Overcoming any addiction.

[PastorBob]

This is a transcript from tonight's sermon, and I thought that people here may wish to read it:

Let's begin with these passages:

James 4:

1From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?

2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?

6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.

If you want to free yourself from any sexual or other addiction, you need only realize and apply a few things; whatever you fight with makes it more powerful until it consumes you. Every person without exception is seeking universal consciousness, call it God if you will, and nature has ingrained a few things into us which give a glimpse beyond the body – love and intimate relations. Both do nothing more than shut down the mind, shut down the wants, shut down the seeking for a moment, and then a glimmer of the thoughtless state is perceived – but only a glimmer.

To overcome desire one has to move through it – it will stop on its own in the clarity of awareness. Desire is a symptom of being divorced from your inner connection to God, it is not the problem. Only in unconsciousness of oneself can it occur, only in mistaking the object of the search can it occur. Seeking and desiring is an innate quality placed in us to return us to our source – God, and God being beyond the senses, if we become associated with our objectified existence, the body, we start looking for something detectable by the senses to content us.

You must find a way beyond the mind. How? You must watch, not resisting, not condoning, but simply watch, without judgment of yay or nay about anything. Let that awareness grow and all things which are not in alignment with your true will drop away.

Fighting with desire cannot kill desire; it can only suppress it causing it to grow stronger.

Before one can cure a problem one has to stop fighting with it. Every time it arises in you, look for where it is coming from. You will surely find it is coming from a feeling of incompleteness. Why? Only you are complete, not your thoughts, not your mind, not your body. Where are you when everything arises? You have forgotten yourself trying to lose yourself in the body, or in another person, or in entertainment. Entertainment is moving away from yourself, it is forgetting yourself for a while. It is a trap. One’s innermost being is already happy, only looking away for a cause of this happiness must be rejected. You are lonely, you wife comes to you, you feel happy… you were looking away from yourself with the desiring of company, and her coming… simply shut down your wanting mind. Peace is the cessation of movement of thought. It does not matter whether you put your mind on uplifting things, or down pulling things, putting the mind somewhere makes it move, for better or for worse, but all dualities flow into each other – only temporary solace from the raging ocean of the moving mind can be found, when a wave peaks – and what goes up must come down. Stopping the mind altogether alone can bring a lasting peace. Some will only know it in their graves, when the mind disintegrates leaving their soul visible, which formerly beneath the clouds of unceasing thought could not be seen.

All of one’s DOING simply stirs up more movement of the mind. Sitting by silently and only watching, as if it was nothing more than an illusionary screen showing a play, will cause all movement to settle down.

If a river is dirtied, do you go and try to bail out the mud? You will only succeed in stirring up more. If you sit and stop doing… it cleans itself up.

So is all desiring.

In my younger years, I used to smoke cigarettes – twenty unfiltered lucky strikes every day. One day I realized this, and by applying it, I woke up one morning… I thought to myself, I feel very clear. I was feeling so calm, that smoking was no longer necessary. I threw the pack, and the habit, into the trash, and never experienced so much as a craving.

I had found freedom not only from smoking, but all stress. Not only was I trying to lose myself in smoking, but in company, in family, in entertainment, in alcohol, in acceptance from others…

In the light of an awake consciousness no dirt can enter – that only comes from unconsciousness, instead of being with oneself, running from oneself into something else, thinking that only darkness is within. It is quite the opposite. Sooner or later, whatever you lose yourself in will fall apart, time, age, death, and you will be thrown back to yourself, into the heaven or hell you were all along carrying. If you have a hell within, it is unquestionably from not knowing your true nature. We must never think of a mistake as being an indication of what we are, nor listen to those who try and tell us that they are (they are more interested in getting the attention that you being ok with yourself); mistakes are teachers of what we are not. A mistake is having missed the mark – you are the mark, not the miss.

When you find awareness, you find freedom from desire, and in finding freedom from desire, you find that priceless peace which is beyond any pain or pleasure. Dependant on nothing, thus cannot be lost or swayed by any happening.

It is said that the first thing Satan taught man on being cast from heaven was self-defense. Not only against other people, but against oneself.

