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14: Addiction · Finding God at Work

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  (Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.) Hi, I'm Chris.
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  This is Finding God at Work.
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  Just a reminder that Finding God at Work
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  isn't just a podcast, it's also an online
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  course.
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  Check it out at FindingGodAtWork.org.
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  Our current series is wholehearted, becoming healthier Christians
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  at work.
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  Back in the 1980s, Bob Pazanovich was an
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  executive at a computer company called Zenith.
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  He was a sales leader.
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  Things were going well.
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  He was in his early 30s, doing over
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  a billion dollars in revenue company-wide.
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  He lived in Chicago's Gold Coast, an upclass
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  neighborhood.
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  He felt like he was really winning at
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  life.
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  And then he went into a party in
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  his Gold Coast neighborhood and was offered cocaine.
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  And he thought he'd try it out, and
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  he loved it at first.
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  And then things started to unravel.
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  Now let me read in Bob's own words.
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  Work and my career were so important that
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  I would have done anything to save them.
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  But instead I thought that I had it
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  under control, that I would be able to
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  quit drugs on my own.
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  I'll quit tomorrow, I would say to myself.
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  But tomorrow never came.
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  Fortunately, I was able to get treatment several
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  years after I was fired.
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  Unfortunately, I had to lose almost everything before
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  I was willing to get help.
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  I'll quit tomorrow.
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  Bob does not have that unusual of a
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  story as far as substance use in the
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  workplace is concerned.
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  There's a 2022 study published in the journal
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  Occupational Health Science that shows that about 13
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  .6 million American workers have a substance use
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  disorder of some kind.
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  So that's about 9% of the workforce,
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  almost 1 in 10 workers.
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  And substance use disorders are not the only
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  kind of destructive habit or even formal addiction.
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  So for example, this wouldn't cover pornography addiction
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  or even more informal things like workaholism being
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  addicted to work itself, which can function in
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  a very similar way to a substance use
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  addiction.
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  Many people are caught in a cycle where
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  their lives are dominated by something that's incredibly
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  destructive.
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  And this affects everything in their life.
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  It affects their personal lives.
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  It affects their work lives.
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  And it's often invisible in the workplace.
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  Sometimes you know somebody has a problem.
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  Sometimes you don't.
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  Sometimes people hide really, really well what they're
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  suffering and what they're going through.
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  So just like we talked about with depression
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  and anxiety, even if this isn't something that
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  you personally deal with, you almost certainly have
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  someone you know in the workplace who is
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  facing this kind of challenge.
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  And so having an understanding of how addiction
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  develops, how it works, and what the path
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  toward recovery can look like is something that's
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  really helpful for all of us to learn
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  something about as disciples of Jesus.
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  So in this episode and the next episode,
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  we're going to talk about addiction and recovery.
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  So this is kind of the bad news
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  episode.
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  Sorry to say we're talking about addiction and
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  how it develops.
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  And then we get the good news of
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  recovery and how we can think about that
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  in the light of the good news of
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  Jesus in our next episode.
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  But first just to kind of understand what
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  addiction is in a Christian perspective.
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  We've been building that theological anthropology right of
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  how our thoughts and our feelings, our heart
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  or will, our bodies, and our soul as
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  integrator and receiver and relater, that God created
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  us with all of those aspects and that
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  they're meant to go together.
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  That's that soul is integrator piece that we're
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  meant to function as whole human beings.
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  That Jesus has an implicit holism even in
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  the way that he does his moral teaching.
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  When he says love the Lord your God
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  with all your heart and all your soul
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  and all your mind and all your strength,
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  he's implying that you can deploy all of
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  those aspects of your person in unity towards
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  this purpose of loving God.
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  So there's an implicit holism.
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  That is really, really important when we think
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  about addiction.
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  So rather than doing a definition of addiction
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  like I did from the Mayo Clinic for
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  depression and anxiety, I want to do more
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  of a description of addiction as a life
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  source disorder.
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  Addiction is a life source disorder.
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  Now what do I mean by that?
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  Well why do people use a substance in
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  the first place?
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  And we'll just use substances because that's a
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  more concrete easy one.
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  Again it could be many different cases of
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  what the actual object of addiction is.
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  But why would somebody use a substance in
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  the first place?
