In our culture, it’s easy to avoid situations that don’t make us feel good. With just a tap on our phones, we can be entertained instead of stressed. By jumping in our car, we can find places and things that will make us happy. We can even scroll through social media to focus on other situations and not our own.
We are free to do these things, and sometimes they can benefit us. But could we be using life’s pleasures to avoid doing what God wants for us?
In 1 Corinthians, Paul warns twice about how our free will can work against us. In both instances, he assures us that we are “free to do anything” but also reminds us that we “must not become a slave to anything” (6:12) and that “not everything is beneficial” (10:23).
It’s easy to become enslaved by what we use to avoid life’s difficulties. Fortunately, God has a plan for us to separate ourselves from these things, even when they become addictions. And through His word, He provides three ways we can do that:
- Admit you have a problem– Confess your avoidance to Him. We’re told in James 4:17that when we do anything we know we shouldn’t it’s a sin, but we’re also told that telling Jesus about it has healing power (see James 5:16).
- Don’t gratify your sinful nature– Our sinful nature wants us to avoid God’s will for us. In fact, it wants anything that keeps us away from Him. Ask Him to help you – He wants you to succeed! (see Galatians 5:16and John 10:10)
- Be dependent on God’s power, not yours– Our willpower will only take us so far. In fact, if we rely solely on ourselves to be righteous, we will fail. But with God on our side and using His weapons, we can destroy what’s keeping us from His will (see 2 Corinthians 10:3-5).
What’s one decision you can make to stop avoiding God’s will for your life? Know that I’m praying for you as you contemplate the answer.
In Christ,
Jeff