How do I stop a destructive cycle?

…in other words, what if I say am I sorry to God (sincerely) — and say that I won’t do it again — but when the opportunity comes around, I do it again? And that cycle keeps happening!  What do I do?

This question applies to every single person taking a breath of air this very moment! Yes, we are all call in a cycle of repeating sin, even after we sincerely ask for forgiveness from God and determine to not do it again. So if that is true, why bother trying anyways? Because it is the right thing to seek to break destructive cycles and to run from the sin that entangles us. Paul often speaks about such a thing, with his most famous verses found in Romans 7:

15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. 21So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me.

We sin because it is our nature. Scriptures explain that all have fallen short of the glory of God; there is none righteous, not one. But as children of God, who have  faith in Jesus as Savior, we can overcome our sin by His power as work in us.  It is a daily process…

  1. Acknowledge & Confess
    Admit to yourself and God that you have a problem. Admit that what you are doing is wrong and you no longer want to do it. Look at the whole picture and spell out step by step what you are doing and why you are doing it.
  2. Get Accountable
    Find someone who you can privately confess your sin to. Someone that won’t go blab to the world, but will commit to praying for you and asking you regularly if you are on the up and up. It must be someone that agrees with you that you are sinning, so they will be passionate to seeing you stop. It should not be the person you are engaging in that sin with, for you are both too weak at this point to help one another.
  3. Turn Around
    In other words, repent.  This means turn completely from what you are do into a new direction, because of Godly sorrow that your sin is hurting you, God, and others.
  4. Make a New Path
    It is time to walk in a new direction, away from everything that draws you to the old cycle. Instead of keeping to routine, decide to make a new one. Don’t go “there” after school. Don’t leave space on the calendar to hang out at such and such a place. Don’t leave time to just “check” things out. In other words, fill those usual places with a non-negotiable commitment. Offer tutoring after-school. Volunteer on Friday nights. Break up with so and so. Chose healthy ways to move forward on a new path.

Ready to get on a the right cycle? Start right now by making time to confess, repent, and get right with God. Open your Bible or go to Biblegateway.com and read Psalm 51. Make a new habit of reading a Psalm and Proverb every day!

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