No one says when I grow up I want to be an alcoholic or drug addict. No one tries to learn how to abuse alcohol or other drugs. In God's word, the Holy Bible, we read in 1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
Our adversary, the devil, is deceitful. He uses trickery and he has had since the beginning of mankind to master his tactics. 2 Corinthians 11:3, 14 But I am afraid that as the serpent (devil) deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ...And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
The adversary is your opponent. He wants to defeat you and he will use your weaknesses to do it whether your weakness is pride, family, negative thinking, hereditary or self destructive behavior like eating sugar when you are a diabetic or drinking when alcoholism runs in your family.
No one sets out to be a drug abuser. It slowly sneaks up on you. You may for years drink a few beers with friends on the weekend, and then drink a few nights a week, and then every day after work. Before you know it you are a functioning alcoholic. All you do is work, drink and sleep. You don't want to do anything that will interfere with you drinking when you aren't at work. That's called a functioning alcoholic.
Others start drinking first thing in the morning. They forget how to cope and use alcohol or drugs as a crutch. THE ADVERSARY CAN TRICK US INTO THINKING THAT WE NEED THESE SUBSTANCES TO COPE.
We have to understand and withstand the attacks of the adversary. He is an opponent worthy of your attention. He fell from heaven with a 1/3 of the angels and just like God has his military that fights the powers of darkness, Satan has his military which fights the powers of light. But, praise God, the crucifixion to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ defeated Satan. Satan will never win the war and he knows it. He is only here for a time. He wants to defeat as many of God's children as he can. I so look forward to the day that Jesus Christ will return to take the church home.
Satan wants to destroy our faith and our pure devotion to our heavenly Father. He has all the time in the world to study you, learn you, know your weaknesses and attack you a little at a time. HE CAN SLOWLY CHIP AWAY AT YOU, YOUR FAITH, YOUR BELIEF SYSTEM, YOUR DEVOTION TO YOUR CREATOR AND YOUR DEVOTION TO YOUR SAVIOUR WHO DIED FOR YOUR SINS. Imagine that you have a gallon of ice cream and every day someone takes a 1/2 teaspoon out of your ice cream. It will happen so gradually that you won't notice it until it's almost gone or completely gone. Satan has all the time in the world to gradually chip at you a little at the time so you won't notice the change in your attitude or the change in your behavior or the change in your heart towards God.
Praise God, Jesus prays for us and waits patiently for us to invite him into our hearts and our circumstances. Romans 8:34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. We have freedom of choice so he never pushes himself onto us nor forces us to believe in him.
In Christ you can do all things. Win the war. Give it all to Jesus.
James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee.
John 7:20-22 Jesus said, Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: