Take care lest you forget the LORD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. It is the LORD your God you shall fear. Deuteronomy 6:12-13
Two years ago, we sold our home and moved less than a mile down the road. For quite a while after the move, every time I approached our old place, I’d slow down to turn into the driveway. It was a habit that had simply been ingrained in my behavior from repeating it hundreds of times. I don’t think I ever actually turned into the driveway before I caught myself – I don’t live there anymore.
Living in recovery involves a similar reminder of my past. Every day, I wake up and thank God that I’m not still struggling in my addiction. It’s important for me to remain grateful and to remember where I once was, reminding myself of what God has done for me. It is easy though, after 10 years, to believe that I’ve arrived. Perhaps the worst thing I could do however, is to believe that my life struggles are over. I may be sober, but I’m far from perfect and there are countless ways in which I could still struggle and fail. It’s simply my nature to follow some self-destructive appetite. So, in reminding myself daily of where God has brought me, I must also remind myself that I’m not meant to return to any addiction. I don’t live there anymore.
This was God’s message to his people in today’s passage. As they entered the promised land, Moses instructed the Israelites to remember that God had delivered them from Egyptian slavery. They were to look back with gratitude, but they were also meant to regularly remind themselves that they didn’t live there anymore. In remembering, they were to be motivated to continue follow God, enjoying the new life he’d planned for them. God knew it was in their nature to wander from him, metaphorically returning to the slavery of following themselves.
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1). This message is for me today. If I’m struggling with some addictive, self-destructive behavior, whether it’s lust, pride, anger, chemicals, resentments, or screen time, I must recognize that I’m not meant to live in that place. I must ask God what I must do and then I must follow him to freedom. I must daily remind myself that he’s set me free and that I’m not meant to live enslaved. This is an ongoing process. I still drive by my old house every day and so, I must regularly remind myself – I don’t live there anymore.