The Greatest Accomplishment of Wishful Thinking the World Has Yet Known

Chapter 75

2010-05-26T13:14:00.000-07:00

There is a point in time when parents and family must intervene in an addict’s life to interrupt the destructive behaviors and patterns of addiction, so I shall rather proceed at once to describe a brief arrangement of the categories to become consciously aware of. Almost all forms of addiction (drugs, alcohol, cigarettes) begin when kids are the most impressionable and vulnerable in the early teen years, which consequently ought to be looked upon as the best time to intervene. (In consideration of the abundance of knowledge against the abuse of drugs and alcohol, what grown adult would pick up and start using an addictive substance?) If you ask ANYONE in recovery when they started using, you will find that each one admits their first use around age 14 or 15 (sometimes even earlier). It is difficult for a parent to stage an intervention at such an early age, but it could save a lot of trouble later down the road. This however is an issue I wish to touch upon only in passing, for with causality and prevention, at present, I have nothing to offer. I prefer to focus more on the matter of expiation.

Many parents think if they ignore the problem it will go away, or maybe it’s just a stage that they’ll grow out of, or worst of all they may think “it can’t happen to my kid.” I can think of nothing more that opposes the absence of ignorance than this. The irony here is that the kid also thinks “it can’t happen to me.” ‘Denial’ is the single greatest ally of addiction through every progressive stage, and there are moments when boundaries seem to have no limitations. As an addict is descending deeper into hell, he eagerly notices people around him that are worse off than he is and then uses this as an excuse to keep using. The minute you hear an addict say “At least I haven’t done that yet,” or “At least I’m not as bad as that person,” then you know his fate is sealed. We call this way of thinking “minimizing,” which is actually extremely common among addicts and the families that enable them. An addict is completely blinded to his own condition and cannot heal when worrying about someone or something else, for it is well known that strong desire can easily deceive people. This way of thinking MUST be undone before a process of recovery can begin.

After treatment, the family wants to believe things are fixed and they may revert back to the same interactive behaviors that existed before treatment. This is a big mistake. Parents will start to overlook problem signs again, the addict will lie and manipulate again, and everyone will ignore their gut-feeling message (which is their conscience begging for notice). A strong cloud of delusion will envelop everyone as ‘denial’ once again rears its ugly head. The denial here is that everyone thinks after treatment that all is well, and they no longer look at behaviors as symptoms of an illness. If the addict begins to return to isolation, pulls away from the family, or starts to blame others for his life problems, you can be sure that relapse is on the way. But this time the grief is much more intense and unbearable because of the loss of hope that was built up during treatment. And this is especially true if the addict has been through many treatment attempts and failed; for this is when a sense of hopelessness overwhelms everyone involved. The addict will become frustrated, blame the programs, blame God, blame the devil, blame the families, blame the law, or blame everyone on earth –but himself and his self-inflicted disease. It would be quite erroneous to give up here though.

You must never forget that addiction is a disease that wants to kill; there is no cure, and it will only appear to decrease and gradually disappear. The ONLY thing an addict in recovery will ever have in the form of a ‘cure’ is a daily reprieve contingent upon the persistent maintenance of spiritual principles reinforced by regular support-group meetings. Here is a simple analogy that might help you understand: The life of an addict is like an escalator going down when the person needs to go up; if he stands still or walks backwards, he will reach bottom (again). There is no standing still in recovery; he must continually walk up the escalator even though he’ll never reach the top floor. No matter what though, as long as a person still has a pulse, there is hope. It is promising if an addict learns that his complex behaviors and attitudes are only a camouflage for the disease of addiction. All of these glaring character defects must be carefully unlearned over time with spiritual help.

Chapter 74

2010-05-25T22:00:00.000-07:00

As previously discussed, the development of leadership skills plays an important role in a successful program of long-term recovery. To exercise influence, a leader must have power and authority, which is the potential or ability to influence decisions and control others in a positive and constructive way. I would like to examine the mechanics of acquiring power and temporarily suspend the idea of abusing it.

The lawful right to make a decision and expect compliance is called legitimate power. The authority to give followers rewards for compliance is referred to as reward power. Coercive power is the capability to punish for non-compliance; and it is based on fear. We usually find that coercive power is limited, in that punishment and fear achieve mixed results; and as a consequence they are unpredictable as motivators. Therefore, in one sense, no duty is left for it except for that of exposing ideologically the mere form of raw manipulation.

Information power stems from the formal control over information people need to accomplish what needs to be done, and it follows that this principle can have nothing else for its aim other than uniting the conditions of empirical cognition. Referent power is the ability to influence others through one’s desirable traits and characteristics, and this is commonly also attributed to those with a charismatic style of leadership; though it does not for that reason lose its legitimacy or certitude. Expert power is the ability to influence others through specialized knowledge, skills, or abilities; and this develops as a rather continuous transition from the former state into a new specialized practice of uniformity. Prestige power stems from one’s status and reputation, and this usually has a foundation in verifiable integrity.

These variances again may be divided as merely objects of perception, and may not posses immediate evidence other than through conceptual observation. On the same token, for the most part people tend to only give familiar customs the right to occupy space in their heads and thereby resist leadership and fear change. If you fear change, you might remain the same. Always remember, in order to be an effective leader you need to find ways to inspire people to change and grow and in so doing, you yourself will grow.

Chapter 73

2010-05-24T14:11:00.000-07:00

I would like to consider the question of whether or not AA and NA promote quasi-theological positions, and whether or not I believe AA to be a benign cult (I have actually heard this bogus accusation before). I would first like to delicately point out the subtle but EXTREMELY important difference between “God, as you understand him” and “A god of your understanding.” One pathway of belief can lead a simple person to genuine faith in God, while the other pathway can clearly lead to blatant idolatry. How you react to this issue decides whether or not your own concept of God qualifies as “cultish.”

Ignorance is when we don’t know; denial is when we do know, but don’t want to know. A role children often play is to test the limits and boundaries of adults and the general rules of normal society. Similarly, addicts and alcoholics, like children, often test the limits of formal religious theology and even sometimes belligerently (or even accidentally) promote a brand of their own mystical spirituality. This is a seductive line of thought, but it seems to me mistaken. It is at this point we must be careful.

Here are a few questions to consider: Is it wrong to believe in a god who is like a genie-in-a-bottle that only has an interest in helping addicts resist their self-induced drug cravings, but desires nothing from us in return? Is there a god who wills for us nothing beyond the cessation of sticking our face in a fan? Is it wrong to believe that everything is about us? Is god made in our image to serve our purposes, or is it the other way around?

Kids will mirror what they see in their parents and in adult society. In AA, a newcomer mirrors the beliefs and behaviors of his sponsor or other people in the program. Does this encourage a higher standard of belief and conduct from regular attendees? Is there any excuse for someone who has been sober and working a spiritual program of recovery for several years to still have the same kindergarten level theology that he had when he first came in? Is correct theology really that intellectually inaccessible, or is it just difficult to live by and convenient to disregard? Can we discover the true nature and character of God as revealed to us in the Bible? Is the truth so unassailable that nobody can understand?

Now on the other side of the coin, it is painfully obvious that an addict or alcoholic cannot learn spirituality under the conditions normally present at many churches which include judgementalism, ostracism, isolation, or sometimes even outright banishment. I have noticed that AA picks up the slack where many churches lack, and that is in patient discipleship, gentle tolerance, warm inclusivity, and loving acceptance. Sometimes churches have a tendency to shoot their wounded, whereas AA has a tendency to hug and hold their wounded until they are well again. So all in all, though AA and NA meetings are a little kooky at times when discussing matters of spirituality, they are doing a fantastic job of carrying the message of hope and deliverance through faith in God. And for that reason, I am a very happy and proud member of both groups.

For the sake of casual simplicity, here are some “theological” thoughts I think are important in recovery… If you think of your life as driving a car, one idea to keep in mind is: You cannot drive a parked car. Faith requires action and movement. God is not interested in part-time obedience. God honors and rewards faith, obedience, and action. We find an important message in Hebrews 11:6 that says, “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (NIV) Isn’t that great?

Chapter 72

2010-05-24T11:12:00.000-07:00

Some cynics argue the only way belief can be established is by saying “seeing is believing.” Obviously this thinking is insufficient because there is a great deal in which we claim to know and yet have never seen. Many examples can prove that senses are deceptive, and it is wiser to not trust entirely any one thing by which we have once been deceived.

It may be well to confess that there is nothing in all that I formerly believed to be true, of which I cannot in some measure doubt occasionally from time to time for significant reasons which are credibly persuasive and quite compelling. Keeping that in mind, I would like to henceforth carefully refrain from granting too much weight to opinions other than those which are manifestly false if I wish to arrive at any new certainties. To live is to grow.

I do seek balance; but at present, I cannot yield too much to self-distrust without weakening my resolve. I would like to blend my former prejudices with my new opinions in some way without diverting my final and formal judgments away from the right knowledge of truth. No matter what though, I do recognize that my conceptions and understandings will always fall exceedingly short of the vast extent of spiritual reality, but I shall yet have cause enough to glorify God for that proportion and degree of knowledge that he has imparted on me, limited as it may be. God is great, I am small, I may not understand, but I love nonetheless.

Here is a little random brain candy: Is it possible to be doubtful and at the same time believe in something highly probable? What if there is a lot more reason to believe in something than deny it? Is it wrong to pretend to believe in something before you actually do? I will not offer answers to these arbitrary questions, but I ask my readers to ponder them.

Chapter 71

2010-05-21T10:29:00.000-07:00

The man who finds no pleasure in a new theory of knowledge is one who fears his own word might not be law. Granted, philosophy is unable to tell us with certainty what the true answer to the intermittent doubts are it raises, but it is rather able to suggest many possibilities which enlarge our thoughts and free our minds. Philosophy is the eternal search for truth and contemplative knowledge (as far as it is possible for man to attain); a search which inevitably fails but yet is never defeated; which continually eludes us, but which always steers us. If we lessen our natural dogmatic assertion which closes the mind against intellectual speculation, certainly we can think more clearly.

If one derives satisfaction from helping others, does it make one selfish? Occasionally there is confusion between selfishness and self-interest. (In ethical philosophy academia, this is known as rational egoism, which basically states that it is only rational for a person to act if it increases self-interest.) It is interesting that our ordinary thinking about decency and morality is full of assumptions that we almost never question. In thinking about human conduct though, the first application of the understanding is commonly held in a passive relation to us, and it would be nice if there were some simple formula that would unite the diverse phenomena of human behavior under a single explanatory principle. But we find this not to be the case. To defend one position is not to defend the other. We may assume quite properly, if my analysis has been correct, that the virtue of beneficence (performing acts of kindness and charity) does, and indeed should occupy an important place in life and should always be encouraged even if selfishly motivated. At present, I am not interested in considering the question of action, but only of knowledge.

Here is a thought floating around inside my head: If one becomes aware of an unbridled falsehood circulating with happy and gleeful ignorance, should one say something to correct it? With so many problems surfacing, at times my mind is filled with so many inconsistent doubts that it is easy to forget my responsibility to refute foolishness and folly; yet still I do not see in what manner I can fully resolve every issue. There are limits to what can be accomplished by argument though, so I shall now proceed to consider a few ideas in the order in which they stand.

If we were reflecting on the disparity between good and evil, for example, evils do not cease to be evils regardless of the amount of rationalization used to purify it. And in that same tone, truth is truth; and this is true despite continued assertions by those who somehow remain seriously and wholeheartedly committed to the propagation of falsities. Tragedy, though truly tragic, may nonetheless be turned from a cause of despair into a state of fulfillment. The exercise of exposing falsehood is a not always a resultant measure of the psychological weakness of self-centeredness, and I notice that insupportable arguments are the ones most often advanced in favor of this view. This really is not a radically new doctrine, so let us consider an analogy of selfishness (the only use of examples is to sharpen the use of judgment): Suppose I have an urge to set fire to some public building (say, a big store) just for the fascination of watching the brilliant blaze. The fact that several people might be burned to death provides no reason whatever why I should not do it; after all, this only concerns the welfare of others, not my own. And according to the egocentric (or self-centered) person, the only person I need think of is me. Some might deny that the ethics of self-centered people has any such monstrous consequences, but does it? In the end, I can live a happy and secure life by acting kindly toward others and correcting wrongs. In so doing I would merely be doing my part to create and maintain the sort of society in which it is to my advantage to have. And this, we find, is living in self-interest, not selfishness.

Chapter 70

2010-05-18T19:40:00.000-07:00

I have been asked to provide more insight into understanding the religion of atheism. You may ask why I call it a religion, and the simple answer lies within the actual definition of the word which is: a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with passion and faith. As discussed in previous chapters, the question of origins requires faith; therefore, you are required to believe that either the universe created itself or God created it… it’s really that simple.

If you venture into sci-fi territory and talk about life being created elsewhere and sent to Earth via transplanted panspermia (which was a quack theory first mockingly and whimsically proposed by Francis Crick that states the “seeds of life” originated elsewhere and were sent to flourish on Earth like a zoo); or if you believe in the multi-verse theory (which states our universe originated as one among many that expands, contracts, and explodes every so often)… you are STILL left with the fundamental question that any 3 year old child recognizes which is: “Well, where did that come from?” As I have stated before, the only way to philosophically escape an endless regress of causes is to have an original, uncreated cause which we call GOD. The skeptical atheist is required to proclaim proof of the non-existence of God, and as such, stops nothing short of deliberately espousing a kind of intellectual pessimism. He is bereft of any dogmatic proof of course, just a wad of convoluted and pointless theories on how matter somehow self-creates and guides itself upward by some apparent mystical life-force (sounds like a kooky religion to me).

Some skeptics argue that they can statistically prove religious people are unintelligent, uneducated, hypocritical, deceitful, insincere, or phony; and of course because of this, they have yet another excuse to refuse belief in God. This red herring argument (which means it is a deliberate attempt to divert attention) is remarkably weak and ill-contrived, but let's take a look at it anyway.

Let us consider for a moment this simple analogy: If a father tells his son, “Do not eat the blue tablets that I placed on the counter, because if you do you will die.” ‘But why?’ asks the little boy, ‘it is not poisonous’. The father replies, “How do you know it is not poisonous?” ‘Because’, says the little boy, ‘when you smash them on the floor you don’t find blue monsters inside of them’. Clearly when this little boy thought of poison he thought of blue monsters that would kill him; and to that extent he was mistaken. But this does not mean that everything the little boy thought or said about poison was therefore nonsensical and false. The little boy knew perfectly well that poison was something that would kill you if you ate it, and he knew to some extent that some of the pills lying on the counter were harmful. If a visitor came into the house and the little boy warned him, “Don’t eat any blue pills you find around the house because my Dad says they will kill you,” the visitor would be quite foolish to ignore the warning based on the fact that ‘this little boy has an unintelligent, primitive idea of what poison is, he thinks it is blue monsters that will kill you, which my adult scientific knowledge has long since repudiated’.

