Baby Steps To Freedom

Chapter One
I walk down the street
There’s a deep hole in the sidewalk
I fall in
I am lost and I am helpless
It’s not my fault
It takes a long time to get out

Chapter Two
I walk down the same street
There’s a deep hole in the sidewalk
I pretend I don’t see it
I fall in
I can’t believe I am in the same place but
It’s not my fault
It takes a long time to get out

Chapter Three
I walk down the same street
There’s a deep hole in the sidewalk
I see it there
I fall in
It’s a habit, my eyes are open
I know where I am
It’s my fault
I get out immediately

Chapter Four
I walk down the same street
There’s a deep hole in the sidewalk
I walk around it
Chapter Five
I walk down another street
-- Portia Nelson

I came across this poem and I was struck by the insight the author has concerning habitual and addictive behavior. It is always amazing to me how I can look at others’ lives and see very clearly the pattern of wrong choices and the consequences that come because of these wrong choices. It seems that some people just keep doing the same thing over and over and expect the results to be different every time. But then I have to stop and look at my own life and realize how many times I have walked down the same road, and fallen in the same deep holes again and again. It makes me wonder what we can learn from this little poem.

“Chapter One” begins with me seemingly ignorant of the big hole looming in the sidewalk. As I walk down the street, suddenly I fall in. I feel lost and totally helpless. I refuse to take any responsibility, and I stay stuck in the hole for a long time. This hole can be anything that keeps us from being all that God wants us to be. Some of the holes I have fallen in have been rebellion, unbelief, depression, rage and just blatant disobedience.

In “Chapter Two” I know that the hole is there but I pretend that I don’t see it. I know that the way I am acting and the choices I am making are not pleasing to God, but I just don’t want to deal with them right now. So I fall in the hole again, and I just can’t believe it. I still refuse to take any responsibility, trying to blame anyone but me, and I stay in the hole a long time.

“Chapter Three” finds me walking on the same street. This time I see the hole, and I realize that I’ve fallen down that same hole before. I really want to avoid falling in the hole again, but because I am so used to walking that certain way, and doing things my way, I fall in again. This time, however, I am quick to admit my responsibility, repent, and I get out of the hole immediately.

We see further progress in “Chapter Four” when I walk down the same street, but I am finally able to walk around the hole and avoid falling in.

Then in “Chapter Five” wisdom kicks in and I just avoid the street entirely. Why expose myself to temptation when there are perfectly good alternate routes?

I realize that this is a very simplistic view of the process of freedom, and sometimes there are addictions and strongholds that are very difficult to break. However, even the strongest strongholds are no match for our God. We can all walk in freedom through Him. The point is that sometimes God does choose to deliver us immediately. But I think the majority of us must walk through the stages of freedom.

It could be that we look at the sin in our lives as just a habit. Maybe something that we have done all our life. Maybe even something that we saw our parents do. We have to begin by asking God to open our eyes to see what it is that keeps drawing us to our falling places. And then as He shows us, let us be aware of the danger, and avoid it if possible. If it is not possible to avoid, then we can be diligent to keep our eyes open, and depending on Him for strength, we will overcome. Habits can be broken and patterns can be changed. It might be something small, or it might be something big, but it’s always growth. And remember, we may not be where we need to be, but thank God we are not where we used to be! Press on toward Him this week.