Pathways of Addiction ~ Forfeiting Freedom

"And he beheld Satan; and he had a great chain in his hand, and it veiled the whole face of the earth with darkness; and he looked up and laughed, and his angels rejoiced." Moses 7: 26

If a single act of sin is not an addiction, does it become such with repeating the transgression?  Not in the beginning.  I repeat: not in the beginning. 

I am often asked the difference between a bad – even sinful – habit and an addiction.  The difference is all about agency.  Choice.  Freedom.  Even with bad habits, the sinner can still pull himself or herself up by the proverbial bootstraps and turn it around.  It’s not easy, but it is doable.  Thousands upon thousands of people have done it.

But there is a fine line between habit and addiction.  The line is finite and insidious.  Finite because, once crossed, a person cannot go back to an earlier step on the path.  Insidious because once the person finally sees the line, he or she has already crossed it. 

Addiction involves giving up one’s God-given, divine agency – the right to choose for oneself.  The addict has given away his freedom to a chemical or behavior that will only lead to disappointment, despair, and even death.  Once that line has been crossed, the addict cannot turn around and go back by himself or herself.  He or she needs help.

There is help. Jesus Christ breaks the chains of sin and addiction as surely as the devil forges them.  But there are some conditions: 1) You have to give your life to Him.  2) You have to be willing to abstain from the thing to which you are addicted.  3) You have to realize that you can never go back to your old life, just forward to your new life.  For example, an alcoholic can never become a social drinker again.  Recovery doesn’t work that way.

Through the atonement and grace of Jesus Christ, there is a way back.  If you or anyone you know has an addiction (or fears that he or she might have), invite them to join us every day.  Over the next few weeks, we will be talking about the way back and the twelve easy-to-understand, if not always easy-to-follow steps.  I look forward to our time together.

Picture of the devil with a chain from www.frankdimora.typepad  

Picture of Jesus breaking a chain from multiple sources