The Bible verse that comes to mind is in Romans 3:4 which says, “…Let God be true, and every man a liar.” (NIV) Never allow another man's misunderstanding or misconception of Christianity keep you from personally examining the claims of Jesus Christ. You must make the choice for yourself and decide how you are going to respond to God, for in the end, you alone are responsible for how your life turns out. The great Apostle Paul said it best in Romans 1:18-20 which says, “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities –his eternal power and divine nature –have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” (NIV)

Chapter 69

2010-05-17T18:34:00.000-07:00

The question may be argued, “Does God test me?” The answer is, of course, YES. The argument against this truth is so bad that it would not deserve to be taken seriously except for the fact that so many otherwise intelligent people have been duped by it. This is a common question often asked by new Christians though, and as such it deserves a gentle, loving answer. The first thing to notice is: There is a critical (and even subtle) distinction between being tested and being tempted; though they sometimes appear to us similar in nature, they are quite different. God does NOT tempt, but He DOES test. And for a more specific explanation, we’ll need to take a quick tour of all 66 books in the Bible in which we are told literally hundreds of times that we will be tested.

Temptations (or invitations) to commit evil are in their nature nearly infinite (from our point of view), and so in one sense there are many different ways of going wrong. But there is only one possible way of going right. It is easy to miss the mark but difficult to hit it. On such a subject, it may be unwise to pronounce dogmatically that the man who has no hint of correct philosophy goes through life imprisoned by the prejudices derived from common sense, from the habitual beliefs of his culture, or from the convictions which have grown up in his mind without cooperation or consent from his deliberate reason. To such a man, unfamiliar possibilities are usually contemptuously rejected anyway. But nonetheless here it is, a person’s religious beliefs are derived from either: 1. Something they read. 2. Something they heard. or 3. Something they made up. Though obviously sometimes there is a combination of all of the above. The best source of our beliefs should come from what we read in the Bible for ourselves… so that being said, let’s get started.

The first instance of testing that we find begins with Adam and Eve; their faithful, willing obedience was tested –and, they failed. The next instance is with Abraham and his son Isaac in Genesis 22:11 which says, “Some time later God tested Abraham.” (NIV) Another reminder of Abraham’s testing is found in Hebrews 11:17 where it says, “By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice.” (NIV) In Exodus 15:25, when talking about the wandering Israelites it says, “…There the Lord made a decree and a law for them, and there He tested them.” (NIV) In Deuteronomy 8:16 it says, “…to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you.” (NIV) In Deuteronomy 13:3 it says, “…The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love Him with all your heart and with all your soul.” (NIV) In Judges 3:4 it says, “They were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the Lord’s commands…” (NIV) In 2 Chronicles 32:31, when talking about Hezekiah it says, “…God left him to test him and to know everything that was in his heart.” (NIV) In Psalms 66:10 it says, “For You, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver.” (NIV) In Proverbs 17:3 it says, “…the Lord tests the heart.” (NIV) In Job 7:18 it says, “You examine us every morning and test us every moment.” (NIV) In Job 23:10 it says, “But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold.” (NIV) In Isaiah 48:10 it says, “…I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.” (NIV) In Jeremiah 11:20 it says, “But O Lord Almighty, you who judge righteously and test the heart and mind…” (NIV) In Ezekiel 21:13 it says, “…Testing will surely come.” (NIV) In Luke 8:13 it says, “…They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away.” (NIV) In 1 Thessalonians 2:4 it says, “…We are not trying to please men, but God, who tests our hearts.” (NIV) In James 1:3 it says “…because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.” (NIV) In James 1:12 it says, “Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.” (NIV)

Now here is the other side of the coin, God does NOT tempt us. In James 1:13 it says, “When tempted no one should say, God is tempting me. For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.” (NIV) In Luke 22:46 it says, “…Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” (NIV) In Hebrews 2:18, when talking about the temptation of Jesus and His suffering it says, “Because He himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted.” (NIV) In 1 Corinthians 10:13 it says, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” (NIV)

So this is what we find: Temptation comes from the devil, and he tempts us to kill, steal, and destroy. Testing comes from God, and He tests us so that our faith will mature, so that we can be purified, and so that our trust and dependence on Him will grow. God tests what is in our heart, to find out our true motives and agendas; he tests our character and integrity to see if we will lovingly obey him; and the results from our tests reflect what is in our hearts –both good and bad. Here is a simple analogy: At the end of the semester, a tempter will try to get you to give up, cheat, lie, and/or abandon all hope; whereas, a teacher will test you to see how you’re doing and help you sharpen your skills. If we use this analogy to understand God’s mercy, we should be appreciative that His testing of us is an open book test (so to speak)… our trusty little Bible has everything in it we need to know if we just know where to look. Here is another simple analogy to help us understand how God works with us: It is like a mother’s gentle, guiding hand over a child’s hand as she teaches him how to hold his crayon correctly and form the letters of the alphabet. The child will sometimes get impatient and scream and yell, squirm in the chair, then yank the crayon away and scribble all over the page (this is what addicts do), but thankfully God is rich in mercy and patience and slow to anger. In Exodus 34:6 we find this teaching from God, “…I am the Lord. The Lord is a God who shows mercy, who is kind, who doesn’t become angry quickly, who has great love and faithfulness…” (NCV)

In summary: God is a merciful, trustworthy, loving Creator that understands our different levels of faith in our work with Him, and He is able to carry us through temptations if we will only learn to trust in Him. God is the tester that checks if our faith is alive or dead, active or inactive; and the devil is the tempter that wants nothing more than to see our downfall so he can mock our faith and God. So, what are we to do? We should have faith, learn, grow, pray, act according to the way we know we should, and wait for God’s deliverance.

Chapter 68

2010-05-14T15:29:00.000-07:00

If you really believe the consciousness of man is not an accidental product of nature, then you should feel a sense of awe and hold its importance in high regard. If you are prepared to genuinely believe that morality is not a mere illusion of rules passed down and borrowed from other minds; but rather that which is determinative and consequently able to point you to a Higher Power outside of yourself, then you are ready to make true, decisive intellectual progress. After all our tedious clearing out of the way competing theories against transcendent reality, if we are to avoid an outright metaphysical pestilence, we need to do a little more thinking. But for now, let’s move on…

I would like to now propose some new philosophical reflections which, as I have said from the outset that, from any strict theoretical point of view, may contain mysterious or unanswerable questions that face all of us. Have you ever chosen the weaker of two desires? Every new moment in life seems to bring necessities which must be satisfied at once. A want or a need causes a sensation and it is usually followed at once by a blundering effort to satisfy it. This, of course, then produces channels of habit which later on turns into a predisposition.

We are faced with a world in which we are occasionally forced to make judgments of regret. Hardly an hour passes in which we do not wish that something might have been otherwise, but does this necessarily imply that judgments of regret are bad? Calling a thing bad means that the thing ought not to be, and that something else ought to have been in its place. I see no escape whatever from the conclusion that some things, being what they were, could not have been any different in order to get us to the place where we are today.

In our world, no single point of view can ever take in the whole scene; and to a mind possessed with the love of simplicity and unity at any cost, this fact will no doubt remain forever unacceptable. Though the universe contains a principle of evil, without such a principle in it, good could not be appreciated for what it is. A certain amount of evil requires a condition by which a higher form of goodness is brought about.

