you can have out loud or just in your thoughts. Keep up an unceasing dialogue with God through prayer 1 Thessalonians 5:17, as prayer is your God-given weapon against the enemy. God will hear your prayers and will respond to you, working to help you with what you are asking Him help with.

Also, congratulations on finding your salvation in Jesus once more!! Welcome back to the family of Christ!!! Every time a believer is saved, there is much much much rejoicing in heaven! I extend a small bit of this rejoicing to you, my brother. God bless you!!!!!!

I hope this will edify and strengthen you

 

[stevenfrancis]

The short answer, and the good news is a resounding Yes!!!!!! I have deep personal experience with this. It was a complicated route, but it began, and continues with prayer, to do just that. I asked to have the desire to drink until drunkenness removed, and it was. After over 25 years of extreme alcoholism. He first guided me to AA, (I'd look hard and find a group that REALLY focuses on the spiritual aspects of the program). I worked the AA program for a couple of years with a very spiritual sponsor, who I ended up in a co-sponsor relationship with.

For a while I had to fight to not drink, even with the program, but I had the hope and strength of knowing that God was working His will in me. Around the 3rd year of my sobriety, I had my conversion experience to Christianity, and in particular, to the Catholic Church. Once this happened, and I realized how the entire 12 step process was based and founded on the tenets of Christianity, and through the sacramental life of confession, and the Holy Eucharist, every trace of the compulsion to drink was completely removed from my life. I ended up easing out of AA over time, and simply putting all my trust in Jesus Christ and His grace. I am convinced that with Jesus Christ, confession, and Eucharist, that there is no moral failing which can't be dispelled and conquered. Simply by always praying for God's will for us. Keeping up a fearless and searching inventory and self-examination of our moral character, and it's conformance with the teachings of Christ, and prompt, heartfelt repentance when we fail, combined with confession of that failure to a priest, pastor, friend etc., and a willingness to make amends and turn away from sin, and you won't need alcohol, drugs, promiscuous sex, or any other failure of morality in order ease the pains of life. You will come to trust in Jesus Christ.

Some people become addicted to the 12 step programs as a substitute for both their morality problem, AND for Jesus. For some, that's all they can do, and that's fine,if it's keeping them sober. They still refer to themselves as "alcoholics" who are simply not drinking. And if that's all one can do, then by all means they should do that. But by the grace of God, by consecrating myself to Jesus Christ, I have had alcoholism removed from me. I don't consider myself an alcoholic in recovery. Instead I have repented of alcoholism, and I am cured of alcoholism, to the glory of God.

I still recommend at least beginning with AA and the 12 steps. Just be careful who you congregate with at the meetings. Find a good spiritual sponsor with a LOT of cups of coffee under his/her belt.

I will pray for your recovery,

God bless you,

Steve