The Escapism Mentality
escapism 1. the state of having wandering and imaginative thoughts in order to escape from reality. — escapist, n., adj.
2. the practice of engaging in activities that enable one to avoid having to deal with reality, as the persistent attendance at science-fiction films, reading of fantasy literature, etc.
Life can be tough sometimes. No doubt.
Life can be unfair. Yes, this is true.
Sometimes we need a break, a sabbath time of rest from our labors where we can recharge our mental, physical, and spiritual batteries.
People have come up with a myriad of ways to escape from the constant stresses and struggles of everyday life. Some folks go mountain biking, some play games online, some veg out in front of the tv. Everyone has their “thing”. All these things can be beneficial when done in moderation.
This is not the kind of escapism I want to talk about today. I’m not even talking about the excesses that many indulge in today. The kind of escapism I am talking about is one of a different kind. A “spiritual” kind. This one can be just as dangerous as any other excess that people are involved in.
Please follow me closely, cause I do not want to misunderstood here.
In times of trouble, (hopefully when things are good too) we draw closer to God. As God’s children, we should draw near to Him because we want relationship with Him. This is good.
The problem is when we get ourselves in a bad situation and we have the escapism mentality that God will pull our butts out of the fire.
I know the scriptures you may quote at me about God delivering people out of various situations in the Bible. I believe He still delivers us out of situations of our own making. The problem is when we expect there to be no consequences for our actions. We treat God like our “get out of jail free” card in the board game Monopoly. We throw down the “god” card and everything will be ok. We coat some Jesus over our problems and act like they don’t exist. This is escapism at it’s most dangerous.
God set forth the law of sowing and reaping ( Galatians 6:3-10). If you sow kindness, you will reap kindness. If you sow seeds of unforgiveness, you will reap bitterness. If you give, it will be given back to you. So on and so forth.
I have reaped the fruit of a lot of bad decisions in my life. He has delivered me from some situations that seemed impossible, but certainly not all of them. Does that make God bad? Heck no!! Does it mean He doesn’t love me? If you think that way, then you don’t know God at all and you need to read your Bible.
Did God heal David and Bath-Sheba’s baby even though David repented of adultery? No. Did Moses get to enter the promised land even though he did everything right except one act of disobedience? No, he didn’t get to enter. Was this harsh of God to act in this way? No. This was the law of sowing and reaping. When you sow seeds of sin or folly, they will return to you.
God may not deliver you so you are forced to make changes that you never would have made if God bailed you out.
Whether God delivers you or not, our hearts should constantly be drawn to Him. Not because we want God to help us, but so we might have the grace and strength to face whatever life throws at us, or we throw at ourselves because of our bad choices. He is always good. Always.
Kevin
I agree with this post, to many people think that they can sin and God will save their butts no matter what and they will get off scott free. I have been guilty of this myself many a times. I like it when people aren’t scared to speak the truth (respectfully mind you), keep it up :)
April 20, 2010 at 11:25 pm
Let me give you a real life example of this. I’m a 53-year-old Christian male. I have had a close relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ for the past 33 years since I’ve been a Christian. I spent a lot of time in prayer, and the Holy Spirit was a comfort to me and He lead me in even the smallest details of my life. BUT, I also had an escapism mentality all my life. My main drug was pornogrpahy and beyond, but I wont give all the details. I was in a 2-week cycle of sin, and towards the end of the cycle my spirit would be restored by the lord. I would suffer horrible demonic attack after binging on sin though. This cycle repeated 500 times in my life since I was about 28 years old. Well about 5 months ago, the Holy Spirit did NOT come back! The Lord is very far now and I have been attacked by horrible bouts of demonic spirits of fear. I have 2 physical problems now from my “acting out”. I miss the closeness of the Lord so much! I feel like a orphan without Him close now. I believe the Lord told me several times I am not going to go to hell, but the thought still terrifies me. Can I stop this sin now? I don’t know. What is there to go back to? I don’t know–doesn’t seem like much. Having a girlfriend or getting married seems out of the question too–I’ve never been married. Right before I woke up about 2 weeks ago I believe it was the Lord who spoke to me “I search the heart, I try the reigns to give to each man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings”. So, how will this all end? I don’t know, but the price paid for this sexual sin was horrendous. The worst part was losing the intimacy with the Lord Jesus Christ and not having the joy of the Holy Spirit close anymore. The physical problems just make it worse. Thanks for letting me post. Craig in Ft. Worth, TX.
August 4, 2010 at 1:24 pm
Your story breaks my heart Craig. I am praying for you right now. The one thing you need to know is there is no sin too great that He cannot forgive. There is no bondage too strong that His power cannot break. You cannot do it alone, and when you walk in disobedience what you know is wrong, you open up every area in your life to demonic oppression and domination. You will need accountability and a place where you can share your struggles. It will be a long road, but if God is still speaking to you, then that means He is still pursuing your heart. His jealous, relentless, love is greater than you can imagine. The sciptures say” while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us”. Hold on to that. Find support. Thank you for sharing this.
August 4, 2010 at 2:04 pm
Thank you my brother. Thank you for your compassion. I just cry all the time now. I cried all day today, and it isn’t like me because I hardly ever cry. But the past few months I have cried so much. My life has been ruined by extreme sexual sin. Most of my friends have left me or never get in touch with me. I live in this little lonely weekly hotel room by myself. I live with the physical pain each day. After 25 years of escapism the Lord brought me to a place where the pain is now so much. I am going to die a lonely man and I have never been close to anyone in my life–except Jesus and now He is far away. I pray any dear brothers and sister in the Lord that read your blog will not chose the way of escapism. I pray they will humbly and in humility bring their hurts to the Lord Jesus Christ, know that He loves them and that He will heal them.
August 13, 2010 at 8:50 pm