How To Spot A Relapse Before It Happens | Proverbs 7

We don’t "trip" into a relapse. We walk straight toward it. We like to say it "just happened." But in Proverbs Chapter 7, Solomon tells a different story. He watches a guy he calls "The Simpleton" make a fatal mistake. The guy didn't stumble. He walked "near the corner." (He went to the old neighborhood). He walked "in the twilight." (He isolated when he was tired or lonely). He listened to the lie: "My husband is not at home." (He believed no one would know). Welcome to Day 7 of "A Proverb A Day Keeps The Police Away." Today we are learning how to spot the setup before the trap snaps shut. Solomon says if you follow this path, you are like an "ox to the slaughter." You don't even know your life is at stake. Stop walking down the street that kills you. Change your route today. Watch the full breakdown below. Download the FREE Sober Not Boring app for more resources and encouragement for your recovery journey! www.sobernotboring.com #SoberNotBoring #Recovery #RelapsePrevention #Proverbs7 #TheSimpleton #StreetSmarts #AddictionRecovery

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
We call it a slip, buthonestly, it's usually a setup.

(00:04):
we rarely just trip into a relapse.
Usually we walk straight towards it.
We drive down that street that we know weshouldn't drive down, or we answer that
text that we know we shouldn't answer.
We convince ourselves that we'restrong enough to handle it.
Welcome to day seven of a proverb a day.
Keeps the police away.
My name is Robert and I'mhappy to have you along today.

(00:25):
Today in chapter seven, Solomontells us a story about a guy
that he calls the simpleton.
this guy just thinks he'staking a walk, but he's actually
walking into a slaughterhouse.
Let's see if we can spot the momentthat he made that fatal mistake.
Solomon sets the scene here by lookingout his window, and he spots this young
guy who lacks judgment and watch where andwhen this guy decides to take a stroll.

(00:47):
Dear friend, do what I tell you.
Treasure my careful instructions.
Do what I say, and you'll live well.
My teaching is asprecious as your eyesight.
Guard it.
Write it out on the back of your hands,etch it on the chambers of your heart.
Talk to wisdom as to a sister.
Treat insight as your companion.

(01:09):
They'll be with you tofend off the temptress.
That smooth talking honeytongued, seductress.
I stood at the window of my house, lookingout through the shutters, watching the
mindless crowd stroll by, I spotted ayoung man without any sense, arriving at
the corner of the street where she lived.
Then turning up the path to her house.

(01:31):
It was dusk.
The evening was coming on thedarkness thickening in to night.
Notice the details here.
He's walking near her corner.
He's walking down the path to her houseand he's doing it in the twilight.
This is the definition ofa simpleton in recovery.
He didn't stumble.
He put himself in theneighborhood of temptation.

(01:53):
He went to the old playground,he hung out in the twilight.
You know that time of night when you'retired and lonely and bored, there's a
saying, if you hang out in the barbershoplong enough, you're gonna get a haircut.
And if you walk down the path to thedope house, you're gonna buy dope.
the mistake wasn't the act,the mistake was the walk.

(02:15):
All right.
Now watch what happens when he gets there.
The trap shows up dressed to kill and fullof excuses about why it's safe to mess up.
Just this one time.
Just then a woman met him.
She'd been lying in wait for him, dressedto seduce him, brazen and brash she was
restless and roaming, never at home,walking the streets, loitering in the

(02:37):
mall, hanging out at every corner in town.
She threw her arms around him and kissedhim boldly, took his arm and said,
I've got all the makings for a feast.
Today I made my offering.
My vows are all paid, so nowI've come to find you hoping
to catch sight of your face.
And here you are.

(02:59):
I've spread fresh, clean sheets onmy bed, colorful imported linens.
My bed is aromatic with spicesand exotic fragrances come.
Let's make love all night.
Spend the night in ecstatic love making.
My husband's not home.
He's away on business, andwon't be back for a month.

(03:19):
Soon she has him eating out of herhand, Bewitched by her Honeyed speech.
Listen to her sales pitch here.
She says, my husband's not at home.
The translation here is no one'swatching you won't get caught.
That is the voice of addiction.
It tells you your sponsor won'tknow your wife is at work.

(03:41):
God is busy elsewhere.
It tries to convince you thatyou can get away with it.
She paints a pretty picture,perfume sheets, and peace
offerings in a good time.
She sells the feeling, butshe hides the consequence.
Solomon says she seducedhim with her smooth talk.
If you listen to the lies long enough,you'll eventually believe them.

(04:04):
And here's the result.
This is one of the mostbrutal descriptions of a
relapse in the entire Bible.
It's not a party, it's an execution.
Let's jump back in.
Before you know it, he's trottingbehind her like a calf led to the
butcher shop like a stag lured intoambush, and then shot with an arrow.
Like a bird flying into a net, notknowing that it's flying life is over.

(04:27):
So friends, listen to me takethese words of mine most seriously.
Don't fool around with a woman like that.
Don't even strollthrough her neighborhood.
Countless victims come under her spell.
She's the death of many a poor man.
She runs a halfway house to hell.
Fits you out with a shroud and a coffin.

(04:48):
Whoa.
Here we go.
Like a calf to the slaughter.
A calf doesn't know it's about to die.
It just follows the food.
Verse 23 says, he didn't knowthat his life was at stake.
That's the tragedy of relapse.
We think we're chasing a goodtime, but we're actually stepping
into a trap that can kill us.
Solomon calls her housea highway to the grave.

(05:10):
There's no exit ramps on thathighway once you get on it.
The only way to survive isto never take the on ramp.
Don't be the simpleton.
Don't walk down that street.
Alright, so the takeawaysfrom chapter seven to keep the
police outta your life are this.
Number one, don't be a simpleton.
Stop walking near thecorner of your temptation.
Change your route.

(05:32):
Number two, recognize the lie.
When you hear, no one will know, run.
That is the sound ofa trap, snapping shut.
And number three, it's aslaughter, not a party.
Play the tape through.
It ends with an arrow in theliver, not a trophy on your shelf.
I will see you tomorrow for day eight.
We're talking about Wisdom's Call andwhy it's better than silver or gold.

(05:56):
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staying off that highway to hell,and share with a friend who may
need a little encouragement today.
And thanks for followingalong today, friends.
Stay sober.
Not boring.