As time goes on, more details become available concerning the story of Jaycee Dugard, who was kidnapped at age 11 near her South Lake Tahoe home and has spent the last 18 years as a prisoner of her abductors. I can’t even begin to imagine physical, mental, and emotional torment this woman has endured. Some have wondered why she didn’t escape when she got older and had the opportunity to do so. Psychologists tell us that, over time, a captive can even begin to bond with their captor as a coping mechanism. That may have taken place in Jaycee’s case. There is even a name for it. It is called Stockholm Syndrome. It is “…a psychological shift that occurs in captives when they are threatened gravely but shown acts of kindness by their captors…When subjected to prolonged captivity, these captives can develop a strong bond with their captors” (wikipedia.org).
In our battle against sin in our lives, it is possible to suffer from our own form of Stockholm Syndrome. When we are first taken hostage by a particular sin, we are traumatized and struggle against our captor. But as time goes on and the assaults of sin continue, it becomes easier to rationalize and justify what once terrified us. We can even begin to convince ourselves that the sin somehow benefits us. The will to fight begins to subside and we start to form a bond with the very kidnapper that seeks to enslave us.
I hope that Ms. Dugard is provided with all the help she needs to work through this horrific event in her life. I don’t believe she can be faulted in the least for anything she did, physically or mentally, to cope with her ordeal. But we who are children of the King have no reason to bond with what seeks to hold us hostage. Through Jesus Christ, we have been set “…free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:2). And, “…if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36).
God loves you!
Mike
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