- this is a topic that has been on my mind the last month or so... partly because I feel I have many weaknesses that I wish to overcome. However, often I feel like I go around in a circle and do really well and other times I regress back to my "natural man" state - ugh! Sometimes I feel like I overcome one weakness and then I find I have another one that I didn't realize before... it is never ending- unfortunately. However, I have learned a few things as I have strived to overcome some of my natural tendencies.
One of the first things I have learned, if we have a weakness - it is important to first recognize that weakness. Stop trying to cover it up and lie to ourselves. Admit it - "this is an area that I am weak in...etc." I think if we don't recognize it then how in the world can we overcome something or improve when we "don't think we are doing anything wrong" in the first place.
One thing I have learned - if I have a weakness in an area - I need to avoid thing/places that lead to that weakness. For example - I love to shop - not just any kind of shopping, but bargain shopping. I love finding great deals and getting things for great prices. That in itself doesn't sound like a weakness - but now I have an over abundance, sure I got great deals on everything. No problem - except now I have enough and I still have a hard time stopping myself when I find a deal - even though I know I really don't need it. I would really like to use the money to pay off our house debts instead of use it on something that I don't need when I already have an over abundance.
Before I would get online ads and magazines full of sales and then I could search online and find double coupons and % off deals and apply them to the sales and really get some great deals. I realized I didn't need anymore - so I told myself "I'll just look and not buy anything" - nothing wrong with just looking - right? Well wouldn't you know it - I managed to always find something in clearance at a great price even when I wasn't planning on buying anything and I just couldn't resist it and after all I wasn't spending that much money.
Well my "looking" always led to "buying" - so I recognized OK - if I really don't want to buy anymore - I just can't look. period. I can't go window shopping - because I find too many deals :( I figured that an alcoholic probably doesn't go into a bar and say - "I'm not going to drink - just socialize with everyone" - well that would be too much temptation for him - and this really is too much of a temptation for me as silly as this weakness may sound. So for me now since I am trying to become more financial ly disciplined - I just can't go looking for fun because of where it leads.
Now, I'm not saying that shopping is a sin. I would be going to 'shopper's hell' if it was. All I am saying for me - I was trying to work on becoming more disciplined and stick to a budget better and just "looking" caused me to slip up. So this was something I wanted to improve on and it was a struggle for me to do this. So this is one area of weakness - I was working on.
Another thing I have found that replacing "bad" habits with a good habit helps. When you are busy doing the other thing (i.e. reading, exercising, whatever) so you have less time to do the "bad" habit. - I just used this as an example - I have many more bad habits/weaknesses that I want to overcome and sometimes it gets discouraging wondering if I can ever be the person I really "want" to become.
I have also learned that we have weaknesses so that we will learn to lean on and depend on Heavenly Father to help us overcome our weaknesses.
Ether 12: 27-28
27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their aweakness. I bgive unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my cgrace is sufficient for all men that dhumble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make eweak things become strong unto them. 28 Behold, I will show unto the Gentiles their weakness, and I will show unto them that afaith, hope and charity bringeth unto me—the fountain of all brighteousness"
But in order for Him to help us we must be in tuned with Him. Now this is an area I am striving to improve in because I don't always think I am really in tuned with the spirit. How can we stay more in tuned with our Heavenly Father so he will help us?
I read on a friend's blog a few months ago she was describing her experience and what she felt like she needed to do to become more in-tuned to listen to Heavenly Father's spirit and be more able to follow His prompting. Well, as I read her experience, I realized this is what I needed to do as well.
She felt prompted to wake up early every morning before the kids were a wake and study and pray and have a morning devotional for 30 minutes to prepare her for the day and to ask Heavenly Father to help her be more spiritually in tuned. She tried to talk her self out of it - after all she was pregnant and already getting up early enough and homeschooling all of her children, she really could use the extra sleep. -but once she did, she noticed such an improvement in her life and spirituality.
As I seek to work on overcoming my weaknesses this is one thing I am planning on implementing in my life. Waking up 30 minutes earlier and having time to commune with my Heavenly Father through prayer, scripture study, and thought.
I decided to do a study in my journey to progress and overcome some of weaknesses. I will be posting different articles, stories, scriptures that are helping me in this journey.
One of the first things I looked at was the 12 step recovery program from Alcoholics Anonymous. These 12 steps are truly inspired and I think they can help anyone as they strive to overcome any weakness. I have posted them below and have altered them so that anyone with any weakness can apply these steps in their life.
"Here are the steps we took, which are suggested as a program of recovery:
1. We admitted we were powerless over our weaknesses - that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
Many of us exclaimed, "What an order! I can't go through with it." Do not be discouraged. No one among us has been able to maintain anything like perfect adherence to these principles. We are not saints. The point is, that we were willing to grow along spiritual lines. The principles we have set down are guides to progress. We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection."
from: pg 58 © From the Book - Alcoholics Anonymous
Here are some more scriptures on weakness:
2 Cor. 12:9-10
9 And he said unto me, My agrace is sufficient for thee: for my bstrength is made perfect in cweakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may drest upon me.
2 Cor. 13:9 & 22
9 For we are glad, when we are aweak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.
22 To the weak became I as aweak, that I might gain the weak: I am made ball things to all men, that I might by all means save some.
Job 4:3
3 Behold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands.
Psalms 6:2
2 Have mercy upon me, O Lord; for I am aweak: O Lord, bheal me; for my bones are vexed.
Isiah 35:3
3 Strengthen ye the aweak hands, and confirm the bfeeble knees.
Matt 26:41
41 aWatch and bpray, that ye enter not into ctemptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Mark 14:38
38 aWatch ye and pray, lest ye enter into btemptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.
1 Cor. 2:3
3 And I was with you in aweakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
Jacob 4:7
7 Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our aweakness that we may know that it is by his bgrace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things.
Alma 26:12
12 Yea, I know that I am anothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will bnot boast of myself, but I will cboast of my God, for in his dstrength I can do all ethings; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.
