The Bondage Breaker

“The Bondage Breaker:
How to Turn Your Defeats into V-I-C-T-O-R-Y”

www.pmchurch.tv

□ The Principle
• Luke 8:1-3
• Luke 11:24-26
• You must what you .

• Re video gaming:

• Philip Zimbardo in an Aug 2011 TED talk: “Boys’ brains are being digitally rewired in a totally new way, for change, novelty, excitement, and constant arousal. They’re totally out of sync in traditional classes, which are analog, static, and interactively passive. And they’re totally out of sync in relationships [with young women], which build gradually and subtly.” (www.TED.com TED Talk, Aug 2011/quoted in Leadership Fall 2011)

□ The Plan

• #1—Replace hi-visual/hi-tech stimulation with .

   Psalm 46:10—“Be and know that I am God.”

  •   Richard Foster: “In contemporary society our Adversary majors in three

    things: , , and .”

  •   Desire of Ages: “When every other voice is hushed, and in quietness we wait

    before Him, the of the soul makes more distinct the voice of

    God.” (363)

• #2—Replace self-absorbed stimulation with .

   Wall Street Journal “Can Faith Rewrite an Addict’s Brain?”: “Frequent involvement in seems to help in the treatment of those who do abuse alcohol and drugs [according to a research report to be released next month in Alcohol Treatment Quarterly]. . . . Our study showed spiritual experiences predicted abstinence, increased social behavior and reduced narcissistic behavior. . . . Why might this combination work? Neuroscientists, including Andrew Newberg in his 2010 book ‘How God Changes Your Brain,’ are beginning to uncover what happens to the mind when the unconscious neurological foundations of addiction are short- circuited by [1] spiritual awakening and [2] a new focus on others. Neuronal pathways in the brain appear to be instantaneously realigned.” (WSJ 3-28-2014)

• #3—Replace hormonal stimulation with /physical exertion.
• #4—Replace dietary stimulation with .

   “I have come to realize that the ‘lust on/off switch’ primarily starts with my .” (Graduate student email)

 “Physical habits have a great deal to do with the success of every individual. The more careful you are in your , the more simple and unstimulating the food that sustains the body in its harmonious action, the more clear will be your conception of duty. . . . The has much to

do with the disposition to enter into temptation and commit sin.” (Counsels on

Diet and Food 52)

• #5—Replace beverage stimulation with .

   The stimulation that injects into the nervous and circulatory systems, pumping you up before dropping you down, is an artificial stimulation for both you and your body.

• #6—Replace stress stimulation with .
   Blaise Pascal, the French mathematician and philosopher and Christian of the

  seventeenth century, wrote: “All the unhappiness of men arises from one single fact, that they cannot stay in their own room.” (Ruth Barton, Invitation to Solitude and Silence 9)

• #7—Replace some of your old friends with .
   April 16—Wednesday 7 p.m.—a special prayer and anointing service for all
  •   Counseling and Testing Center— (269) 471-3470/

    www.andrews.edu/services/ctcenter/resources

  •   www.MichianaSober.org for local Alcoholics Anonymous groups
  •   www.alcoholics-anonyous.org for national directory
  •   Sexaholics Anonymous/Sundays 5-6 p.m./call Ed (480) 274-8114
  •   Google for local information for other 12-Steps

    Desire of Ages: “Jesus knows the circumstances of every soul. You may say, I am sinful, very sinful. You may be; but the worse you are, the more you need Jesus. He turns no weeping, contrite one away. He does not tell to any all that He might reveal, but He bids every trembling soul take courage. Freely will He pardon all who come to Him for forgiveness and restoration.” (568)

    You must replace what you remove!