Elizabeth A. Shartle - Overcoming Addiction: A Biblical Path Towards Freedom

Overcoming Addiction

A Biblical Path Towards Freedom

Elizabeth Shartle

Contents

Ch. 1:

Ch. 2:

Ch. 3:

Ch. 4:

Ch. 5:

Ch. 6:

Ch. 7:

Ch. 8:

Ch. 9:

Ch. 10:

Ch. 11:

Ch. 12:

Ch. 13:

Ch. 14:

Ch. 15:

Ch. 16:

Preface

Who Am I and Why Should You Listen to Me?

M y name is Elizabeth Shartle, and Im a licensed clinical counselor. (Im also an attorney, but thats not relevant here.) Ive been a counselor for almost a decade, and much of this time has been spent working with adults with addictions and chemical dependency, usually co-occurring with other mental health disorders.

I firmly believe that, as they say, no one cares how much you know until they know how much you care, so I pray your reading further will assure you that I do care very much and that most of what I write is coming from a been there, done that point of view. Im not just some fancy professional whos read about the problems that people have but never experienced any real difficulties herself. Ive struggled with alcohol, cigarettes, over-eating, and other unwise choices. On the upside, Ive been blessed to see alcoholic family members come into a saving faith and be granted the strength to set aside alcohol in favor of the joy of living according to Gods plan. And on the downside, Ive been pained to see bitter, angry family members reject Gods plan and continue to use drugs, alcohol, food, sex, gambling, and more to escape the hurt we all experience in some way. So you can see why counseling would interest me.

I earned my counseling degree through Liberty Universitys distance learning program. At the time I registered, I figured they wouldnt want me as a student if they knew I was a cigarette-smoking, temper-challenged, single mom with a shaky faith. Little did I know! Enrolling in that counseling program was the first step towards immeasurably increasing my faith.

Initially, I thought I would counsel teenagers, since my own experience of being a teenager had been pretty rough. The Lord, however, had other plans. He led me to work in an outpatient treatment center for older adults with addiction problems. I loved the work, the clients, the sheer joy of seeing that ray of hope turn into action when a client came to understand and believe that its never too late. Yet as my faith grew, it became more and more frustrating not to be able to say to them, You need Jesus. Hes the only one who can truly help you. Someday it will be too late, and before that day comes, I hope to see you embrace a saving faith in Jesus Christ.

This desire to share my faith continued to grow, and then the opiate epidemic slammed into Ohio like a gale force wind. Thats when I felt led to go to law school with a focus on health law. And in my final year there, the Lord asked me to think about what it would have been like if Id been able to show my counseling clients how the Bible and secular research on recovery fit together seamlessly. As a counselor, Id spent years facilitating an intensive outpatient treatment group (IOP), a program designed to help someone whos early in recovery learn skills for living life without addiction. Id seen for myself just how closely those skills match what Scripture tells us about how to live life and treat one another. What youre reading now is what you might call an IOP handbook thoroughly backed up by the Word of God, our Creator. This is what I would have loved to have shared back then and this is what I offer to you now.

I believe God allowed me to work first with older adults, so that I could see clearly how an entire life can come close to being wasted in pain and suffering and addiction. Addiction can lead to divorce, broken families, failed health, joblessness, homelessness, and death.

It doesnt have to though. Addiction can be overcome. My life hasnt been a shining example of good Christian living, but my Lord Jesus Christ has given me as he gives to all who confess him as Savior gifts to use to build up the church, which is the body of Christ. (These gifts are as described in more detail in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10; Ephesians 4:7-13, and Romans 12:3-8.) The Lord promises that all things will work together for good for those who love God and who are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). This means the mess of my past and the past of others Ive known becomes a message of grace and mercy that I can share with you; likewise, the mess of your own past can be redeemed, and you can use it to help others in turn.

The Lord is allowing me to draw upon my education, my personal experience, my professional experience, and most importantly, my understanding of Scripture to write to you. With his blessing, I pray these words will ring true, touch your heart, and stir your soul to faith and freedom in overcoming addiction.

Chapter 1

The Beginning

T his book is meant to be read like a letter. Youll notice, for instance, that I casually switch from talking about you to we or sometimes I. Thats just my way of showing that were all in this together. I dont pretend to have all the answers; I just write in faith, trusting our Lord will guide my words and use them for your benefit and his glory.

The tone is meant to convey the kind of interest a good letter conveys. Hey, heard you were having a rough time and just wanted to let you know I was thinking of you. Id like to share some things that Ive learned. Things that have helped me out over the years. Mostly, I want you to know I believe you can get through this.

Addiction isnt the easiest subject to discuss, but here in these pages in todays language it is what it is. If we can talk about it for what it is, then it may seem more possible to do something about it.

Not that everyone necessarily finds talking easy. Take my mother, for example. She never finished high school, so Im not sure she knew quite what to make of it when, in elementary school, I was enrolled in a class for gifted kids. But when I realized my vocabulary exceeded hers, I began to put my thoughts into plainer words, because I never wanted my mom to feel dumb when she talked to me. If you use big words that make people feel dumb, they tend to not listen to what you have to say. I wanted my mom to want to talk to me, so I did everything I could to make that happen.

Using plain words instead of elaborate ones means that to some people in fact, to quite a few people I come across as simple, and they feel that way about the things Im led to share too. But thats okay. Im in good company, because the apostle Paul talks about this in 1 Corinthians 2. He says he didnt come proclaiming the gospel with what he called lofty speech because then it would seem like mans wisdom instead of what it really was the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. Much of what I say will seem very simple. It will also seem counter to the wisdom of this age. Paul speaks of that, too, in the same chapter of 1 Corinthians. The wisdom of God was imparted long before we were born and has nothing to do with what year this is. Gods wisdom is timeless. There is nothing new under the sun is as true now as it was then (Ecclesiastes 1:9). There have been people with addictions for almost as long as there have been people at all.