Turn to John 8: 44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Satan wants people to fight - their enemies, their desires, fight with anything. Jesus said in Matthew 5: 39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Those in Satan's power are addicted to fighting - and how better to wage his wars than to make people frustrated, then vent that pent up energy in say, the army?

Behind every outlet of frustration, the result of being led astray from God in your heart, are people who are under Satan's power. They create the drugs, the entertainment, the politics, the pornography. How do we fall into these traps? Being estranged from ourselves. Thinking that happiness has a cause - I tell you, that happiness is the foundation of life, and that all misery is from being estranged from it. Clouded judgment is the source of the blinding mists which lead to misery, and from misery, into sin.

Why do some people struggle with unhappiness, being unfulfilled and other problems their entire lives? They are fighting - with the branches of evil, which ignoring its root; satan's voice, the conscience, telling someone what they need, or that they are evil - and how can someone be good, and do good, if they believe that they are evil, or have evil qualities? It cannot be done. A person may be ignorant or wise, but all of their evil is coming from the former.

(Closing)

I see we've run late, so we will continue tomorrow morning at 9, etc.

[bert10]

Hi Pastor Bob.

Good post John said to not resist evil. That is because whatever is resisted remains. And the force that we use in resisting is amplified and used against us. If we fight fire with fire nothing shall be left.

Watching without judging is also new for many. Because many would rather go to the grave than to give up their right to judge all things even their brothers as to being good and evil.

Satan has tricked men in all generation that the must eat of the Tree of knowledge of Good and evil or it can hurt them.

PEace be unto you

bert10

[BenRaines]

I what verse did John tell us not to resist evil? Did he intend for us to succumb to it or just let it pass by with no resistance?

Thanks in advance for the verse.

Ben Raines

[Ivy64]

To stop fighting means you are accepting. I am sorry, I think you are confused...

[bert10]

Hi Ben Raines.

Resisting the Devil and Resisting Evil is not the same thing. - I cannot find where John said it..This verse will have to do.

Matthew 5:39 - But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

We are to overcome Evil. And Resist the Devil.

James 4:7 - Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Resisting the Devil and Resisting Evil is not the same thing.

Evil is the manifestation of darkness in whatever forms it takes. In this case...Jesus was calling the force "violence" evil.

And the law is concerning all evil.....as in this case...violence begets violence. And it is returned to us much increased...[sow the wind reap the whirlwind]

Different approaches to dealing with Evil.

1. <> An Eye for an Eye, tooth for a tooth a life for a life etc.

2. <> Non Resistance. - Turning the other cheek.

3. <> returning Good for the Evil done.

4. <> Returning TWAIN THE GOOD for the evil done to us. [Walking twain mile]

So the answer is to overcome the Evil....with "Love", "Trust" and "faith'" in God.

It takes great faith, trust and love of God within us to believe that God knows best for each one of us and that we ought to overcome the world with Love from our part and not worry about our sense of Justice concerning the other guy. This is much easier to say than do.

It is not easy to believe that we ought to leave the wicked in the hands of God without any judgments concerning them on our parts.

Satan and Devils are another matter. We are to resist them. Jesus did it, so must we.

Does this help...in understanding that Evil is the manifestations of forces that act contrary to harmony to bring disunity and even destruction ito our temple.

Peace be unto you

bert10

I what verse did John tell us not to resist evil? Did he intend for us to succumb to it or just let it pass by with no resistance?

Thanks in advance for the verse.

Ben Raines

[jadams_4040]

This is a transcript from tonight's sermon, and I thought that people here may wish to read it:

Let's begin with these passages:

James 4:

1From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?

2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?

6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.

If you want to free yourself from any sexual or other addiction, you need only realize and apply a few things; whatever you fight with makes it more powerful until it consumes you. Every person without exception is seeking universal consciousness, call it God if you will, and nature has ingrained a few things into us which give a glimpse beyond the body – love and intimate relations. Both do nothing more than shut down the mind, shut down the wants, shut down the seeking for a moment, and then a glimmer of the thoughtless state is perceived – but only a glimmer.

To overcome desire one has to move through it – it will stop on its own in the clarity of awareness. Desire is a symptom of being divorced from your inner connection to God, it is not the problem. Only in unconsciousness of oneself can it occur, only in mistaking the object of the search can it occur. Seeking and desiring is an innate quality placed in us to return us to our source – God, and God being beyond the senses, if we become associated with our objectified existence, the body, we start looking for something detectable by the senses to content us.

