Will I ever be truly healed?

If you struggle with sexual or relational sin, you may have already prayed many times for God to heal you. If your struggle has only continued or intensified after you prayed such prayers, you may be tempted to conclude that God has abandoned you or that he doesn’t love you. But what does the word “heal” mean to you? Does it mean that you will never again be tempted to engage in sexual and relational sin? The Bible teaches that we will experience temptation while we live on earth (Luke 17:1a), and that God promises to help us deal with temptations successfully when they arise, not that He will remove them entirely (1 Corinthians 10:12-14). Moreover, passages such as Hebrews chapter 12 suggest that temptations and trials are one of God’s main tools for growing us and strengthening us. And it goes without saying that some people are more tempted in certain areas than others. In fact, temptation to sexual sin can be particularly persistent, since early sexual experiences are imprinted very deeply in our brains.¹ So it is certain that we can’t avoid experiencing temptation, and we can’t choose the ways in which we are tempted. However, there are definitely things we do that can worsen our temptations. Viewing pornography, for example, makes sexual temptation increase in frequency and intensity, and makes someone more likely to progress to sexual sin with other people.² For someone who has been feeding sexual temptation by viewing pornography for say, 10 years or more, is it realistic to expect God to erase the effects of those choices overnight? He is obviously powerful enough to do that. But in the area of healing from sexual and relational sin, it is much more common that God provides strugglers with the support they need day by day as they work through a process of healing over many months or even years.³ Over time, as they daily submit to God and develop new, healthy behaviors, they find that old, unhealthy patterns of thinking diminish.⁴ The healing may not ever be complete this side of Heaven, but one thing that all strugglers can access immediately in their journey of healing is the peace of God that comes after confessing sin and repentance, and the joy and hope found in a relationship with Jesus Christ. When that relationship and the peace, joy and hope it brings are made the organizing principles of a struggler’s life, then there is no challenge great or small that she can’t handle, with God’s help!⁵ If you are struggling with sexual or relational sin, Love In Action can help you begin your journey of healing. We invite you to explore our program options and contact us with any questions.

¹ Patrick Carnes, Out of the Shadows: Understanding Sexual Addiction (Hazelden, 2001) 88.
² Patrick J. Carnes, David L. Delmonico, Elizabeth Griffin, Joseph M. Moriarity, In the Shadows of the Net: Breaking Free from Compulsive Online Sexual Behavior (Hazelden, 2007) 126.
³ Mark R. Laaser, Healing the Wounds of Sexual Addiction (Zondervan, 2004) 121-139.
⁴ ibid., 124, 132-133.
⁵ Mark Laaser, L.I.F.E. Guide for Men (Xulon Press, 2002) 141.