Two of my best leaders at the 180 Ministry at Vineyard Columbus told me that it took them two years before they began to get traction in their recovery. Every addict hopes that their recovery will be quick. “God, please just Zap me so that I will not desire sex any longer!” I call it the Zap Trap. Wanting something instantly that will take time, maybe even a lot of time and work.
Have you ever gotten in your car and start to drive and something just doesn’t feel right? It just doesn’t have the pickup you are used to? Then you notice that you have not released the emergency brake. Everything is fired up and ready to go but there is something holding it back so that it is not proceeding as it should.
I believe that is what happens with a lot of people and their recovery from sexual brokenness. All the attention is placed on the fruit of sexual sin and cut if off when there is a root cause that needs to be dealt with. There is a foothold or a stronghold in our life that needs to be destroyed before we can truly grow in sexual purity.
In his Living Free Seminar that I attended last weekend, Bill Perkins shares some of what those root causes might be. We are feeling things like;
*Rebellion *Depression *Self-hatred *Isolation * Self-pity
*Insignificance *Victimization *Idolatry *Controlling Fear *Immorality
*Addictions Anger* *Bitterness *Unforgiveness
All those things can be strongholds that we are experiencing and they produce shame. And shame causes us to withdraw further from others and these issues only worsen. But from where are these things coming? We must look deeper to the root causes.
The main “tap root” is these things is a Love and Truth Deficit. We did not receive the love and nurturing we needed as children and we lack knowing the truth of God’s Word and the truth about ourselves. As a result, we have strongholds because of several things.
- We suffered an injustice that we have not been able to forgive
- We experienced a traumatic event or some form of abuse.
- People have spoken a curse over our lives that we believe it. Like calling you are a loser and saying you will never amount to anything.
- There may be a Generational Sin passed on to us from our parents.
- We may have a bond with someone or something in our lives that is harmful. (For example, Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:15 that if we join our bodies with another person sexually we bond together with them.)
NOTE – the above information comes from Bill Perkins’ Living Free Seminar
So, are you trying to proceed with your recovery with the emergency brake on? Is there something you need to deal with before you can begin to experience the freedom from sexual sin you desire? Ask the Spirit to reveal to you anything that is a root cause of your sexual brokenness and tomorrow we will begin to learn what we need to do next.