It is of no small account when good snatches the victory from evil. This is what gives a palpitating reality to our moral life and makes it tingle with so strange and elaborate an excitement. It is breathtaking when we realize that our triumph is only possible when God works through us. And that, more than anything right now, makes me feel special.

Chapter 67

2010-05-12T20:28:00.000-07:00

(here is a nice, simple chapter purposefully written in relaxed language to summarize my best philosophical viewpoints, most of which have already been shared throughout this book so far)

At this point, I would like stop, review, highlight, and summarize a few of my more important thoughts that I have shared throughout this book so far. If a particular piece of writing professes from the very outset to be a unique invasion into common thinking practices, do not be surprised if you are offended. Never settle for mental mediocrity when you can do something about it. If you have the disease of addiction, that does not excuse you from having to change your behavior but rather requires it.

If you get caught in the trap of being more interested in keeping up appearances rather than cleaning up your character, you will never get started in recovery. The ability to influence others carries with it a great responsibility; perhaps this is the basis for why most people try to avoid it. Who you are is who you become a magnet for, and every leader has a certain level of charisma and magnetism; that is what attracts people who want to be influenced. A leader who displays consistency of character, power, and purpose naturally draws people to him. If you take a quick look at your followers, this will reflect who you are as a leader.

Never for the sake of peace and quiet should you deny your own convictions or experience. We do not and should not all say the same things or think the same thoughts, and as such, we should also realize that no viewpoint is secure from misuse or abuse. The easy thing is to go along with everyone else, agree with everyone else’s prejudices and opinions, and just be “one in the crowd.” Never say “I don’t know who I am or where I’m going or what I should do, but at least I’m a member of a group.” You should not be so devoid of an identity that you try to lose yourself in the larger identity of a group and make excuses for why you can’t or won’t do or be more with your life. Never confuse lack of accomplishment or slothfulness with humility.

It’s easy to never amount to much and deceive yourself into believing that at least you’re doing as well as someone else; you should avoid this trap as it is called laziness. The power of your imagination can be the means by which resistance to this retrograde tendency is strengthened, and true validity can be pleasantly found in the logical unity of all your intelligent perceptions. If your imagination is not forced to flow into disciplined channels - which are avenues defined by clear and correct vision, then its uses are degraded into worthlessness. Never get lost only in the language of what might be, what could be, or what you ideal to be. Though an ideal is a perfect example, you will never achieve it; but don’t let that stop you from trying and asking for God's help.

Since time is the only thing none of us can ever afford to waste, we should take the time to plan our time so we don’t misuse our time. During those few moments in life when you reach unusual peaks of human aspiration and genius, you need to take action. And best of all, do not fear or oppose Christianity. It is true, reasonable, philosophically valid, perfectly logical, intelligent, and vastly superior to anything else. If you seek God, He can be found… He is one simple prayer away.

Chapter 66

2010-05-11T12:52:00.000-07:00

Anytime you discuss the matter of origins you are forced to make a philosophical assumption of faith. You must decide for yourself what is more rational and logical: naturalism or theism. The truth or error of the judgments within both viewpoints requires faith, and the way in which you relate yourself to the implications of either perspective will ultimately determine your course in life.

Let us discuss some of the philosophical inferences that evolutionists make with regard to the upward progression of life from a pre-biotic soup. When discussing the whole issue of homology (or commonality of form), it is difficult to avoid circular reasoning; and as such, evidence (or lack thereof) forces the observer to make inferences. If we believe the act of inference is the genuine insight it claims to be, it follows that we must consequently use a fair and reasonable faculty of judgment in order to define more particular our purposes prior to the investigation. What I mean is simply this: If you decide in advance that macro-evolution is true, then any appraisal of evidence you investigate will be worked and massaged into that theory.

The idea that mutations are the driving forces of evolution encounters one fatal difficulty: There is no evidence to support it. Almost all mutations are deleterious (meaning they do the living organism absolutely no good). A simple illustration: If you start introducing copying errors and changes in a book of beautiful poetry, you do not eventually end up with a DVD on geography that is dependent on the independent variable of a DVD player needed to display to you its contents (not to mention the obvious fact that you certainly would get no inference by way of evidence on what was driving the change in the first place, if anything). No one can explain why living systems don’t experience catastrophic destruction under random mutations when all common sense (and scientific) evidence says otherwise.

The fossil record is simply mystifying; it does not sustain any kind of Darwinian prediction that can be intelligently derived by a proper use of inferential balance. I’m not just talking about the Cambrian Explosion; I’m talking about everything we see (The Cambrian Explosion refers to the geologic age in the fossil record where all complex living systems suddenly appear). We have never been able to mathematically or theoretically examine the central claims of natural selection by way of genetic algorithms. In other words, the mathematical cumulative improbability of even the slightest peptides bonding to form polypeptides changing upward to amino acids (amino acids are the building blocks of protein, which is the building blocks of life) is so staggering, that one would dismiss the claims of self-organizing, creative-evolution on the simple grounds of this alone.

Let us look at a few cultural influences that are used by atheists to protect and guard their faith. Richard Dawkins, who is somehow accepted as a great intellect, wrote a philosophical book on the use of Darwinism to support “intelligent” atheism called “The God Delusion.” The book is a complete bore, simply written, easily refutable, tells us nothing, and leaves you empty with unrequited questions. Bill Maher, who is also bizarrely accepted as an intellectual, made a movie called “Religulous.” The movie is a highly edited, endless succession of interviews with uneducated, unsophisticated, simple-minded people who have no idea how to defend their faith –all in a desperate and pseudo-comical effort to somehow leave the viewer with the impression that religious people are dumb. You may ask, why all the talk of these men? The simple answer: They are a couple of wind-bags who aggressively attempt to recruit others into their flawed way of thinking and are also well known as the predominant, self-appointed, sovereign priests of the powerful orthodoxy popularly known as the religion of atheism.

When the world changed in 1859 with the publication of Darwin’s famous “On the Origin of Species,” no one could have predicted the level of unholy zealousness in which people would attach themselves to its propagation. But let us look now at Darwinism for what it truly is: A kind of amusing collection of 19th century anecdotes that is unlike anything we see in the natural world or in the serious sciences (like physics) or in the fossil record. Yes, many biologists do collectively agree that this is the basis for the origin of life, BUT here are some points you should consider as well: The theory doesn’t have any philosophically valid substance to it; it’s not supported by the fossil evidence; it’s mathematically preposterous; and the fact that biologists uniformly agree on it could as well be explained by an obstinate Marxist interpretation of their economic interests. There is a tremendous amount of pressure on scholars to conform to prevailing views in an effort to sustain their research funding, but when one rogue philosopher is free to think and say and write as he pleases…

I will discuss in more specific detail my views on why Darwinism is wrong (as a creation myth) soon, so stay tuned (this is just the beginning). You may ask, why all the talk of evolution? The simple answer: Since I believe the best way to recover from life-controlling problems is through faith in God, we need a leveled playing field where faith can once again be logically and intelligently considered; therefore, this is necessary in order to undermine and reject the foundations of atheism and agnosticism in our present day and age. You need solid ground to stand on; therefore, you must fully understand and realize that faith in God is right, healthy, proper, intelligent, and good. Anything less is utter foolishness.

