Admitting You Have a Problem

Oct 24 – Recovering From Addiction

This week’s topics aren’t exactly light and fluffy.  But that’s reality sometimes, right?

When you’re joking around with friends, has someone ever said “The first step is admitting you have a problem”?  I have.  When someone did something funny or weird, that was a fairly common response.  For a long time, I never realized that that statement actually has some very serious meaning for a lot of people.  The first step in a 12-step recovery program really is admitting that you have a problem (the best known 12-step program is Alcoholics Anonymous, or AA, to give you an idea of what we’re talking about).

Maybe you think admitting a problem sounds easy, but think about it.  Admitting a problem invites some kind of action; it requires pursuing help, acknowledging that you have a weakness that you can’t do anything about on your own.  That can be a very difficult thing to admit to other people – but sometimes, it’s even harder to admit it to yourself.

When you think about it, isn’t that just the picture of the Christian life though?  We have this problem called sin that is sometimes hard to acknowledge.  We think we can work our way out of it, that if we set our minds to it or go to church enough or spend enough time with the right people that we will be able to fix this issue called sin.  But at some point in our lives, many of us realize that we are powerless over sin – no matter how hard we try or how much good we do, we will always do things we shouldn’t do.  When we admit this problem to God and accept the help He offers to us – Jesus – we can begin our road to recovery. 

Is there a problem or issue in your life that has become controlling?  Is it something you frequently hide from or brush under the rug as “no big deal”?  Maybe you live with someone of whom this is true – a mother who drinks until she passes out every night but just thinks she likes having a few drinks, a sibling who has violent mood swings but isn’t willing to wonder aloud whether there’s some kind of imbalance, a friend who hurts herself but thinks everyone does it…If you are one of the people struggling with a hurt, habit, or hang-up that you really would like some support for, I encourage you to talk to someone, either a trusted adult or friend.  Issues of shame only have power while they remain in the dark so bring them into the light!  I know it’s hard.  I’m still working through it myself.  And if you have friends or family who you wish would seek some kind of help, pray for them and pray for wisdom to know how to reach them.  I’ll be praying for you too.

“I have spent enough time in the past…” – 1 Peter 4:3

*For Christian-based recovery for all life-controlling issues, visit Celebrate Recovery.