You must find a way beyond the mind. How? You must watch, not resisting, not condoning, but simply watch, without judgment of yay or nay about anything. Let that awareness grow and all things which are not in alignment with your true will drop away.

Fighting with desire cannot kill desire; it can only suppress it causing it to grow stronger.

Before one can cure a problem one has to stop fighting with it. Every time it arises in you, look for where it is coming from. You will surely find it is coming from a feeling of incompleteness. Why? Only you are complete, not your thoughts, not your mind, not your body. Where are you when everything arises? You have forgotten yourself trying to lose yourself in the body, or in another person, or in entertainment. Entertainment is moving away from yourself, it is forgetting yourself for a while. It is a trap. One’s innermost being is already happy, only looking away for a cause of this happiness must be rejected. You are lonely, you wife comes to you, you feel happy… you were looking away from yourself with the desiring of company, and her coming… simply shut down your wanting mind. Peace is the cessation of movement of thought. It does not matter whether you put your mind on uplifting things, or down pulling things, putting the mind somewhere makes it move, for better or for worse, but all dualities flow into each other – only temporary solace from the raging ocean of the moving mind can be found, when a wave peaks – and what goes up must come down. Stopping the mind altogether alone can bring a lasting peace. Some will only know it in their graves, when the mind disintegrates leaving their soul visible, which formerly beneath the clouds of unceasing thought could not be seen.

All of one’s DOING simply stirs up more movement of the mind. Sitting by silently and only watching, as if it was nothing more than an illusionary screen showing a play, will cause all movement to settle down.

If a river is dirtied, do you go and try to bail out the mud? You will only succeed in stirring up more. If you sit and stop doing… it cleans itself up.

So is all desiring.

In my younger years, I used to smoke cigarettes – twenty unfiltered lucky strikes every day. One day I realized this, and by applying it, I woke up one morning… I thought to myself, I feel very clear. I was feeling so calm, that smoking was no longer necessary. I threw the pack, and the habit, into the trash, and never experienced so much as a craving.

I had found freedom not only from smoking, but all stress. Not only was I trying to lose myself in smoking, but in company, in family, in entertainment, in alcohol, in acceptance from others…

In the light of an awake consciousness no dirt can enter – that only comes from unconsciousness, instead of being with oneself, running from oneself into something else, thinking that only darkness is within. It is quite the opposite. Sooner or later, whatever you lose yourself in will fall apart, time, age, death, and you will be thrown back to yourself, into the heaven or hell you were all along carrying. If you have a hell within, it is unquestionably from not knowing your true nature. We must never think of a mistake as being an indication of what we are, nor listen to those who try and tell us that they are (they are more interested in getting the attention that you being ok with yourself); mistakes are teachers of what we are not. A mistake is having missed the mark – you are the mark, not the miss.

When you find awareness, you find freedom from desire, and in finding freedom from desire, you find that priceless peace which is beyond any pain or pleasure. Dependant on nothing, thus cannot be lost or swayed by any happening.

It is said that the first thing Satan taught man on being cast from heaven was self-defense. Not only against other people, but against oneself.

Turn to John 8: 44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Satan wants people to fight - their enemies, their desires, fight with anything. Jesus said in Matthew 5: 39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Those in Satan's power are addicted to fighting - and how better to wage his wars than to make people frustrated, then vent that pent up energy in say, the army?

Behind every outlet of frustration, the result of being led astray from God in your heart, are people who are under Satan's power. They create the drugs, the entertainment, the politics, the pornography. How do we fall into these traps? Being estranged from ourselves. Thinking that happiness has a cause - I tell you, that happiness is the foundation of life, and that all misery is from being estranged from it. Clouded judgment is the source of the blinding mists which lead to misery, and from misery, into sin.

Why do some people struggle with unhappiness, being unfulfilled and other problems their entire lives? They are fighting - with the branches of evil, which ignoring its root; satan's voice, the conscience, telling someone what they need, or that they are evil - and how can someone be good, and do good, if they believe that they are evil, or have evil qualities? It cannot be done. A person may be ignorant or wise, but all of their evil is coming from the former.

(Closing)

I see we've run late, so we will continue tomorrow morning at 9, etc.