Chapter 65

2010-05-10T18:17:00.000-07:00

Among the many difficulties that unbelievers and skeptics have about Christianity is the fact that (seemingly) childish imagery is used to describe spiritual facts. Without realizing that the application of rules governing decipherable literature must apply here, he may unknowingly blunder into thinking that imagery contributes nothing to the explanation of what is truly inexplicable. A skeptic is easily disgruntled and even disgusted when religious people speak of heaven in the sky, hell underground, devils with horns, golden streets, and a royal throne where the Son of God sits just to the right of His father. To some extent, this imagery seems like foolishness to the untrained man; but anyone who stops right there and quits is only playing with Christianity and allowing a child’s version of our religion to keep him from adult knowledge.

Because the impatient skeptic naturally approaches any talk of Christianity with the decision in advance that he intends to refute whatever we say, he sets his own pseudo-intellectual trap. He will seldom adequately fulfill the conditions of rules that govern valid reasoning and think that his dry and tedious analysis of our imagery protects him from having to decide if the claims of Christianity are either true or false. He thinks he can dismiss it all and mock everything we believe as some sort of measly figurative synthesis of imagination. But make no mistake, God is not mocked.

The modern skeptic is quick to dismiss the creation account in Genesis as mythology, yet seeks to supplant it with a form of Neo-Darwinist, self-existent, self-creative “Mother-Nature” whose ultimate purposes revolve around random mutation and natural selection being the driving forces of the development of higher, complex life (more on this later). The point he misses here is that evolution is itself, by definition, a creation myth. To illustrate with a simple analogy: We don’t need religion to tell us that there are flaws in a complicated narrative about how pool balls on a table moving around in obedience to the laws of motion, gravity, and friction can also explain where the pool table came from in the first place or who is using the pool stick to put the balls in motion. Mere common sense accompanied with valid reasoning will tell you that you cannot use descriptive rules of observable nature to explain the origin of the entire natural world itself, regardless of how intricate or complicated the theories or arguments may be. Whatever its value may be as an argument, it may be stated at once that this view of a “mother-nature” is quite wrong about facts.

That being said, it should at once seem obvious that a certain degree of mental and literary imagery (including metaphors) are perfectly valid things humans have to use at their disposal to explain that which is beyond our conceptions. For, even the skeptic who wants to believe in a non-Christian, indistinct “spiritual force” has not yet noticed that the use of the word “force” has itself opened the door to all sorts of images about winds, electrical forces, and so on. Anytime we humans try to form some kind of conception of that which is real, we will attach some form of imagery by default, which is just our nature. No matter how hard you try to avoid this, here it is: God is unavoidable. God requires you to make a choice. You are either with Him or against Him, and no middle ground is allowed.

Chapter 64

2010-05-09T21:07:00.000-07:00

If you believe the totality of nature can only exist on causes beyond itself, you have made your first step toward the correct view of theism (which means belief in the existence of God). There is, of course, no question that religious people always claim the whole of creation is for man while science continues to discover that it is not. No one with any degree of respectable intelligence though would suggest that man, or even the entire universe was sufficient to fill the mind of God completely. If we as people are small compared to space and time then surely space and time is a much smaller thing in comparison to God who actually created it. God is beyond all things, both big and small. He is the original cause, the great self-existent I AM.

It is a philosophical mistake and an error in the proper use of correct judgment to assume Christianity ever proposed that all of creation was made for man. The universe was made partly for reasons we do not know, but we are a part of it, that we do know. There may be countless bodies floating in space much like (or unlike) our Earth that harbor life. There may be endless variations of life that exist elsewhere of which we can form no good conception. These other forms of life may or may not have needed redemption like the human race did, we just do not know. The universe may have many things in it that are quite dissimilar in nature from life as we know it in which God is interested though we are not.

The critical point here is this: We must never falsely assume size is in any way related to our importance in the eyes of God. We should not allow the fact that we ARE small to make us FEEL small or somehow insignificant. God is incomparably enormous and immeasurably superior and beyond anything our finite, little minds can possibly imagine, but always remember: He created us. He loves us. That makes YOU special on a cosmic scale. You DO matter in the eyes of God, and He is intensely interested in a personal love relationship with you.

Chapter 63

2010-05-09T20:07:00.001-07:00

A very contemporary, false philosophical viewpoint propagated by the trendy, self-appointed intelligentsia in our society is that the more we discover the vastness of the universe and our small, seeming insignificance in proportion –this somehow strengthens and reinforces the idea that our entire existence is purely a naturalistic byproduct of mere chance. This philosophical viewpoint actually predates Darwinism, and seems to continue enjoyment in the limelight as the best argument against religious doctrine to date. (I will formally refute Darwinism in much greater detail later on in this book, as this should help any of my readers who falsely suppose belief in the creative forces of evolution enables a sophisticated brand of atheism)

Christian philosophers, poets, preachers, writers, and moralists have spoken about the wonder, awe, and vastness of the universe and our comparatively tiny spatial insignificance for thousands of years without even the slightest inclination that the facts about our smallness in any way conflicted with their theology. Why should we now eagerly seek to discard Christianity on the grounds that the universe is big and we are small? What is the source of this proliferation of aggressive ignorance?

If from the hugeness of the universe and the smallness of Earth we thus deduce and imagine Christianity is therefore false, in all fairness, we should then have some good idea of what the universe would look like if it were true. Any increase in our knowledge of nature or the universe can never alter the credibility of the philosophical doctrines that relate to Christianity one way or the other. We should never confuse ourselves that some kind of advance in science makes it harder to accept religious beliefs. The Christian faith has always presented itself as something outside of nature and as such, unscientific.

All possible knowledge depends on the validity and soundness of good reasoning, to some extent. You can make intellectual progress and grow if you remove or suppress the purely negative, emotionally restrictive sensations bellowing up inside you upon realization that you have harbored philosophical errors in judgment of this magnitude. At some point, you must seriously ponder whether your instinctive repugnance to such a confrontation with truthfulness is really rational, or whether it is merely emotional. I strongly suggest you place more emotional emphasis on the rational logic of faith, which is reasonably sound and intellectually superior to atheism on every conceivable level. Stretch yourself to grow beyond your present sphere of understanding.

Chapter 62

2010-05-08T10:43:00.000-07:00

Great advances in the realm of psychology and countless research studies in neurobiology have officially overthrown the traditional perception that the ONLY problems addicts suffer from are that they are weak, bad, morally bankrupt people who are unwilling to control their behavior or lives. If this expression is to be accurately understood, while the aforementioned portrayal is obviously true to some extent, there is something going on with an addict well beyond his reasonable ability to control his behavior as it relates to obsessing, craving, and actively using drugs. I am a recovering addict myself and have every right to speak on issues relating to this –because I have first-hand experience. I know what it is like to be truly moral; I know what it is like to be deplorably immoral; and I also know what it is like to have raging compulsions beyond any human control.

Let us quickly examine the typical life-cycle of an addict. A person starts off with some sort of pain; it can be emotional, physical, and/or social. This person, by most societal standards is basically good, but finds his pain difficult to deal with. Since this person has an inner conflict or discomfort he does not know how to resolve (this could be difficulty fitting-in, anxiety, abuse, peer pressure…), he looks for a solution to the problem.

This is where the moral dilemma presents itself: Most people have troubles and struggles with life at some point, but the difference here is this person chooses drugs as his solution for one reason or another. The drugs appear to solve the problem and so a high value is mentally associated with its use. But this person believes a lie. Depending on the types of drugs used, full-blown addiction sets in very quickly, and he loses his power to choose. Casual, recreational drug use quickly turns into an uncontrollable obsession that traps the person in an endless cycle of craving, using, withdrawing, abstaining, and relapsing. The obsession is so powerful that all else in life means nothing, and the addict is even perfectly willing, at times, to die for his drug. Once the newly minted drug addict crosses the threshold of experiencing cravings, he’s in for the ride of his life.