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  Like why would you drink a beer?
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  Even something that isn't necessarily immediately damaging?
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  Well it's because you get something out of
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  that experience.
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  You get a little bit of pleasure or
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  sometimes a little bit of distraction, a little
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  bit of an altered state, right?
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  You're looking for something and that substance gives
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  you that thing.
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  Okay now within the Bible, the fact that
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  we are looking for something, that we have
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  desires, that we have needs, is a good
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  thing, right?
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  This is part of the teaching of Scripture.
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  The question is how do we go about
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  getting those needs met in a healthy way?
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  Okay so you could think about it this
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  way.
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  We as human beings have certain needs, like
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  our need for water, and it is good
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  for those needs to be met.
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  So like drinking water is a good thing.
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  But we're also like Goldilocks, right?
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  Goldilocks and the three bears, right?
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  This bed is too big, this bed is
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  too small, this bed is just right, this
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  porridge is too cold, this porridge is too
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  hot, this porridge is just right.
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  It is actually possible to drink too much
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  water.
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  Now most of us, that's not where we're
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  at, but there is a condition called polydipsia
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  where people just have this kind of insatiable
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  need to drink water and that can cause
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  problem.
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  Most of us probably don't drink quite as
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  much water as we need to.
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  My wife, who's a nurse, is always like,
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  Chris, it's bad that you're not hydrating more.
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  So on the one extreme we know we
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  can be dehydrated, on the other extreme we
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  know we can have polydipsia, but that Goldilocks
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  just right middle zone is the right amount
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  of water for a human being.
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  Again, this is because human bodies have a
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  nature.
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  They have a set of needs that can
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  either be met, go unmet, or be met
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  but in an unhealthy way.
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  Okay so what is an unhealthy way to
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  meet your need for hydration?
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  Maybe drinking soda pop, right?
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  Because you're getting the water that you need,
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  but then you're also getting a bunch of
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  sugar and other stuff that you don't need,
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  right?
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  So if you're drinking like, you know, 20
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  cans of Mountain Dew a day, that's, you
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  know, that's not healthy and that will affect
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  your body in specific ways because you have
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  a human nature.
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  You have limits in terms of the amount
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  of sugar and caffeine that your body can
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  process in a good way.
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  Okay so even before we rise to the
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  level of what we would call an addiction,
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  we all know that it's possible to try
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  and meet bodily needs in an unhealthy way.
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  Now that is true for bodily needs.
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  It is also true for emotional needs.
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  So all of us as human beings have
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  deep emotional needs and if those needs go
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  unmet, often we will seek something to meet
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  that emotional need in an unhealthy way.
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  So for example, one of our needs is
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  for beauty.
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  We need experiences of beauty in our life.
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  We talked about this when we were looking
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  at the book from Dr. Gregory Gansal, how
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  in the Christian narrative beauty points the way
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  home.
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  We need beauty.
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  If we don't feast on good forms of
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  beauty, like in nature or art or literature
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  or just observing the beauty of human beings
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  and real embodied relationship with them, we will
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  look for some replacement for that sense of
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  This is one reason why pornography is so
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  powerful, is people hypercharge their attachment to images
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  that are meant to give sexual gratification, but
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  that is not just about physical bodily pleasure.
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  That is an attempt to meet an emotional
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  need, often an emotional need about bonding with
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  human beings, but also the need for beauty.
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  Like the idea that you would reflect upon
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  images in a way that feels transcendent.
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  That's good.
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  That's good.
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  That's part of how you're designed to work
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  as a human being, but then the images
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  that you're choosing can be very unhealthy and
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  very destructive in their effects.
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  Okay, so why do I call it a
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  life source disorder?
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  Because behind all of these particular cases, like
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  we need water, we need food, we need
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  shelter, we need beauty, we need bonding with
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  other human beings, we need friendship, whether it
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  needs our biological or emotional or a mix
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  of the two as is often the case,
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  right?
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  You give your friend a hug, that's a
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  biological thing and that's a social thing and
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  an emotional thing.
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  Regardless of what it is, what we're ultimately
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  looking for is life.
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  We are looking for the things, the conditions,
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  the substances, yes, the relationships that will give
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  us life, that will give us what we
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  need to really be alive and feel alive.
