In all transparency, I’ve struggled to write this blog post anywhere outside of my mind for several months. There are a multitude of reasons why. Frankly, few of them matter to content of the blog. Is it helpful for the blog to be sassy, sappy, or statistically slanted? In short, the blog could be any or all of these and still fail to reach the hearts and minds of the majority. With that in mind, I’ve decided, today, to write what is on my heart, even if it reaches no one.
Here is your clue – if you vehemently disagree with me, do yourself a favor, and save your energy writing me condescending rude messages or comments. I’ll care none about them. I digress.
We live in a society where we embrace indulgence in sinful activities including drunkenness and self-indulgence with alcohol and “some” drugs. We push agendas to legalize drug substances like marijuana citing a ton of ridiculous reasons ignoring the reality of devastation all in the name of inclusion and ‘you do you bro’ attitudes. If you want and need to pop a few pills while you’re at it, that’s okay too. But don’t you dare use tabu drugs like cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, or laced marijuana – oh wait, that won’t be a problem if we legalize it because the government will then protect us from dishonest drug pushers who lace our joint with other stuff we didn’t bargain for when we bought it. Sure. That will work. (yes, this is quite a bit of sassy in case you missed it)
While we openly embrace the drugs we personally feel, from a place of a broken moral compass, are not an issue, we find ourselves shockingly in awe of the destruction of boundaries. How dare these kiddos not be able to stay in the lines of acceptable use??? I mean what is wrong with them?? Now they have become addicts and that is NOT okay. They suddenly deserve to be shunned, mocked, charged as criminals, and hidden from the society as the black mark they are.
It’s just like the devil. He loves the sin, thereby embraces it, because he HATES the sinner and desires their soul to forever torment. Oh, but you Christian, should join us in doing his work. It’s progressive. (Hopefully, by now, you’ve caught the sarcasm in this sentence)
Some of you have decided to stop reading as you’re inflamed by my blunt honesty.
It’s okay. I’ll keep writing.
To say addiction is complicated is an understatement. High functioning addicts walk among us often unnoticed everywhere. Their addictions may be to things less tabu than heroin or methamphetamine. But, make no mistake, they’re addictions the same.
I’ll steer clear of all the statistic prevalence of addiction and itscorrelation to trauma, mental illness, and other things you can find in any half-hearted google search.
Here are a couple highlights though.
There are actual white papers available to support frequent (more than 3 times per week) family meals as one of the greatest tools for parents to protect kids from risky behaviors that lead to addictions. The CASAColumbia (CASA) 2012 Family Dinners White Paper documents that children who spend family mealtime with their parents frequently are 1 ½ times more likely to describe their relationship with their parents as ‘excellent’ which allows open dialogue where parents can discover the need for intervention and take advantage of intervening to protect their children.
But, of course, we will just continue to embrace in our society the acceptance of the destruction of the nuclear family as ‘loving, tolerant, and necessary’. I can’t imagine why we wouldn’t. Oh, how we enjoy doing the devil’s work from him…
All the while, we will continue to ignore that marijuana and cannabis (according to SAMHSA, 2023) is the most widely used illicit drug in the United States. Guess we will legalize it so we can “solve that problem”. (insert eye roll)
Recently, I wrote a blog titled, The Search for Numb, where I discussed the dangers of looking for the way out of our feelings. The drug, be it illicit or legal, will never really be enough because it will always require more and more to find the numb of emotion we seek. If only, we could learn to push into the emotion as our means to seek the only healer of iniquity there is, Jesus. Gracefully, he takes our brokenness and layer by layer lovingly heals with patience we as mere humans cannot understand.
The addict has a name. They are a person. Daughter. Son. Mother. Father. Brother. Sister. Friend. Deserving of a compassionate love from the heart of a disciple of Christ (Christian) who loves them enough to HATE the SIN while LOVING the SINNER. Quite the opposite of the approach of the world. Polar opposite to be exact.
The addict you see, the addict you know, the addict you have never met, all have one thing in common. They have a name. It’s the name God called them by as he knit them together in their mother’s womb with good plans for them. It’s the name he spoke love songs over with precious thoughts about them. It’s the name he impressed upon their mother’s heart to give them. It’s a name with meaning and purpose. It’s a name to a person he had on his mind as he stretched his hands across Calvary to bear their sin and shame in their place as their Redeemer.
My addict has a name. I gave it to her after I labored 14 hours to bring her into this world.
So, while you sit around on your platform doing the handiwork of the devil himself calling it Christ like to embrace sin in the name of love, you’ll have to excuse me. I’ll be focused on hating the sin while loving the sinner. Speaking Truth. Standing for Right. Refusing to accept sin as anything other than the death sentence for the soul it is. Boldly I’ll proclaim there is but one way to the Father and it is through Jesus Christ.
I’ll deny the world’s false narrative of affirmation for sin as loving.
I’ll not shame the addict while embracing the party.
I’ll stand for biblical truth even when I stand alone.
I’ll be separate, called out, consecrated for service to Christ as I am denied by the world because at the end of time, when all else is done, there are but 5 words that matter. ‘Well Done My Faithful Servant’
Here is a news flash, in case you are unaware, your affirmation of sin, will result in the most tragic 6 words man will ever hear. “Depart From Me, I Knew You Not”
The addict has a name. Love them enough to recognize where it comes from.
Remember, the same Redeemer of all of humanity, died on the cross to redeem them too.
Bobbie