The drugs heavily train the “pleasure sensors” of the brain, and simultaneously cause an absolute horror of the pain of physical withdrawal. He then seeks to reward himself with the pleasure that the drugs provide, accidentally increases his physical tolerance level, and will do anything to keep using. Now he experiences a downward spiral in his life; the drugs of abuse have permanently changed him both mentally and physically. There is a massive change in his original personality in that he will now start to harbor secret hatreds and hostilities and look for other people to blame for his condition. And all of this started with one simple immoral, bad decision: To believe the lie that drugs are the cure-all. The medicine that cures becomes the poison that kills.

As I have stated at the beginning of this book, the core of all addiction starts with a problem of belief; and consequently it can be treated by correcting false beliefs over time. Drug addiction, then, results from the immorality of excessive or continued use of habit-forming drugs in an attempt to resolve the original underlying symptoms of discomfort or unhappiness. That is why I believe it is helpful to have a full understanding of the psychological components that relate to addiction with the accompanying pursuit of spirituality. First things first though, if you are an advanced alcoholic or drug addict, you MUST go to a rehabilitation facility for an extended period of time to give yourself a chance at life, and that is as simple as I know how to make it. Remember that when you discover truth, even when it is placed before your eyes in its purest nature, you are not to expect from it any assistance other than that of a lighthouse or guidepost.

Chapter 61

2010-05-08T07:18:00.000-07:00

There are two common views of addicts: one is the “bad person” view and the other is the “chronic illness sufferer” view. I believe a simple resolution to the contradistinction is this: It is clearly a combination of both. No matter how you view the problem though, these fundamental truths remain: There is no cure for addiction; a lifelong fight against the compulsions is required; the fight gets easier with time.

If we are to possess knowledge, any progress we may experience in the advance of truth discovery does not raise us above the need for occasional reproof and correction. It is true though that our correct judgments, with respect to their proper context, must not contradict themselves. The pursuit of greater knowledge or understanding can initially reach its aim with perfect ease as merely a logical proposition to separate the content from the context to discover if there are deeper interrelationships. There are, of course, many issues that do not fall within the scope of my present inquiry, but this by no means hinders me from uncovering a systematic method of truth discovery which must always be recognizable by means of obedience to the principles of non-contradiction.

On such a difficult subject as understanding the disease concept of addiction, a task with which general logic will have nothing to do, I must go beyond the given conceptions thus without being contradictory. For inasmuch as the conception of cause, in and of itself, must have a basis outside that of being a reproduction of distinctive, misguided imagination. Indicating the general conditions for rules or the case to which the rules must be applied is formal and entirely without content here. Our duty at present is to render as conceivable whether or not the principles that govern the conditions are sufficient as a criterion for truth.

Upon further discovery, I seek to make a positive use of these principles; for it is quite possible to possess truth in accordance with a synthesis of multiple conceptions. Such knowledge would, as such, never amount to anything and would be completely without validity apart from a simple treatment approach. One way to successfully treat an addict for his self-inflicted disease is through compelling moral rehabilitation over a long period of time.

Chapter 60

2010-05-07T10:30:00.000-07:00

One goal of therapy is to find out what caused the problem in the first place. Psychotherapies are known as the talking therapies, and are based upon the notion that inappropriate thinking, either at the conscious or unconscious level, is the cause of the problem. Behavior therapies (including classical and operant conditioning) focus on the notions of inappropriate learning; that somewhere in our lives we learned inappropriate responses to stimuli.

In classical conditioning, the use of a process of systematic desensitization is the technique where you can learn to experience the previously anxiety provoking stimulus or situation while in a relaxed state, so your fear can be slowly minimized. This process is the behavioral modification technique of pairing a naturally occurring stimulus and response chain with a different stimulus in order to produce a response which is not naturally occurring (also known as Pavlovian or respondent conditioning). I believe therapeutic techniques of counter-conditioning can, for example, be used to assist an addict who must face his “old playground,” and not be triggered or emotionally disturbed to such a degree that his sobriety is threatened.

Behavior therapies based on operant conditioning (another behavior modification technique) basically work on the premise that you have a response which is followed by a reinforcement that increases the likelihood of a repeat of the behavior. Another therapeutic technique that I find interesting is a form of reductionist thinking, which is basically trying to get to the lowest level of what motivates us. This can be a helpful exercise for anyone struggling with a wide assortment of disturbing issues.

You may ask: Why all the discussion of psychology and its various behavior modification techniques? My answer is: Why not? There is no knowledge that we should fearfully regard as off limits. I consider any exploration into deeper knowledge as potentially advantageous, not to mention, it’s quite interesting. And often, addicts and alcoholics have many psychological problems outside their addiction issues (such as anxiety, stress, bewilderment, depression, despair, a sense of gloom…). There is a fundamental point in all of psychology though, and it is this: Any change that happens in your life must come from you and your own efforts. Although a psychologist or therapist can direct you toward truth and understanding, no one can do the work for you.

Psychology, in one sense, is not about getting rid of symptoms, or about waging war, or getting control of anything. Instead, it is about making peace with, by listening to and understanding, your symptoms. And curiously enough, once you listen to, rather than fear your symptoms, you might be inculcated with a sense of wisdom that could become a great blessing to your life. The light of truth, or depth of insight, however, is not necessarily sufficient in and of itself to bring about permanent behavioral change.

For initial psychological change to occur, you must react to insight with shock and alarm. Your unrepentant, blind heart must feel sorrow; sorrow for all the injury and pain that it has inflicted on others while trapped in its own blindness. You will no longer be able to blame others for the degree of your own misery. Instead, you can see the ugliness and evil of your own behavior for what it is. Shocked by the past, you can be motivated to change the present. And so it can be fairly deduced that one qualifying condition required to initiate lasting psychological change is: Sorrow.

Chapter 59

2010-05-05T16:16:00.000-07:00

Your faculty of judgment has not been sufficiently exercised if you think you must give up all pretentions to knowledge without understanding that this distinguishing feature in our human nature is undoubtedly of great utility. I have noticed that in recovery, opposition to the value of our knowledge seems to circulate with almost universal indulgence, and any challenge to this seems to be on the order of blasphemy and absurdity. Continual, insufficient use of correct judgment is properly that which is commonly called stupidity, and for such a failing, I know of no remedy with dignity that is not utterly wonting. Here again, we find philosophy is called upon to apply all of its intensity and penetration as an element of necessity.

If we are making progress we will be able, with very little trouble, to use knowledge to lead us to truth, both good and bad. It is a requirement that we understand the difference between good and bad –without attaching irrational or imaginary constraints to the validity of this recognition, as this is a quick measure of our mental health capacities. Truth is either good or bad, there is little gray area; and the way in which we adjust ourselves to its implications is of extreme importance.

I will concede that truth sometimes presents itself to us in ways that allows us to turn around our thinking without any necessity of understanding the connections between cause and effect. But this does not rule out the value of understanding how cause and effect works. If we sought to free ourselves from the consequences of cause and effect without extracting the function of cause, a pure form of sensibility might appear to us. We might find that the truth behind the cause that led to the effect could teach us a valuable lesson.

When facing truth, if we do not wish to return to the state of utter ignorance from which we started, we must not afterwards complain of the obscurity or the obstacles in our path along the way to discovering it. My personal rule of thumb is this: Always endeavor to enlarge your sphere of understanding by using governing determinant rules that demand proof from either experience or from reason without betraying to a lamentable degree the effort that this exercise requires. And do not confuse difficulty with complication.

