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I want to stick this book in the hands of each and every person
who is struggling with some kind of addiction in their life. I’m
not sure if I’ve ever seen the process of “freedom” so clearly
articulated by anyone! Clearly, Jud Wilhite is passionate about
people discovering freedom from the things that are holding
them back from who God wants them to become.
Pete Wilson, lead pastor of Crosspoint.tv;
author of Plan B
Throw It Down
Copyright © 2010 by Jud Wilhite
Wilhite, Jud.
Throw it down : leaving behind behaviors & dependencies that hold you back /
by Jud Wilhite.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-310-32753-0 (hardcover, jacketed)
1 . Success— Religious aspects— Christianity. 2 . Habit breaking— Religious
a spects—Christianity. 3 . Dependency (Psychology) 4 . Addicts—Religious life.
I. Title. II. Title: Leaving behind behaviors & dependencies that hold you back.
III. Title: Leaving behind behaviors and dependencies that hold you back.
BV4598.3.W53 2010
248.8'629—dc22 2010034660
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2 Beautiful Shambles 19
3 Throw It Down 31
4 No More Games 43
7 Make It Right 81
Acknowledgments 139
Notes 141
10
being held captive. The very thing you desire, what you
hope will set you free—enslaves you.
Homecoming
In the days following my nearly fatal overdose, I realize my
lack of serious options. Exhausted by endless cycles of dis-
appointment, hurt, suffering, and guilt, I come to under-
stand at a very deep level my inability to save myself.
I can die, go crazy, or get help.
So I cry out. A few weeks after my overdose, I drop to my
knees in my bedroom and say the only prayer I can muster:
“God, help me. I’m messed up beyond belief. I need you.” As
my words dissipate, I listen to the sound of the unbalanced
ceiling fan squeaking above me. No voice speaks audibly to
me. In my heart, though, two words slowly take shape in my
consciousness: Welcome home.
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Wasteland Exodus
In the midst of my four-year wasteland of addiction, my
parents make me go to church. Promising to go to youth
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Help Wanted
Our habits often start innocently enough. Maybe you
love to shop or enjoy eating great food. These are gifts
from God. But if you allow these desires to run out of
control, driven by a need to feel security or worth or love,
you head straight for trouble. Shopping is great until you
have fifty thousand dollars (and counting) on your credit
cards. Food is wonderful until the doctor recommends a
diet, and yet your soul is so starved you give into a com-
pulsion to eat more.
Most of the idols we crave are good things allowed
to take control. Sleep, food, sex, pleasure, and work are
all God-designed realities for the good but, forced to
extremes, yield laziness, obesity, lust, excess, and imbal-
ance. Although we may not immediately recognize the
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