Getting Stuck

We are the best at rationalizing and justifying otherwise questionable behaviors. When it’s something we really want to do, we will always find a way to justify it. Our internal barometer may be telling us “no,” but our feelings say “yes.” And so the internal conflict develops. But what do you do, when doing the wrong thing feels so right?

Our negative behavior patterns become our default ways of coping, i.e. drugs and alcohol, shopping binges, gambling, promiscuity, etc. We find ourselves developing habits that really hurt us in the long run. The problem is that our feelings are temporary, and so are the “fixes” that we so often find ourselves involved with. We will rationalize and justify our actions in order to have some sort of temporary relief.

In order to be free of our negative behavior patterns, we must seek the underlying reasons for why we keep and defend our questionable actions. Feelings are always connected to thoughts. It is these negative thoughts, a.k.a. stinking thinking, that generates our need to self-medicate. Error always leads to bondage, but thankfully, the truth will always set us free. Seeking the truth will help us to put off these unhealthy patterns and replace them with God’s truth.

Rachel Rowitt Ed.D., LMHC, CAP | Grace Counseling, Inc.