In 2 Corinthians 1:4 Paul informs us that God "comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted." The experiences we gain through our own personal struggles help us to help others. Not just now, but also in the future.

Revelation 5:10 tells us that we will be kings and priests when Christ returns. We will rule with Him. At the end of the Millennium, all those who have ever lived but did not know God's truth will be resurrected. It will be our job to rule over them, to teach them and to guide them. Hundreds of millions of people—billions even—will be resurrected and will have all the "baggage" imaginable, all the problems known to man in the time of the apostle Paul and today. They will need a lot of help.

Those who suffered from eating disorders can best be helped by those who have similarly suffered; those in the Church today who are recovering alcoholics will be best able to assist those alcoholics in the second resurrection; those who have struggled with same-sex attraction can help reeducate members of the gay community; and so on. "In My Father's house are many mansions" (John 14:2). There will be plenty of work for us all to do at the end of the 1,000 years.

In Matthew 10:38 Jesus said: "He who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me."

Whatever the sin or addiction we are battling, the fact remains that God called us into His Church. That means we must strive to overcome, at the same time realizing that, as with the apostle Paul, the problem may never fully go away. It may be a lifetime struggle, the "cross" we have to bear to follow Him.

However, keep in mind the same apostle Paul who struggled himself with sin and had his own personal "thorn in the flesh" to contend with, wrote the following assurance: "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Tackling the addiction head-on can often be frustrating and discouraging, as it tends not to work. But that does not mean we should do nothing. Keeping in mind that a primary cause of addictions is our stressful society, we should make sure that our priorities are right. Our complex lives make addictions worse. If we reorder our lives to reflect godly priorities, then our problems will diminish.

A good start is to remember to put God first in our lives through daily prayer and Bible study, weekly Church attendance and regular fasting. In John 15:5 Jesus Christ said, "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."

"Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 7:24-25).

Remember, it is possible to learn to cope no matter how difficult your addiction may be. UN