Jesus, teach me the powerful principle of Romans 8:13: (NIV) If I live according to the sinful nature, I will die; but if BY THE SPIRIT I put to death the misdeeds of the body, I will live.

Jesus, help me consider how spiritual growth works. Teach me that it has to be done by the Spirit. And it has to be done by me USING THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT TO put to death the misdeeds (bad things I do to myself and to those around me) of my body. It may be difficult for me to accept this at first; but, help me understand that I and my body aren’t going to be on the same page, since I have become a Christian. I am a spirit being who is living in a body.

Jesus changed YOU, the spirit person who is living on the inside of your body. As long as you didn’t mind so much that you were doing things that weren’t good for you or those around you, you and your body were able to do them as friends. But, the moment Jesus changed your attitude toward things that are fun but have side effects, your body rebelled against the new you. It wants fun no matter what the cost is.

Jesus, I thank You that the new me only wants fun that is beneficial to me and those around me. Teach me that God will give me more fun than I will ever know what to do with; but, it won’t be the kind of fun that hurts me and those around me. Teach me that my body won’t understand this and will need to be forced into experiencing God’s type of pleasure by a unified effort of me working TOGETHER with Your Holy Spirit.

Jesus, show me that the trouble I am having with drugs will be overcome as I learn how to yield to the principles of God. The process of spiritual growth (sanctification) empowers me to start being able to actually DO and SAY things I wasn’t able to do and say before. Once I learn how to BY THE SPIRIT put to death the misdeeds of my body, I will live a whole new way of life.

Make it clear to me that in salvation and justification, I am only CREDITED with doing and saying good things. God gave me credit for them on His record so I could become His child, a member of His family, and a citizen of His Kingdom. That gave me access to all God’s knowledge, foreknowledge of the future, understanding, wisdom, and power. You and I are going to use them to help me start LIVING all those good things that I have been credited with on God’s record.

Jesus, teach me that in sanctification (spiritual growth) You want me to start working together with You. Show me that this is the relationship I am going to have with God for eternity. So, I am going to experience healing from my issues with drugs; but, You are going to involve me in the process. Teach me that this is the same relationship God will be having with me in eternity. He is going to be working together with me as I do great things WITH Him for all of eternity.

Jesus, teach me that in eternity:

• I am NOT going to be standing around watching God do all the work.


• I am NOT going to be running around doing all kinds of work FOR God.


• I AM going to be spending eternity working together WITH God doing spectacular things that are beyond human imagination.

Jesus, make it clear to me that the reason God wants me to learn how to start living the right way now is, He wants to work together WITH me as He and I use His principles to defeat my struggles with drugs in my life. I am CREDITED with having defeated these struggles; but, He and I want me to ACTUALLY defeat them. Show me that I developed my problem with drugs by trying to have fun, have happiness, and experience pleasure. BUT, it had side effects that I didn’t know were attached to that fun, happiness, and pleasure.

Jesus, show me a way of life far superior to a life that is just free from drugs problems. Show me how to get involved in a way of life that will bring me a lot of fun, happiness, and joy without side effects. Let my relationship with You, myself, and the people around me change in a very wonderful way. Let me be transformed into a whole new way of life that is based on God’s eternal relationship system.

Jesus, since EVERYTHING I do with God on earth is based on preparing me for eternity, if I discover that this way of life is one I would enjoy having forever, then I will accept it and learn how to live it better. Help me understand that I will ALWAYS be tempted to be distracted by the things of this world.

Jesus, teach me the principle of Matthew 6:24-25: (NIV) No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. I cannot serve both God and Money. 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 important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Help me follow You only.

Jesus, if I were being trained for a very exciting opportunity and I kept getting distracted by the room I was in, the equipment they used, and the people in the class, help me understand that I would miss the training. If I got in my car and just spent all my time examining the equipment in it, I would never get the benefits my car could provide. Make it clear to me that if I spend all my time checking out the things of this world, I will enter into eternity untrained for it.

Jesus, help me see that this world is like my mother’s womb, I was there temporarily so I could get ready to be born into this life. Keep me aware of the fact that I am on this planet temporarily; empower me to get ready, get trained, and get prepared to live where it will all count for eternity.

Jesus, teach me that God doesn’t mind all the money, possessions, positions, prestige, popularity, power, pleasure, and accomplishments I achieve. He just doesn’t like the way I got them and the reason I have them. Help me develop the correct strategy for getting and using these things. Let it change me from being a lake and make me into a river. Let these things flow through me rather than accumulate in my private storage container. Help me love people and use these things to help people. Help me do this rather than loving these things and using people to get them.

Jesus, show me that if I refuse to allow my struggles with drugs to overwhelm me, I will learn how to grow spiritually by working together with You. Empower me to not allow myself to get frustrated with God because He hasn’t already solved my problem. Help me see that if God just stepped in and zapped all my conflicting feelings, misdeeds, or bad behavior that come from my problems with my body, the world, and Satan, I wouldn’t learn and grow into a person who is successful in life and relationships. AND, that would keep me from being a mature, skilled, talented, and trained adult child of God for eternity.

Jesus, help me not get this wrong; show me that God has already healed me of a lot of the bad feelings, thoughts, words, and behaviors I was doing against myself and those around me, when I became a Christian. Help me understand that He doesn’t totally set any of us free from certain aspects of our body’s past experiences.

Jesus, teach me the principle of Galatians 6:7: (NIV) Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Make it clear to me that even though a lot of the drives I was experiencing from my body have been taken away, I still remember the pleasure sin (damaging deeds) baited me with. Show me that my struggles with drugs are caused by the lifestyle I developed. You gave me a new life; now You are GIVING me a new lifestyle.

Jesus, teach me how to choose to resist these harmful thoughts, feelings, and deeds I still remember; help me do it by working with You in a gentle way. Teach me that if I got saved as a brand new Christian and had to face every problem of my body all at once, I would cave in; no one would be able to survive the experience. We would all be too immature, too discouraged, and too weak to handle all that responsibility. Teach me that You do leave me enough challenges, such as my problem with drugs, to be able to use it as an example so I can learn the first steps of spiritual growth. Teach me that, that makes me successful on this planet and great in the Kingdom of God.

Jesus, make it clear to me that God doesn’t have to make my life harder in order to train me. I typically expose myself to enough new challenges in life without Him having to make it harder. I usually create three types of problems for myself as a new Christian:

• I face problems I inadvertently run into.


• I face problems that I stupidly put myself into.


• I face problems that Satan comes against me with that I yield to.

2 Cor 12:9 (NIV) But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. Jesus, use my issues with drugs to teach me how to handle all of these other problems I am going to be running into. Help me see that as I learn to win over my struggles with drugs I will learn how to win in all of life. That will mature me and get me ready for being a skilled, trained, and mature child of God in eternity.