Chapter 58

2010-05-04T23:11:00.000-07:00

When dealing with the philosophical foundations of the psychology of addiction (which is a hobby of mine as a layman), it is important to set forth what my viewpoint of philosophy is: It is merely a reflective re-evaluation of our thoughts, impressions, theories, procedures, and concepts which raises issues that cannot be settled by arbitrary fiat or by appeal to authority. That being said, I would now like to examine a few other philosophical issues that relate to the psychology of addiction.

In psychology, cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on the notion that it is inappropriate thought that is the cause of all problems. Sometimes it is not our environment that is causing us the trouble, but rather it is the way we look at our environment and how we react to it that matters. This is a key initiative for us in recovery. Can you identify which ideas in your head qualify as false beliefs in the areas of how you react to environmental stimuli? (It is important to point out here that defective thinking is only one of the many problems an addict has, and this is not the primary motivator in the sustenance of addictive use –that would be an area governed by the disease of addiction which is very real, though self-imposed, and deadly if left untreated.)

A cognitive behavioral therapist would tell you: If you have irrational or inappropriate thoughts, you want to turn it around and think in a different way. The therapist acts more in a directive way, and will help you change your thoughts by telling you what to think and do on the conscious level. Since you do have the ability to control your own thoughts to some degree, you just need directions on how to manage yourself. You can make progress by noticing your bodily reactions to anxiety and nervousness, for example, by focusing dependence on the independent variable of what you can do differently this time instead of robotically reacting on autopilot. Since we all know the definition of insanity (doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result), perhaps we can and should try something new.

People respond to incentives, although not necessarily in ways that are predictable or obvious; and consequently, the most powerful anticipatory reality in that corner of the universe is the law of unintended consequences. A good quasi-therapeutic technique to assist someone with directive questions that are designed to lead them toward the answers they need is this: Use motivators, incentives, influences, and invigorating reassurances. As I have stated before, people need to see change as a way of gaining advantage. In other words, help people to focus not on what they are giving up, but on what they are gaining. I will explain a little more on the topic of unintended consequences in a later chapter, so stay tuned.

Chapter 57

2010-05-04T21:49:00.000-07:00

Pride is the one sin that, the more we have of it, the more we hate to see it in other people. The degree in which we react with self-righteous indignation toward someone exhibiting pride is a measure of our own. As discussed in the previous chapters, there are two primary categories of pride we should concern ourselves with in recovery: the narcissistic, arrogant type and the “false pride” type. We know what arrogance looks like and we all hate it, but what does “false pride” look like?

I believe there are two different types of false pride. One is where you try to gain respect, adoration, and recognition from others through intentional, fake appearances (in other words, you lie about your accomplishments to gain unearned respect). An example of this would be a man who has superficial self-confidence and pretends to be more than he is (I could go into great detail here to explain the hidden psychological motivators that might fuel this, but we'll get into that later). The other type of false pride is also known as "false humility," which is simply giving off the appearance of humbleness when secretly harboring prideful intentions and feelings. An example in the exposition of this type would be: Someone who, rather than just graciously accepting a nice compliment, would unnecessarily downplay themselves in an effort to fish for more flattery to inflate their ego.

A truly humble person with an accurate, confident self-image that is based on their identity in Christ would simply reply to a compliment with a nice “thank you.” This would reflect a proper self assessment of who they were, rather than focus too much on what they’ve done. This is extremely difficult to do, but we all must appeal to this higher standard of ourselves with the help of God. In summary: Pride is damaging to both ourselves and others, whether it be true or false. Humility is accurate self-knowledge; the good with the bad; being comfortable with who you are and not pretending to be what you are not; it is honest. When all is said and done, I would rather be fool in the eyes of man than a fool in the eyes of God.

Here is a quick little checklist to keep in mind about us: self-image = the picture of your soul, self-esteem = maintaining self-image, self-confidence = practicing self esteem, pride = overinflated self-confidence, ego = arrogant self-confidence, vanity = exhibiting pride and ego. Do you see the connections?

It is difficult to keep our confidence in check with humility. A simple picture of the right kind of confidence would be having an accurate self-image not too high, not too low, but just right. All of us who are members of the human race are at any moment in danger of allowing pride to creep into our psyche, it can be very subtle. The danger in overlooking pride in ourselves is that it strains our relationships and reduces our ability to influence others in a positive way.

Chapter 56

2010-05-03T17:11:00.000-07:00

(chapters 55, 56, and 57 are all my best attempts to summarize some teachings that I learned by researching the subject matter of pride in a book and a few articles that I read... I have avoided putting my normal philosophical spin on things, and I hope my readers enjoy it)

In the previous chapter we examined pride and its adjuncts. Now let us consider another kind of pride that is often overlooked; and that is self-pity. When a man is being prideful he is focused too much on self, which is exactly what is happening with anyone self-absorbed in a sense of failure. People who seemingly espouse endless variations of self-pity (or sometimes called “false pride”) think they might conceal their motives of wishing they could be recognized or considered more important than others.

The prideful and overly self-focused person is one who complains or whines about the fact they are not getting what they deserve, or that they are not elevated and esteemed as they think they should be. When they find these desires unfulfilled, they become even more inwardly attentive and continue the vicious cycle. Basically it all boils down to this: Proud people believe life is all about them –their happiness, their accomplishments, and their worth. But what about God?

Do you see the inherent problems with being unthankful to God for what good gifts and talents He has given you? Do you see a problem with focusing too much on what you don’t have as opposed to what you do have? Do you see a problem with being angry at God for what you perceive as unfairness? Thinking on matters such as this poses great difficulty for most of us (especially me), but it is helpful to our growth to try and change into who God wants us to be. And that is loving, selfless, thankful people who seek to give God all the glory and seek none for ourselves.

Chapter 55

2010-05-03T12:20:00.000-07:00

Humility is the opposite of pride. You cannot have humility where pride exists, and subsequently it is one of the most hated sins in the sight of God. We find a message in Proverbs 16:5 which says “Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord; assuredly he will not be unpunished.” (NASB) We also find another passage in Proverbs 26:12 which says “Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.” (NASB)

The question to ask yourself is not, “Do I have pride?” but, rather, “Where is my pride?” and “How much of it do I have?” and “What can I do to resist my pride?” At the center of our sinful nature is the inclination to think too highly of ourselves at the expense of loving others. The great preacher Charles Swindoll once said, “The world’s smallest package is a man wrapped up in himself.” Since it is obvious we are to avoid pride, let us consider a brief explanation of what it is.

There are six different Hebrew words used for pride, and all of them convey the following: lifting up, highness, magnification, rebelliousness, or presumptuousness of self. In Greek, the words for pride occur in two categories, one of which is “straining or stretching one’s neck” (as if to hold one’s head up high because of what he has accomplished or made) or “to magnify, or be haughty.” The other category in Greek conveys “blindness,” or the concept of being “enveloped in smoke.” Basically all throughout the Scriptures in both the Hebrew and Greek languages, we find that prideful people are portrayed as simply having too high a view of themselves. We learn that while we can be self-important and high up in the clouds in our own thinking, we are actually blind.

Here is the plain truth: In our sinful nature, we are blinded to our pride, blinded to God’s truth, and consequently blinded to reality. Pride is often indiscreet and very subtle, and is easily undiscerned by most people. It is more commonly cherished than spoken against, and it can take many clever forms. The various words in the Bible used to describe the character attributes of pride are the following: vainglory, boasting, conceit, loftiness, arrogance, haughtiness, presumption, being puffed up, high mindedness, scoffing, and self-seeking.

