Recovering Childhood
1 Corinthians 13:11-12
We were entirely ready to have God remove these defects of character.
Many of us spend our lives trying to fill up the empty spaces. Perhaps, we missed out on a carefree childhood. We may have had to take care of our parents when they should have been taking care of us. Maybe our real needs were never met, leaving a deficit that prompts us to fulfill even our unhealthy desires. Our addictions are fed by the sense that we deserve some comfort in our pain-filled lives.
During childhood our needs should have been met-and immediately! But for many of us, they weren't. We may have learned to cope by giving ourselves what we wanted when we wanted it. Now we literally spoil ourselves to make up for the needs that weren't filled when they should have been.
The apostle Paul used this illustration: "When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things" (1 Corinthians 13:11). Children can only see the moment. As adults we can see a bigger picture and allow a long-range perspective to lend wisdom to our choices.
Some of us haven't yet put away childish things. We can't get back our lost childhood. Demanding immediate pleasure and relief from pain is a defect that ultimately brings unhappiness. We need to let it go and allow God to address the deep, unmet needs from childhood as we work through recovery.
Our addictions have kept us from growing up; our recovery allows us to put away childish things.
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