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  And this is one of the bedrock teachings
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  of Scripture that we need life and we
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  will look for life in various places.
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  And it's not a bad thing.
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  This is a good thing.
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  It is a good thing that you have
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  a desire and that you have a need
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  for life.
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  The question again though is where is that
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  need going to be satisfied?
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  At its deepest level, philosophically we could call
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  it an existential need.
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  What will satisfy your need for life existentially
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  at the deepest level of your being?
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  So I'm gonna go to Psalm 16.
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  Okay, so this is a Psalm that Jesus
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  would have been familiar with and that gets
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  cited in relation to Jesus's resurrection in the
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  book of Acts.
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  But I just want to look at a
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  few verses towards the end here.
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  Starting in verse seven.
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  I bless the Lord who gives me counsel.
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  In the night also my heart instructs me.
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  I have set the Lord always before me.
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  Because he is at my right hand, I
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  shall not be shaken.
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  Therefore my heart is glad and my whole
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  being rejoices.
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  My flesh also dwells secure.
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  For you will not abandon my soul to
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  Sheol or let your Holy One see corruption.
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  You make known to me the path of
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  life.
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  In your presence there is fullness of joy.
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  At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
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  Okay, now this is a Psalm of David
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  and what David is giving us is a
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  statement about how human need can ultimately existentially
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  be satisfied.
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  And did you notice how David is also
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  working with this implicit holism in the different
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  ways he referred to himself, right?
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  He mentioned his heart in the night.
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  Also my heart instructs me.
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  He mentioned his hand.
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  Because he is at my right hand I
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  will not be shaken.
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  He mentions his heart again and then he
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  uses this word translated as whole being.
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  The footnote for my ESV translation says that
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  could also be translated my glory.
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  But again that idea of like there's something
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  about me that's like all of who I
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  am.
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  My whole being rejoices.
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  My flesh also dwells secure.
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  So getting at that his body is also
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  part of the picture here.
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  For you will not abandon my soul to
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  Sheol.
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  Okay, so David's saying all the different aspects
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  of who I am they have needs.
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  My heart needs instruction.
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  My right hand needs to not be shaken.
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  My heart again needs gladness.
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  Our heart needs positive affect.
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  My heart is glad and my whole being
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  rejoices.
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  My flesh needs to dwell secure.
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  My body needs to not see corruption.
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  It needs to not rot in the So
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  David has all these needs.
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  But then what is the focal point of
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  fulfillment for these needs?
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  It's the presence of the Lord.
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  That's how the Psalm ends.
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  You make known to me the path of
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  life.
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  In your presence there is fullness of joy.
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  At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
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  The human person is designed to have needs.
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  Those needs can go met.
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  Those needs can be met.
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  They can go unmet or they can be
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  met in unhealthy ways.
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  The fuller teaching of Scripture is that our
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  ultimate need, our ultimate existential need, can only
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  be met fully and in a healthy way
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  by the presence of God.
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  That is why addiction is a life source
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  disorder.
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  It's a way of looking for something that
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  will give you life that you can only
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  ultimately get from the Lord.
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  You can only ultimately receive that goodness from
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  the Lord.
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  So that's why the word addiction, a modern
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  psychological term, doesn't show up in the Bible.
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  But a word that does show up in
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  the Bible quite often is idolatry.
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  Now this is a weird word in our
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  social context.
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  Like if I were to talk with a
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  friend at the food bank who's not necessarily
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  a follower of Jesus and say like, hey
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  do you feel like you ever suffer from
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  idolatry in your life?
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  They'd be like what?
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  You know like it's not a term that's
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  used in our context.
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  But what idolatry means in the context of
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  Scripture is worshipping a God who cannot give
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  life.
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  Let me give another example from the Psalms.
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  This is from Psalm 115 starting in verse
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  2.
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  Why should the nation say, where is their
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  God?
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  Our God is in the heavens.
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  He does all that he pleases.
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  Their idols are silver and gold, the work
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  of human hands.
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  They have mouths but do not speak, eyes
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  but do not see.
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  They have ears but do not hear, noses
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  but do not smell.
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  They have hands but do not feel, feet
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  but do not walk, and they do not
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  make a sound in their throat.
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  Those who make them become like them, so
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  do all who trust in them.