This is excatly why we {l.d.s} actually try to stay obedient to the lords commandments; the more we do the more spiritual companionship he gives us which obviously strengthens and edifies.:) {aint it a wonderfull concept?}

[InnerGold]

Pastor Bob is correct: u understanding it and not fighting it.

When a person has an addiction, they are constantly saying, "No! Stop! I will never do this again! etc." only to find that they repeat the same behavior. They get frustrated and determined to stop and the process is repeated over and over. The way to approach addiction is to put it in its place. Here are the simplified steps for this (simplified):

Step 1: Learn to recognize the addictive voice

This voice has been active for a long time without you being aware of it.

Step 2: Acknowledge the addictive voice

Yes, separate the addict call the addictive voice, "IT" IT wants me to act out, I (referring to the healthy you) have no desire to act out. Acting out will only hurt me or my loved ones.

Your Frontal Lobe (part of the brain) has tremendous capacity and can learn to deal with addiction.

Part of this entire process is acknowledging that Heavenly Father is fully aware of your situation with life and addiction. He loves you and cares for you. Be sure to recognize the Savior and his ATONEMENT was done for you, because he loves you. We tend to take this to lightly.

When dealing with addiction, you have the power to overcome "IT" (the addictive voice). This does not mean you will not be tempted but it does mean you will be able to put the addiction in its place. Learn to control your brain and great power comes to you.

We recognize that there are some on this forum that are not Latter-day Saints. We are working on another volume of the InnerGold Manual that is non-denominational.

The current manual is not based on any specific faith. Only the link above is based on the LDS faith.

Edited March 19, 2009 by InnerGold

[Hemidakota]

Perhaps, we can rewrite to say: "God will not force any person to do good, nor can a person be forced by Satan to do evil."

[PastorBob]

Pastor Bob is correct: u understanding it and not fighting it. manual is not based on any specific faith. Only the link above is based on the LDS faith.

Exactly! The more you fight against an addiction the stronger it becomes - and it can never continue in the light of awareness.

A pornography addict, for example, is usually in a lot of turmoil other than just addiction, a peaceless inner state, and knows no higher joy than one based on the senses. The more he fights sensual pleasure, the more he is drawn to it.

But... when he understands this, and starts seeking out, and finding, the joy of the soul, he finds that the former addiction, and its feelings, were inferior, and the addiction drops.

Fighting with the branches of evil only makes them grow back with extra vigor, like a fruit tree. We have to go for the root to cure the actual problem.

Most sins are but symptoms of harboring darkness within.

[InnerGold]

This is the reason why most ecclesiastical leaders struggle with counseling someone with addiction. They only know to tell them read scriptures, pray, study, stop, just don't do it, never do it again, promise me you will stop, etc...

It is not their fault. They have never had official training in handling addiction. This is why education is so important.

[Ivy64]

Im sorry I jsut don't get the whole "fighting against evil only makes it stronger" stuff. Hemidakota's comment is what makes sense to me.

[InnerGold]

You fight against it but in a different way than what you would think. I don't want you to think that you embrace the act or the sin. I am not suggesting that at all. What I am suggesting is that you recognize it and then you start logically thinking before acting. Instead of an addict saying, " I am never going to do that again." You have to change your thinking to recognize "IT" the addictive voice and logically put it into its place. You give the addictive voice "IT" and you keep "I" references to the person that does not want to act out. Sounds confusing but it really is not.

I posted about this on a previous thread. I will be posting a lot more about it on our group, "Pornography and sexual addiction".

[PastorBob]

Im sorry I jsut don't get the whole "fighting against evil only makes it stronger" stuff. Hemidakota's comment is what makes sense to me.

In a nutshell, addiction and most sins are symptoms of being spiritually unconscious, which is the real problem. Waking up alone can cure it. Fighting with it instead of the unconsciousness causing it, makes it stronger.

[Ivy64]

AH!! I get it!

That last one made more sense.

It make sense I believe I have even been through that.

Thanks!

[rodheadlee]

"In a nutshell, addiction and most sins are symptoms of being spiritually unconscious, which is the real problem."

So true. Everytime you want to sin in your special addiction, just think of your Father in Heaven, Jesus Christ and then your family. It makes it a lot tougher to continue sinning.