Addicted
I have been writing notes on this post for months, but never seemed to have enough thoughts together to make sense of it. However, in the past few days, I have found two quotes that have brought it all together for me. I hope it makes sense to you...
I am not what you would consider an addict, in the true sense of the word. But, I believe that I have the potential to become addicted to people, things, or activities. It is part of my genetics, personality and experiences.
Although my parents are not addicts, I have many relatives who fell victim to addictions, to alcohol, drugs, gambling, etc. For this reason, I made a conscious decision not to drink alcohol and to stay away from activities where the potential for addiction was high. Why? Because while I believe that there are many choices addicts make, I also believe that part of becoming addicted is out of our control.
As a student of psychology, I have exhaustively studied the nature versus nature debate. Is who you are based on your genetics or your environment? While there are strong arguments on both sides, I don't think it's an either or. It's both.
What makes someone an addict? One definition of addicted is to occupy (oneself) with or involve (oneself) in something habitually or compulsively. Using this definition, I have been addicted to many things in my lifetime. I have let things like exercise and weight control consume me. I can be a compulsive hand-washer. I spend way too much money at Starbucks.
I have a personality that is destined to be obsessive. I understand this about myself. I can take something small and simple and turn it into something big and complex, just by thinking about it too much. That's why, long ago, I took a good look at my genetics and made choices based on what I know about my family.
The only thing I want to become obsessed with, or addicted to, is Jesus. I want to spend so much time reading the Bible and talking to God that I can't think of anything else, but His truth and can't experience anything else, but His grace.
Everyone of us who embraces the glory of God as our purpose will end up doing great things, precisely because because we do God-things. His holy hand resting on the least act renders the ordinary extraordinary.
Beth Moore, Esther
To steer my obsessiveness toward something extraordinary and divine...that is my goal.
13 comments:
Very apropos for me. I am going through some tough stuff right now with my health and I think I thought I was more in control of things than I was. I have to rely solely on faith and believe that His plan beats mine any day. Thank you for this post.
A family member and I have been discussing this topic a lot lately, as we've examined much of our family and see that the path we've chosen seems to be so much different than what many others in our family are on. It's an interesting topic to explore. I think if more people were conscious to the fact that they do have a great deal of controlling their life then we would have less people addicted to those negative things in life...And I say if Starbucks is your worst addiction, you're doing pretty darn good! :)
So good to be conscious and aware of this!
Love that quote! And agree on many points.
I totally get what you mean here. I think I'm the same exact way. I'm a worrier. Too often I think on something too long until it consumes me and is unhealthy. I gotcha ;) glad to know I'm not alone when sometimes it feels like I am.
I honestly think we all have an addictive personality...we can all become obsessed with things that make us feel good, give us a "high" so to speak and so on...it's how we choose to reign it in internally. I really love how you speak from your heart and share with us your deep thoughts, struggles and love for Jesus!! You have such a HUGE heart! BTW, I am almost done with your styling! I should have everything to you by Sunday, at the latest! ;)
I struggle with this too. I also have family members with addictive personalities. Mostly on my moms side from what I can understand. I too made the decision to not put myself in a situation or allow the temptation near me. While it may not be a "choice" Paul tells us in Corinthians 10 that God will not give us more than we can handle (sometimes we like to use this passage for other things but he was referring to temptation). God will always help us find a way out or allow us to make the choice. We just need to trust an have faith in Him!
Great post, Sybil. I have a similar personality and have to be careful about addiction.
i can definitely relate to obsessing over things as well. and sadly there are many things that i find myself "obsessing" over rather than Jesus like I wish was always the case.
great post..thanks for sharing
addictive personalities really aren't bad - unless used for the wrong things! I'm seriously loving your color scheme on your blog! it fits your perfectly!!
This is a very good thing to be able to recognize about yourself and to satisfy those tendencies with the things of God rather than the things of this world!
Great post! It is so interesting to hear about addictive personalities. I have a friend whose brother struggles with a very addictive personality and has gotten into a lot of trouble. He is a Christian and tries to stay focused on God but gets pulled down a lot. He said it's like a disease, he can never get rid of the temptations but he just tries to focus on Jesus.
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