Addiction recovery is a battle that is mostly invisible to the outside observer. Excluding, of course, the shakes, cold sweats, and overall nastiness that physical withdrawal can bring. Since a majority of this battle is unseen, it can be hard for others to understand, but this battle affects every area of who we are.
Physically, it leaves our bodies craving chemical overloads. Emotionally, we find ourselves confronted with the realities that we were attempting to hide from in the first place. We also often find our emotional growth stunted. Mentally, we struggle with memory gaps, being behind the curve in school/work, and lacking the coping skills we need to help us manage this new normal. Looking at all of this stacked against us, the battle can seem grim, even hopeless. We may even find ourselves thinking that the path of least resistance would be just to give in to our impulses and use again…the easy road, right? Wrong.
Recovery is Spiritual
What we would be forgetting is that we aren’t just physical, mental, & emotional beings…we are also spirit. Spiritually, addiction drains us. We were created to be in relationship with your creator and filling that hole with addiction leaves us empty. It is often this feeling, of spiritual emptiness, that first pushes us towards recovery. Now, you may be thinking, “Oh, great, another problem to battle through. This doesn’t make recovery sound any easier.”
But remember that an empty vessel, also provides an opportunity for refills. Spiritually, Christ provides you with a way to “fill up,” both immediately and progressively with time. This spiritual “fill-up” can provide you with the strength, drive, and motivation to overcome the struggles of recovery.
In Matthew 11:29-30, Christ gives us an invitation, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” What is a yoke? A yoke is a wooden device (seen in the picture above) used to tie two animals, usually oxen, together to plow fields. Yokes were used a lot before the invention of tractors. So what Christ is asking us to do here, is to submit ourselves to God, and to yoke ourselves together with Him.
This had special meaning to the Jews in Christ’s time. According to J. Dwight Pentecost, in the Dallas Theological Seminary Magazine, “Those who were under the authority of the Pharisees (spiritual leaders who loved to heap more rules on everyone) were said to be yoked to the Pharisees. Christ talked about delivering people from this yoke. Coming to those who were so crushed, Christ offered them release, liberty, freedom, rest.” Christ offers us a yoke that is “easy” and “light,” providing “rest for our souls.” Those battling through the recovery process may feel like they are under a very heavy yoke, struggling to plow a barren field alone, but there is hope.
What Does God Require of Us?
This invitation requires us to submit. We have to give up the solo battle and allow Christ to take the lead. We submit ourselves to God and yoke together with Christ, learning from a patient and humble teacher. Submitting to this yoke may be yard to swallow for us as first. Until we step back and realize that we are already under a yoke…addiction…and its yoke is heavy, burdensome, and slowing leading us to spiritual and physical death.
The real struggle is that submitting requires trust and humility…to trust that God isn’t an angry slave master and that we aren’t very good at being our own Gods. That is why God sent His Son. Christ submitted himself to God, becoming man, so that He could yoke together with each of us. That is how we know that He is a loving and patient teacher, worthy of our trust. Because God doesn’t just want to drive the plow, He wants to work the field with us.
Christ Does the Heavy Lifting
The best part of being yoked to Christ is that He is able and willing to do the heavy lifting. In the picture above, you can see two oxen who are obviously not equals in size. It is common for farmers to train younger oxen by yoking them with a fully grown ox. The younger ox doesn’t pull any weight, but learns to walk under the yoke, as his bigger brother pulls the weight. The same is true with Christ. That is why we can “find rest” and why our burdens become lighter and easier. He takes the weight upon himself and teaches us to follow as we grow.
Work Worth Doing Takes Time
Does submitting to God and following his direction strip away all of the emotional, mental, and physical baggage away immediately? For some, yes, this has happened miraculously for some. For others, no. Why? We may never know this side of eternity, but if we trust Him and yoke together with Christ, He will plow these fields alongside us. Work worth doing takes time and Christ is willing and able to walk through each step of our recovery because He believes we are worth it!
As we follow Him and grow spiritually, He begins to restore us mentally, physically, and emotionally, as well. Reading His word, the Bible, helps us to “renew our minds.” Being filled with His spirit, empowers us to overcome temptation, by filling us up with the genuine article instead of the cheap imitation that addiction provides.
So if you are struggling under the yoke of addiction today, know that there is HOPE! Christ invites you to throw off your old yokes and to yoke up with Him. For his yoke is “easy” and his burden is “light.” The easiest road isn’t relapse…it’s spiritual. Christ thinks you are worth the work, even His own life’s sacrifice. Will you let Him help you believe it too?
If you need help today, give us a call @ 417.272.3784.
