Cure Your Shopping Addiction with God's Help

Good morning, Happy Souls!

Bill Keller wrote a wonderful devotional today
that I highly recommend to you.  He has given
me permission to copy his e-mails, and I'm sure
he would be happy if you would share this with
people you know as well.

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL   SUNDAY DECEMBER 11, 2005
(Galatians 5:1)

***CHRISTMAS PASSAGE:  Mary was greatly troubled
at his words and wondered what kind of greeting
this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not
be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.
You will be with child and give birth to a son,
and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be
great and will be called the Son of the Most High.
The Lord God will give him the throne of his
father David, and he will reign over the house of
Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." 
(Luke 1:29-33)

***POWERFUL VIDEO CLIPS  from the Liveprayer TV
program!  View now at:
www.liveprayer.com/tvtest.htm

Shopping can be an addiction. I have dealt many
times with addiction problems.  Most think of
those fighting addictions as people who are prowling
around seedy adult sex shops late at night, meeting
scary people who have sold out to satan and sell
drugs, slipping into a neighborhood bar after work
and having your "normal" 4-5 drinks before going
home, just to mention a few.

In past Devotionals, I have tried to help you
understand that ANYTHING can be an addiction.  One
of the most common battles many fight daily is an
addiction to food.  But today, I want to expose
another addiction that MANY of you are battling each
day that is RARELY talked about, SHOPPING.

First, an addiction is something that consumes your
life.  It takes over and becomes your number one
priority.  It destroys your personal relationships.
Worst of all, it destroys your relationship with
God.  Whenever you allow ANYTHING to take over your
life to the point that it is interfering with your
walk with God, when God is no longer your number one
priority, IT IS A SIN.  It is something that you
must deal with immediately before it totally
destroys your life.

Shopping is legal.  It is not like doing cocaine
which is not.  Shopping is actually a necessary part
of life, just like eating is.  However, many have
found their "escape" in shopping.  Just like some
will come home and have 2..3..4..5..6..drinks in the
evening to "escape," many will shop to escape.  One
of the growing problems that I have had to deal with
over these past 6 years is the number of people who
are addicted to Home Shopping and other 24-hour TV
shopping channels.

I am NOT going to sit here and tell you that they
are evil, that they equate with TV pornography, that
is clearly NOT the case.  However, for many, the
addiction is just as real, and just as powerful, as
someone who sits at home and watches pornography on
their TV.  It is an "escape" from reality.

The worst thing about "escapes" is that they ALWAYS
compound the problems that a person is "escaping"
from.  People spend thousands on pornography, catch
sexually transmitted diseases, get caught and
destroy their marriages and families.  People who
use drugs and alcohol not only pay a huge price by
driving under the influence, but they are destroying
their health, and numbing themselves from being able
to function at 100% efficiency in their daily lives. 
Those who are addicted to shopping ultimately end up
spending thousands, tens of thousands, even hundreds
of thousands of dollars, and in many cases destroy
their finances over this addiction.  THERE IS ALWAYS
A HUGE PRICE TO PAY WHEN YOU TRY TO "ESCAPE!!!"

I love you and care about you so much.  Sadly, this
is a HUGE issue that many are fighting today. 
Please know that I will be praying for you in this
battle.  Like ALL addiction battles, you can only
attain victory after you first turn it over to the
Lord.  God will help you devise a battle plan, God
will give you people that will walk through this
with you to hold you accountable, and most of all,
God will give you the strength each day to walk
victoriously.  This has been one of those silent
issues that few will ever talk about, but it is
time to pull back the curtain and expose this
problem that many are fighting today.  Above all,
know that God loves you, and that God will lead
you to victory when YOU are ready to fight this
battle.

The key however is that first step.  I don't care
what your battle is.  Whether it is with drugs,
alcohol, sex, food, OR SHOPPING.  The first step
is for you to admit that you have a problem. 
Being addicted to shopping is no different than
any other addiction.  You have to admit that this
is a problem in your life and ask God to help you
get victory over it.  Please know that I will be
praying for you today.  I will be praying that God
will not only give you the courage to admit this
problem in your life, but that you will allow Him
to guide you to victory.  Never forget, with God
...ALL THINGS...are possible.  Even victory over
an addiction to shopping.

***GOD MAY BE SPEAKING TO YOU TODAY.  THIS IS NOT
AN ISSUE THAT YOU WILL EVER HEAR AT CHURCH, BUT
YOU KNOW HOW DESTRUCTIVE IT IS IN YOUR LIFE.
ACCEPT THAT GOD IS SPEAKING DIRECTLY TO YOU,
TELLING YOU THAT THESE ARE WORDS OF LOVE, THAT HE
KNOWS THE PAIN YOU ARE IN OVER THIS ISSUE.

TODAY, NOW, IS THE TIME TO GO TO YOUR KNEES, ASK
HIS FORGIVENESS, AND GET SERIOUS ABOUT GETTING
VICTORY OVER THIS PROBLEM IN YOUR LIFE.  GOD WILL
GIVE YOU THE STRENGTH, AND I WILL BE STANDING
WITH YOU IN PRAYER.  MAY YOU BE FREE OF THIS
BONDAGE IN YOUR LIFE, IN THE NAME OF JESUS!!!

In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

***If I can help you in any way you can contact me
through my personal email at bkeller@liveprayer.com

***ARE YOU 100% CERTAIN WHERE YOU WILL SPEND
ETERNITY?  The fact is you will die one day.  At
that moment, you will either spend eternity with
the Lord or be cast into everlasting darkness
forever separated from God your creator.  To know
for certain you will be forever with Jesus, go to:
http://www.liveprayer.com/bdy_salvatn.html

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(C) Copyright 2005, Bill Keller Ministries.
All rights reserved

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May God bless you as you learn from this message!

Merry Christmas!!

Donald W. Mitchell, Your Dream Concierge

Copyright 2005 Donald W. Mitchell