Punched In The Face
… let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
1 Corinthians 10:12–13
Triggers suck, and nothing truly prepares you to be blindsided by a triggering moment. Some may discount the term trigger as a buzzword and say that people need to get over their issues, and honestly, before really trying to deal with my recovery, I would have likely been one of those people. However, I’ve had to face and identify various triggers in my life and find the patterns of choices and circumstances that increase the chances of one of them showing up in my day.
I recently heard a great lesson on relapse at my home Celebrate Recovery group. Our ministry leader, Joe, a licensed drug and alcohol counselor, shared this great illustration. When talking about needing to plan for triggers, he compared it to fighting Mike Tyson.
You can plan as much as you want for how you’re going to handle the fight, but none of that is going to work when he punches you in the face.
That is the truth, folks. I’ve seen others experience it and have experienced it myself. Temptation is ruthless, and the old self seeks to destroy us. (Eph 4:17-24) Our sinful desires lurk in the shadows for the right moment to strike us between the eyes and leave us staggered and willing to give in.
Now, while that moment may feel like a sucker punch, it isn’t. If we are caught off guard, it’s because we have failed to realize that our enemies, Satan (1 Peter 5:8-9) and our own sinful desires (James 1:13-15), never rest in their pursuit to drag us away. The truth is that falling to temptation starts long before a moment of relapse. We believe one small lie after another, keep moments of temptation secret, and tiptoe a little closer until we have convinced ourselves that this time, things will be different if we go back to that way of life, attitude, behavior, or whatever we have left behind.
Joe also shared some great thoughts on the difference between a recovery and a relapse mindset. A recovery mindset is vigilant, purposeful, and honest. When a temptation comes, they quickly identify it, voice it, and reach out for help and accountability. However, if that begins to fade into a relapse mindset, we become lazy, with no direction, and secretive. Then, when the temptation comes, we keep it hidden, dwell on it, and entertain the idea of giving in. The relapse mindset wants to fail, having romanticized past events and behavior and forgetting the pain and destruction our past choices have caused. In these moments, our sinful desires entice us back into the death God delivered us from!
Below are some practical tips that Joe shared that are a great start to putting 1 Corinthians 10:13 into practice.
Read your Bible. Stop trusting your own opinion and surrender to God's truth.
Honest prayer. Stop trusting your own power and honestly admit to God that you need his help.
Open Accountability. Stop thinking you can do it alone and get real with a few trusted people who will hold you accountable.
Committed Community. Stop thinking you can figure it out and get around people who have gone through it and can show the way.
These are not earth-shattering or revolutionary. But those who want some eye-opening new insight, tactic, or program often do so because they neglect to follow the simple design God has given us. People with dusty Bibles, one-sided surface-level prayers, secret sins, and isolated lives will not find the victory God offers. They will keep scratching their head in failure after failure.
We must stop blaming the tactics we don’t use and start putting these things into practice in our lives! I do believe that as we live out these practices, insights about our specific struggles will come. Celebrate Recovery has built this into their step study, and it is a great tool to help us take up the battle in our hearts. If you want to find out more about a step study and how it could help you, find a local Celebrate Recovery and get connected.
Friends, don’t get sucker punched. Be ready when the hit comes, and keep your mindset of growth and progress sharp!
Grace,
Shawn
