Addiction and it's roots

John 8:34-36

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

2 Timothy 1:7

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Reflection

I watched a TED talk this morning on addiction that gave me lots of food for thought. It was by Johann Hari, a British writer and journalist. He goes on to cite a Canadian Psychologist by the name of Bruce Alexander who conducted an experiment using rats to prove that isolating an addict makes addiction worse not better. Meaning that interventions aren't effective to get people into rehab. He goes on to conclude that people who have well connected social circles are much less likely to fall into addictions, and while I think his theory holds water, I don't think it's water tight.

Despite having a keen interest in psychology, I'm not trained or qualified in the field by any stretch, so please don't take my word as doctrine. But for me, sometimes it's our social connections that get us into addictions to begin with. For me his theory isn't water tight because we've witnessed countless cases of people who have seemingly good lives. They have jobs, vast social circles, an array of qualifications, and lots of money and still fall into addictions. How many celebrities fall into addictions and have everything he described in his rat park experiment at their disposal?

So the phrase he coined after his experiment was: "the opposite of addiction isn't sobriety, it's connection" is good, but I personally don't feel it's the most effective way to avoid addictions because sometimes it's our "connections" that push us into addictions to begin with. Peer pressure is a proven theory too... And peer pressure occurs in social settings, so I personally don't agree that "connection is the opposite of addiction ". Sobriety is indeed the opposite, because sobriety is the descriptive word for a sound mind that is clear of obstructions like poor self-esteem etc, etc.

We can have all the connections we want, but if we don't have a sober mind. Those connections aren't going to help us at all. When it comes to mental health, there's nothing linear about it. But the root of mental health is clearly defined and just like any problem, to adequately solve it, we need to get to the root. How we get to the root is important, but getting to the root is the most important, and for me, Dr Bruce Alexander's theory doesn't get to the root of the problem. The bible tells us that The Lord gave us all a sound mind. Since He is the creator of sound minds...

For us to get "restored to factory settings", we need to go back to Him. Jesus mentions the importance of a sense of belonging by saying that in Him we are part of God's family... So yes, connections are important because we all need to belong somewhere. But before that we need to be set free from our slavery to sin, and yes addiction is a sin. It's a sin because not only does it ruin the body God gave us, but it also denigrates the sound mind God blessed us with too. We need to be set free from the spiritual chains the devil has shackled us with.

If we believe we're terrible and don't deserve love than we can be surrounded by all the love in the world and it's not going to help because we're shackled to the belief that we don't deserve it, and so won't accept it. Medicine heal the body, therapy heals the mind but only The Lord can heal our souls. Since our souls are the deepest part of who we are, the very root of our existence. We need to start there first. Let us go back to the Lord first to break our spiritual chains, and only then will we be free indeed to reconnect and reclaim what satan has stolen from us while he enslaved us to our fears, guilt, regrets and poor self esteem.

We're ALL fearfully and wonderfully made by The Lord (Psalm 139:14). Go back to HIM first and allow HIM to show YOU how precious YOU are and BELIEVE HIM. My friends, once He breaks those chains... PLEASE DON'T WELD THEM BACK TOGETHER and put them back on your mind...You are free indeed, so WALK IN THAT FREEDOM BACK TO YOUR FAMILY AND RECLAIM THE BLESSINGS GOD GAVE YOU BEFORE THE DEVIL GOT A FOOTHOLD. It's never too late to turn our lives around.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus,

Today I bring all people who suffer with any and all forms of addiction and lay them before You at Your feet. By the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and the Divine Power of Your Precious blood, rekindle in them the flame of Your love, so that when they look in the mirror, they see the person You created them to be and not the monster the world has convinced and conditioned them to see. By every word that comes from Your mouth, nourish their souls and by Your outstretched Hand, meet them where they are and deliver them from their darkness, bring them back into the light of Your Presence, and may they find what they lost waiting for them as they give you their chains in exchange for their spiritual freedom from the slavery of satan's lies and deception.

In Your Most Holy and Glorious Name Lord Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.

Shalom.

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Marcio