As we seek to be free, let’s remember that we have freely chosen to walk with God; we freely desire to be like Jesus. This means that we are not free to deliberately harm people, including ourselves. We often form habits that may be damaging in some way, even though we may not realize it.

When we do understand that a habit or a response is harmful, God does not expect us to beat ourselves up about it. We don’t need to be overwhelmed by guilt and shame because of a harmful habit. But we can immediately and regularly pray about it: “Dear Lord, I don’t want to harm anyone, including myself. This habit is hard to break. Please help me to grow and change, in your love.” And that prayer will gradually be answered, if we are sincere and if we keep praying.

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