Neil T. Anderson - Freedom from Addiction: Breaking the Bondage of Addiction and Finding Freedom in Christ

PRAISE FOR Freedom from Addiction

Our society has never before offered us so many choices to fill the emptiness of our lives. Dr. Anderson and the Quarleses have provided practical steps to keep from being overrun by these uncontrollable passions. They remind us through poignant testimony and practical helps that Christ desires more for us than just sobrietyHe wants us to experience freedom. I highly recommend this book to both the addict and the church!

John Coulombe, Pastor to Senior Adults

FIRST EVANGELICAL FREE CHURCH, FULLERTON, CALIFORNIA

Freedom from Addiction brings the help and hope those bound by addictions fear they will never find. The biblical principles Dr. Anderson and the Quarleses teach in Freedom from Addiction are block buster truths that go beyond the Christianity many of us practice.

Dr. Richard A. Germaine, Senior Pastor

FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, HOPKINTON, MASSACHUSETTS

The authors' approach to exposing and hitting head-on the strongholds that feed addiction is great. As a program director who deals with these painful issues every day, I found myself making notes and rereading passages from the book, as I gleaned powerful truths that will change the lives of the people I work with.

Bob Hall, Program Director

HARVEST FARM NEW LIFE PROGRAM, DENVER RESCUE MISSION

This is not just a book for the addicted, but for their loved ones also. Freedom from Addiction is a book filled with truth that will truly set the captives free.

Mike Harden, Founder/Director

NO LONGER BOUND, INC.

PRAISE FOR Freedom from Addiction

We have seen thousands freed from all kinds of addictions through discovering their identity in Christ. I am convinced this book is not only an exciting testimony to read, but a very practical help for Christians on how to have a breakthrough to freedom in Christ so they can enjoy their Christian life.

David Ritzenthaler, President

VICTORIOUS CHRISTIAN LIVING INTERNATIONAL, INC.

Freedom from Addiction offers a combination of biblical truth and fascinating testimony which demonstrates that Christian salvation is not just an experience for heaven. Christ desires to change lives and bring freedom from destructive habits now. The great value of Freedom from Addiction is that it not only proclaims this truth, but explains how to make it real.

Robert L. Saucy, Professor of Christian Thought

TALBOT SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY

I highly recommend this book to those having problems with addiction and to those not experiencing freedom in other areas of their lives.

Rev. Albert Scardino, Director of Counseling Ministry

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF ATLANTA

Freedom from Addiction is compelling because it addresses the issue of addiction so directly and specifically. It will be a valuable tool for us to use in our counseling ministry.

Russell O. Williams, Director of Lay Counseling

MOUNT PARAN CHURCH OF GOD, ATLANTA, GEORGIA

1996 by Neil T. Anderson and Mike and Julia Quarles

Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com

Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com

Bethany House Publishers edition published 2014

ISBN 978-1-4412-6579-1

Previously published by Regal Books

Ebook edition originally created 2012

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meansfor example, electronic, photocopy, recordingwithout the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971,1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Other versions used are:

AMP. N. T.Scripture quotations are taken from the Amplified New Testament, copyright 1954, 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

AMP. O. T.From The Amplified Bible, Old Testament. Copyright 1965, 1987 by The Zondervan Corporation. Used by permission.

KJVAuthorized King James Version.

NEBFrom The New English Bible. The Delegates of Oxford University Press and The Syndics of the Cambridge University Press 1961, 1970, 1989. Reprinted by permission.

NIVScripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version.

NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

NKJVFrom the New King James Version. Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

PHILLIPSThe New Testament in Modern English, Revised Edition, J. B. Phillips, Translator. J.B. Phillips 1958, 1960, 1972. Used by permission of Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 866 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10022.

Introduction

I was working as the lead systems engineer on an underwater fire control system for an antisubmarine rocket. Our first production unit just rolled off the assembly line, and I was working night and day to get it up to operational level. A production engineer named Max was assigned to work with me during the night shift. The kindest way I can say it is: Max wasn't much help to me. His wife would call in sick for Max at least once a week. I could never count on him. When he was at work, Max drove me up a wall. By the time the night shift came around, I would already be fatigued from working all day. As I labored into the evening, he would sit behind me eating sunflower seeds.

One night out of frustration, I asked Max if he ever went to church. Max said he wasn't attending any church at the time, but he and his wife had often talked about it. I invited him to my church. That next Sunday I met Max, his wife and their three children, and helped them attend the right Sunday School classes. Tuesday morning my pastor called, I thought you would like to know that I visited the couple you brought to church last Sunday, and I led them to Christ. I was elated. He continued, Since Max works with you, I thought you needed to know that he is an alcoholic. Then it all made sense. That is why periodically Max missed work, and why he munched sunflower seeds.

It can be frustrating to work with people who struggle with chemical addictions. It is even more exasperating for those who live with them. As difficult as it is for others, it is much more devastating for the addict. Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaining? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long over wine, those who go to taste mixed wine (Prov. 23:29,30). These addicts are living a mental, emotional and physical nightmare. For some it is a private ordeal. Others make life miserable for everyone and anyone around them. I suspect that the old saying misery loves company was coined for addicts.

Why do they do it? Why would people keep pouring alcohol into their bodies? They know alcohol destroys everything that has meaning to them: their families, their careers and their own health. Why would people continue to stick needles into their veins when they know it is a death warrant? Why would people keep snorting drugs with the full knowledge that it will eventually destroy their brains, much less the damage it does to their nasal membranes? These are not rational decisions. People don't initially make decisions about life with the intention of destroying themselves. I can't imagine a teenager saying, When I grow up, I would like to be an alcoholic. Most people addicted to drugs or alcohol said or thought at one time, That will never happen to me.