Overcoming Work Addiction: Step 7 – Receive Freedom

One of my greatest mentors in faith and a close entrepreneurial friend gave me the best piece of spiritual advice I’ve ever heard.

He said, “Alex, it’s not that we need to sin less.  It’s that we need to see our need for Christ MORE.”

Up until that point, I was always trying so hard not to sin, trying to battle my addictions, trying to rid myself of all my baggage. We all seek freedom.  I don’t think anyone of us wants to be a slave to our businesses.  

Did we start businesses for “Financial Freedom” and to make our own decision and travel and do what we love?

We need to successfully fight our addictions, but easier said than done.

When my friend spoke those words that I shared, a FREEDOM settled over me.  It was like a great weight was lifted off my shoulder.  The epiphany for me was that I was fighting the wrong battle. I should be fighting to be more like Christ, and letting God fight the addiction for me.

The Bible says

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?  Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?  Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life ?   “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.  If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?  So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Matthew 6:25‭-‬33 NIV

Freedom is what we seek as Entrepreneurs after all, right? And Jesus ultimately paid the price for that freedom.

Here are 4 practical steps you can take to receive freedom from addictions.

4 Steps to Freedom from Work Addiction

Manage Stress at the Office

One way I’ve been able to manage stress is by thinking to myself “what was God’s purpose for this problem?” Stress comes about when there’s a problem that needs solving.  Instead of letting the problem overtake me, I take the glass-half-full approach and say “God, you had a reason for this, and I’m going to trust in you and you’re going to reveal to me what it is I need to do.”

Awareness of My Emotions

I love emotions. I love the joy I feel when I close a big deal. It’s euphoric!  But I love it more because I’m physically able to see that my body is responding to some outside force that’s clashing with my internal spirit.

On the other side of the coin, we can also feel emotions when something BAD has happened. A client sends you a bad email, the deal you wanted broke apart, your employee does something to embarrass you. We need to be “aware” of that exact 3 seconds of when it happens. That’s the only time we have to make a decision: either I’m going to let this lead to destructive behavior, or I’m going to find God in this exact circumstance.

The Big Picture In Sight

Addictions don’t just affect you at work, they affect everything and everyone that comes in contact with you until you’ve resolved the issue.  It takes over everything in you and around you.  It’s like putting on sunglasses at night.  When the stress comes, things will get dark around you. The addiction is putting on glasses on top of the fact that things already got dark. Taking off the glasses and shedding light around the fact that God has a plan and looking at all the positive things around you will help.

I personally start to thank God for my office, the clients I have, the money in the bank account (even if there’s very little), and the clients, prospects, vendors and employees that He’s blessed me with.

Confess

Last, but not least, we need to always be confessing our work addiction.  

The Bible says

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9 NIV