Introduction
Sabotage means to destroy, damage, or obstruct (something). Self-sabotage is behaviour and thought patterns that hold people back from moving forward in life, as we destroy and damage our own selves.
This can be done through, procrastination, picking fights for no reason (messing up relationships), finding issues out of nothing, eating unhealthily (not looking after your body), making up excuses, checking out mentally by using social media, alcohol, and binge-watching TV (Netflix’s).
Self-sabotage occurs when your logical, conscious mind – the side that says “I need to eat more healthy, exercise and look after myself, need to read the word, pray and spend more time with God”, is at battle with your subconscious mind. The subconscious mind says “you don’t have time to pray, read the word, or exercise, so stress eats and binges online”.
Proverbs 22:6 – Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it. The training from our childhood, experiences in society and different relationships we may have been in create feelings and shape our mindset and daily habits.
People sabotage for different reasons, however most of the time the reason is linked to some sort of trauma or negative experience.
Do not trust – Being abandoned or not loved so they mess up relationships. Have many insecurities – due to not feeling secure at home, so get angry, prideful or go quiet when insecurity is triggered.
Low self-esteem (self-critical) – Due to always being criticized can cause us to always find the bad in something and never see the good due to being over-critical.
Got things handed on a plate (spoilt) – So when it comes to working towards things, you do not know how to do it or get lazy.
Responsibility for change/repentance, to fight against our flesh and past experiences is a decision we choose to make. Our trauma and past experiences affect us, but do not take away the fact that God has given us free will through obedience or disobedience.
In Genesis 4 we read about the story of Cain and Abel. Cain and Abel’s parents made a huge mistake prior to them being born. They sinned against God and in that, their children had to deal with the temptations of sin and fight against it. However, Cain and Abel could not use the actions and mistakes of their parents to excuse their behaviour. God never allowed this but judged them based on their decision/choice, not their parent’s mistake.
God has understanding which is why we have grace, and mercy and sent his son to die for our sins, however, we still have a responsibility to obey or disobey, to do or not to do.
In the bible, God was pleased and respected Abel’s offering, however, did not respect Cain’s. Cain had a decision to make, do good and everything will be fine, Genesis 4:7 – If you do well, will you not be accepted? Or mess things up for myself and others by rejecting God’s words and going with what he felt which was anger. Verse 6 – So the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? Cain did not listen and sabotaged things for himself, making them much worse than it was before by killing his brother.
People who do not practice God’s word and are not doers of it, make things worse for themselves and others around them. We all have a decision to make our life better by obeying.
Decision making
Self-sabotage has a keyword in it which is self! Which means it’s you! The responsibility for change is in your hands. God does not excuse your trauma or past experiences for you to be acting out and harming others in the meantime. God deals with us Hebrews 4:12 and brings up our issues so we can move forward, not so we can use our issues as excuses to remain in the same place and mistreat people.
Psalm 147:3 – He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds. In a self-sabotage state of mind, instead of the wounds being healed they will open them up and make them bleed again. People who do this fight against their own healing and need for change, and create their own stumbling blocks by the decisions they make (self-sabotaging).
Constant sabotage creates a foolish mindset as instead of progressing we can keep going back to constant mindsets, that are damaging rather than developing us and bearing good fruit. Proverbs 26:11 As a dog returns to his own vomit, So a fool repeats his folly.
Procrastination is the action of delaying or postponing something, the more you hear God’s word without practicing it (the actual application or use of an idea, belief, or method), we sabotage ourselves when we delay the actions and practice of doing God’s word. This causes all types of issues relating to mental health, self-doubt, depression, anxieties, pride, and making things worse for ourselves. It says in James 1:22 – But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
When you are a hearer of the word and deceived by yourself, the fruits are shown in your life. Going through the same cycles, not progressing in life, constant issues rather than having peace, love, joy, self-control (fruits of the Spirit) Galatians 5:22-23.
What our lives produce shows if we are doers of the word or sabotaging ourselves by being hearers only. When God works in us it should produce goodness even in trials and discipline.
Trails – James 1:2-3 – My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.
Discipline – Hebrews 12:11 – Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterwards it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
James 1: 23-24 – For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. The word of God addresses our heart’s intent and exposes what we look like and our innermost thoughts Hebrews 4:12.
Being a hearer only is allowing the word to show you what you look like and then instead of dealing with the mirror, by taking responsibility for what was exposed through the sharping of the word, we walk away forgetting what you look like. This leads people to drag their issues into different areas of their life which sabotage themselves and others.
Conclusion
Adam in the garden of Eden was given everything he needed. On top of being in a beautiful garden and having instruction and provision from God, he was given a helpmate and a companion, in the form of a woman. The Bible says in Proverbs 18:22 – He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favour from the Lord.
We know the devil comes to steal, kill and destroy and goes around looking to whom he may devour. In the fall of man, it’s easy sometimes to concentrate on the serpent and his cunning ways.
However, after when Adam and Eve sinned God did not address Eve or the serpent first, he addressed Adam. Genesis 3:9-10 – Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
God brought the responsibility for what happened in the garden to Adam. God was addressing Adam first not Eve and the serpent. This was why; in verse 11 – And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”
In Genesis 2 God spoke to Adam (gave him a word), telling him where he was, what he should do and the consequences if he disobeyed. All he needed to is be a doer of the word. The way he would practice this is by not eating the fruit, covering, and protecting his wife (a good thing), and submitting to God’s words to then defeat the serpent.
Adam sabotaged himself and Eve, then blamed her in verse 12 – Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate. Finding blame never changes anything, but further causes self-deception in our lives and various situations.
We self-sabotage for many different reasons, being doers and not hearers only, we will be able to produce and bear good fruit to match our repentance Matthew 3:8 – Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance.
We need to recognise the habits, identify the root, and change the behaviour that causes us to self-sabotage and hold ourselves back from what God desires for us.
