Month: January 2016

Recovering from a drug addiction through spirituality is a profound experience. Some people who struggle with drug addiction do not turn to any form of spirituality in order to recover. They use tools of this world to recover, some successfully, some unsuccessfully. Those who open themselves to spirituality in the midst of their battle against drug addiction uncover a very important gift. An open door to a spiritual life is for many the difference between drug addiction and sobriety.

When a drug addict opens themselves up to spirituality, they trade their desire for control in for a sense of trust. This is a very important spiritual tool for combating drug addiction. A primary focus of any kind of addiction is control. Addiction rewards the addict with a sense of control because when they are in their addiction, they have a sense of total control. Control is something that people crave, but it robs a person of their sense of trust. When someone becomes dependent on a drug in order to feel powerful and in control, they do not want to let anyone into that space they control, and they lose touch with trust. Seeking trust through spirituality as a drug addict is an excellent way of healing from addiction.

Feelings of pleasure are what lead a drug addict into their addiction. Using the drug causes their brain to produce the pleasure chemical dopamine, which becomes irresistible to an addict. They will return again and again to achieve that same rush of dopamine from the drug. An obsession with pleasure will surely achieve an addict the sensation of pleasure, but will rob them of their peace of mind. Pleasure and peace are far from the same thing. Pleasure is something one escapes into, while peace sits with a person in the midst of their strife. A person is far better off with peace in their lives than they are with pleasure, but someone who is addicted to drugs may need to humble themselves immensely to accept peace in place of pleasure.

God’s love is the most powerful force in existence. It is capable of things that people would have deemed impossible. There is nothing it can’t do through its sheer might and power. Accepting God’s love into your life will empower you to walk away from the things in your life that harm you, such as drug abuse problems. Drug problems can hold a tight grip on a person’s life, but do not underestimate the power of God’s love to release them and grant you freedom.

God’s love is an incredible source of courage. One cannot quit substance abuse without the courage to face a new sobriety. Sobriety is an every day reality for people who have never struggled with substance abuse, but those who have know that the idea of returning to sobriety is terrifying. A substance abuser or substance addict entertains fears that they will not be able to cope with sobriety – that it will be too stressful, boring, demanding and emotional. God’s love defies all fears and false notions that sobriety will be too much, giving the recipient the courage to walk into sobriety with an open heart and an open mind.

God’s love also inspires hope within recovering drug addicts. Hope is a necessity to ending drug abuse. Drug abuse and drug addiction start as something rewarding and become their own prison. When a person no longer feels like they have a choice in the matter of whether or not they use drugs, they have lost hope of quitting. This is a dangerous mindset because it gives the drug absolute control over its user, which can put the drug user in real danger. God’s love changes this mindset by replacing doubt and despair with hope. God’s love promises its recipients plans for hope and a future, not plans of harm or destruction.

God’s love also gives people something dependable to have faith in. We are creatures who were designed to have faith, to set our trust and our belief in something great. When drug abuse is ruling our lives, it is because we have nothing bigger than us to set our faith in. God’s love can change all of this.