Hope is essential to human life…. God’s master story, of course, is the story of hope…. This hope strengthens us in the hardships and drudgeries of everyday life. Knowing where all things in heaven and earth are headed, we can wait and persevere…. Without it we are left with grumbling, addiction, or despair.
– Edward Welch in Side by Side
Suffering reminds us that the world and everything in it, including us, are not quite right. Everything will not be right until Jesus returns and his will is done on earth as it is presently done in heaven. So we are people of hope.– Edward Welch in Side by Side
We all need to confess, and we need to do it every day…. No one is so bad that he or she is beyond forgiveness…. No one is so good that only one or two confessions a year will do.– Edward Welch in Side by Side
Sin is the heaviest of weights; forgiveness is the greatest deliverance.– Edward Welch in Side by Side
Our task is to hear God’s voice, believe his words, and follow Jesus even when life is hard.– Edward Welch in Side by Side
Who we love above all else is who we worship, and who we worship controls us.– Edward Welch in Side by Side
Here are some helpful quotes from Edward Welch on the connection between idolatry and addictions:
The true nature of all addictions is that we have chosen to go outside the boundaries of the kingdom of God and look for blessings in the land of idols. (47)
Addictions are ultimately a disorder of worship. Will we worship ourselves and our own desires or will we worship the true God? (xvi)
Life is about God. It is about worshipping him, trusting him, knowing him, and loving him. The deepest problem for addicts is that they are not worshipping, trusting, knowing, or loving the true God. (102)
If the root problem of addictions is false worship, the answer is knowing the Lord, the One who deserves our worship. (141)
Brian J. Mikul 