Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Denial Leads to Disaster

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. -- 2 Corinthians 4:16

What are you in denial about? If you’re like most of us, your first answer is “nothing.” Think again.

Many of us are in denial about something. Maybe we’re telling ourselves that everything is going to be better even though we aren’t doing anything to change our circumstances and the future looks bleak. We call it optimism. Others call it denial.

Maybe you’re a social drinker. Oh, you have a few too many sometimes. And, yeah, some mornings you wake up and you can’t remember what you did the night before. But you know you can handle your alcohol and can quit anytime you choose. Others say you’re an alcoholic in denial.

Some people have anger issues. It’s never their fault. If the rest of the world would behave as it should, they wouldn’t have any reason to get angry. It’s never their fault. Denial is what everyone else says.

We’d rather pretend that nothing is wrong rather than face the issue head on. That’s just too scary and what if we can’t ever recover from whatever it is we’ve been denying? We keep going down that path until one day we can’t anymore.

Maybe our spouse and children have walked out the door for the last time. Maybe your boss has finally stopped warning you and fired you instead. Maybe that “indigestion” you’ve been ignoring has gotten so frequent and so painful that you’re headed for the nearest emergency room.

Whatever the circumstances, the fear of change has become less than the fear of facing whatever it is that you’re denying. Pastor Rob calls that hitting bottom.

It’s often a necessary step before you can begin the climb upward toward an abundant life. Of course, the bottom doesn’t mean you’re healed. Just the opposite, in fact. The bottom means you’ve finally stopped denying the problem and are ready to face it.

Sometimes it works. Sometimes the pain is so intense that we fall back into denial. And the process begins again.

How do we survive and climb out? By depending on God’s strength, not our own. Because, honestly, there are just too many things in our lives that are too painful, too destructive, for us to handle on our own. So we rely on God to carry us when we can’t carry ourselves. For some of us, that’s just about all the time.

So take a good look in the mirror. Ask God to show you what you’re denying today. Then ask Him to help you, to strengthen you, to heal you, so you can move past the denial and start living an abundant life with Him.