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  Those who make them become like them.
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  The problem with idols is not just that
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  they're different from the one true God, the
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  God of Israel as presented in the Hebrew
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  Scriptures.
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  The problem is that they don't give life.
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  They can't see, they can't hear, they can't
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  talk, they can't interact with you in any
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  real and genuine way.
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  They can't give you what you're looking for
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  and the effect of that on you is
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  destructive.
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  The effect of that on you is those
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  who make them become like them.
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  You no longer have life because you have
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  dedicated your life.
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  You have sought your life source from something
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  that cannot give you life.
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  That's what idolatry means.
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  And so if you think about the rhythm
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  of that passage as it relates to a
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  substance use disorder or a pornography addiction or
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  even workaholism, somebody who's built their life around
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  something that they think is going to give
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  them life.
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  They have hands but do not feel, feet
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  but do not walk, and they do not
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  make a sound in their throat.
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  Those who make them become like them, so
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  do all who trust in them.
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  The booze or the cocaine or the sex
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  or the work will not give you the
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  life you are looking for.
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  Addiction is a life source disorder.
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  Okay, now for friends who I have that
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  are outside of a faith context, I've never
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  met somebody who's like a champion for addiction
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  who's just like, what we need is for
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  more people to be addicted to more substances,
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  right?
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  Maybe there are people out there like who
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  are making money off of addiction that that
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  would want that.
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  But almost everybody, regardless of their specific faith
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  convictions, agrees that like addiction is bad, right?
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  When somebody gets caught in that cycle, that's
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  bad.
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  Somebody might even recognize in their own life,
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  well I know that I'm caught in something
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  and that that is bad for me.
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  The question is if you know that is
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  bad for you, then what is good for
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  you?
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  And this is why a holistic conversation about
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  addiction can't be separated from a conversation about
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  faith.
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  It's the claim of the Scriptures that God
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  is good for you.
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  And unless you find that life in Him,
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  you'll always keep chasing for it somewhere else.
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  Maybe not in terms of a formal addiction,
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  but in different ways that don't meet that
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  ultimate existential need.
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  So all of us stand at the crossroads.
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  All of us have an option to say,
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  will I embrace this to give me life
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  or will I embrace that to give me
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  life?
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  We have a choice, a decision to make.
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  Here we are back at the will.
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  And Dallas has a fantastic quote, Dallas Willard,
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  about the will as it relates to addiction.
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  So I just want to read that.
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  This is from a lecture that he gave.
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  The function of the will is to deliberate,
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  to consider desires, but also to consider the
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  wider picture, to be freed from obsession.
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  Okay, I know about that, but is it
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  good?
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  Is it best to consider alternatives?
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  If you allow your will to be dominated
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  by desires, then you will no longer be
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  able to deliberate.
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  You'll say, I have to have this.
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  That is almost never true.
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  An addict is a person who has surrendered
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  their will to desire.
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  You So when we don't have our life
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  source operating for us in the way that
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  it's meant to, we end up imprisoned by
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  desire.
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  We end up losing the capacity to deliberate
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  and choose what is best.
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  We end up stuck doing things that we
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  know we ultimately don't want to do.
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  We are trapped.
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  We are shackled.
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  We are enslaved.
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  We are imprisoned.
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  We need freedom.
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  And that's what we're gonna talk about starting
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  in our next episode.
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  Lord Jesus, thank you that you are so
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  patient and gentle with us, that you know
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  the real needs and real desires that can
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  lead us into these destructive places.
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  And you are not ashamed to meet us
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  right where we're at.
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  Give us all the courage to see how
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  we have chosen, how we have developed the
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  habits that we have to see clearly where
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  we're looking for life.
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  Jesus, do your work in us as we
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  do our work with you.
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  Thanks for listening.
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  Finding God at Work is a production of
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  Mission Central, a ministry based in Aurora, Illinois,
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  dedicated to forming Christians for mission in everyday
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  life.
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  You can subscribe to the podcast wherever you
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  listen to this episode to get 10 minutes
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  of teaching on faith and work every Tuesday
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  and Thursday.
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  To get resources to go deeper with each
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  podcast series, read our blog, and get info
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  about upcoming courses on faith in the workplace,
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  go to our website MissionCentral.Church.