Today’s Verse

2 Corinthians 10:4

The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. (NIV)

Addiction comes in many forms: from drugs and alcohol to food, porn, sex, exercise, work, shopping, gaming, social media, the internet, gambling, and even addiction to approval. Every one of us can name multiple people in our lives who struggled with some form of addiction, if not ourselves. 

In his book In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction, famed Canadian physician Gabor Mate states, “It is impossible to understand addiction without asking what relief the addict finds, or hopes to find, in the drug or the addictive behavior.” Mate suggests turning the focus from the addiction to the pain behind the addiction. Writer and journalist Johann Hari argues in his book Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs that “the opposite of addiction is not sobriety, the opposite of addiction is connection.”

Hari believes that the core message addicts need to receive is that they are not alone but rather that they are loved. Hari’s message to an addict is “I love you whether you are using or not. And if you need me, I’ll come and sit with you because I love you and I don’t want you to be alone or to feel alone.” 

In Luke chapter 10 Jesus told us a story of a man in need of help. In verses 30 to 35, Jesus said, 

A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. “Look after him,” he said, “and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.”

After telling this parable Jesus commanded his listeners to show love like the Samaritan.

REFLECTION

It’s not easy to say to an addict “I want a deeper connection”. If someone you knew had been robbed, beaten, and left for dead by addiction, would you respond with the message that they are loved and not alone?