In the Bible, we never find the message “you’re thinking too lowly of yourself,” or “you should consider yourself more important than others.” In fact, quite the opposite is true. The fascinating insight about God’s plan for humanity is this: We are given many Biblical illustrations of how pride appears, and Scripture tells us to stop focusing on ourselves and what we want –and if we do, God will meet our needs. This requires walking by faith, not by sight. And since this very thing goes against our nature, we discover it as one more piece of evidence of God’s design.

Chapter 54

2010-05-03T11:33:00.000-07:00

In AA meetings, you will occasionally encounter self-appointed “AA Police” who, in a seeming desperate desire to inflate their own self-importance in ludicrous and preposterous excess of its natural function, will try to regulate discussion topics, attitudes of attendees, types of words used, use of spiritual terms, nonuse of spiritual terms, and promote endless discussions of pure AA history ad-nauseam. Unfortunately, these types somehow think airing their own lengthy opinions is in some way helping others achieve sobriety; when in actuality, it is isolating certain addicts, pushing them away, and making them feel unwelcome. When you go to an AA meeting with a troubled heard, if you don’t share, you’re not there. Everyone should feel free to briefly discuss whatever is on their mind; with of course, a primary focus on what can be done to resist their alcoholic tendencies and obsessions.

It is important to remember this: Never promote the program ahead of the person. If anyone has a problem with the way in which people share their experience, strength, hope, and troubles, it is sometimes best to remain silent and resist prideful, intimidating remarks that could discourage them from sharing openly what is on their heart. You never know when someone is teetering on the edge of disaster, and maybe if they just come in the room and spill what is on their mind without fear of censorship, they might feel a little better and make it through another day clean and sober.

In many cases it is better to listen to another alcoholic or addict rather than listen to yourself speak to them. This is called working a program of selflessness, which is a reversal of our natural inclinations. And as usual, we come up against something which is simple but not easy. Everyone has a tendency to be right in their own eyes; and even if you ARE right, it takes more strength to listen to someone else with love, gentleness, kindness, meekness, and care.

Chapter 53

2010-04-30T22:39:00.000-07:00

(I would like to take a break from writing philosophy, as it is extremely difficult and time consuming to think out. Here is a nice chapter written in very relaxed language to express some important views in theology)

According to the great theologians, the cardinal (which is a theological term meaning “important” or “key”) virtues for everyone are prudence (using practical common sense to think out what you are doing), temperance (going the right length with your pleasures), justice (fairness to others), and fortitude (strength of mind that enables you to endure pain or encounter danger). If we seek to grow spiritually, we must pursue these virtues and ask for God’s help.

Your biological life was derived from your parents, and so in a sense, you are only maintaining a life that was given to you. If you do not feed your body, or in some way neglect its upkeep, it will wither away. In the same way, your spirit life was given to you by God, and so you are only maintaining a spirit life that was freely given to you. If you do not manage your spirit life, it will also wither away and become unproductive and barren. When it comes to living a life in loving obedience to moral principles (or virtues), everyone needs to be reminded far more often than they need to be instructed. At base, most of us know what we should do; we just have difficulty doing it.

If we know there is a moral government over men, it follows there must be a Moral Ruler to administer that government, and of course that ruler is God. Moral laws are given to regulate the conduct of men in their relations both to God and to one other. And coming from so high a source (nothing is higher than God), we may feel confident they would be in perfect harmony with the eternal principles of right, that have their basis in the nature of God, and their expression in the revelation of His will, and their authority in His absolute sovereignty. From all this, we may know that morality is clothed with the infinite authority that belongs to the Sovereign Ruler of the universe.

Chapter 52

2010-04-30T22:22:00.000-07:00

Formal deductive reasoning is analytic by nature. Though complex, it contains no new information, it simply rearranges what we already know; which is to say the conclusions implicitly follow necessarily from the premises. In some instances a simple analysis is not objectively valid and for that reason it cannot imitate superior logic. Thus we find ourselves involved in a difficulty which did not originally present itself within our normally recognized sphere of validity.

We are not barred from appealing to ultimate truth. It remains doubtful whether my project of thought has in every respect gone beyond the former conditions of normal sensibilities that correspond to the collective unity of thought shared by most people. I recognize that we do of course make use of a great number of empirical impressions without any use of deduction, with actions simply being a dissent from experience.

I find an extended range of practical application with the functions and orders of those mental powers which help differentiate the question of right from the question of fact, which is directly contemporaneous with the certainty we associate with formal logic. It is to me then, understanding, judgment, and reasoning that is entirely consistent without being derived from experience. If we are in possession of disagreeing conceptions that are not objectively valid and thus do not belong to the logic of truth, this should be of such a nature as a simple phenomena that would be without significance or be rejected as only a change in quantity, not in quality.

Chapter 51

2010-04-29T17:03:00.000-07:00

If you want to develop sustainable movement in your life, you are obligated to apply an arduous determination of the mind. This movement must be perceptually specified without resistive hostility to foreign impressions that might enable you to hope for greater success. You should, however, carefully and inexorably apply yourself solely to the pursuit of truth that cannot easily exchange its proper function from the laws of correct thinking that govern it.

I have learned that if you are too easily seduced into confessing your own ignorance before going through a true exercise of a methodical elucidation, you may sell yourself short and unknowingly enter a mock contest in which no victor is ever crowned with permanent possession. If you combine the elements of all your knowledge without yielding to spontaneity in the production of conceptions, you can enjoy nothing but the purest form of thought.

Chapter 50

2010-04-28T18:52:00.000-07:00

Albert Einstein (perhaps the smartest man who ever lived aside from Isaac Newton) once said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.” Of course I agree with Einstein and would even like to go a step further to suggest if you blend imagination with knowledge, you get art. Modern art can take many clever forms and is rarely appreciated, especially if it is complex or abstract. There are, of course, a great many reasons for this –not the least of which is that most people are simply not willing to invest any effort to understand the artist or his motives and purposes.

In one sense, as a reader of my writings, you are viewing my personal artwork in the form of words, which upon closer examination, can be clearly seen as a formulation of my ideas and theoretical viewpoints. At no point have I made any suggestion that my views were necessary accoutrements to a successful program of recovery, in the same way that an artist would never suggest his particular painting fully represented all there would be to see or appreciate in the art-world. One primary reason my art (or, what you would see as my “book”) is deep, complex, and sometimes abstract is that I seek to stimulate the minds of my readers in a way that forces them to ponder and reflect on matters affecting us all –in a very broad sense. I consider my readers to be important, and I want to bring them value and make their time investment in reading this worthwhile.

In order to appreciate my book, it is interesting to know how much effort goes into all this, for example: Chapter 49 took me about 7 hours to write, as I had to think extremely hard and consider many possible objections and potentialities… not to mention, I revised it about 5 times to amend my grammatical mistakes and so on. Much of what you read here has taken me YEARS to think out, and I am finally getting all this knowledge out of my head and “onto paper” so I can pass it on. Many of my thoughts are very deep, so if you read it too quickly, you will miss it... read all of this very slowly and let it sink in. Overall, my book (you see the chapters posted here on this blog as I write them) is coming along just fine quite frankly, and I am thoroughly enjoying the exercise of writing it.

Many books have been written on the subject of recovery, but none quite like this. As I have stated before, a reader of my writings will be taken on a fully encompassing intellectual joyride all over creation with no particular rhyme or reason. Consider it an exercise. We all know that in order to achieve results from physical exercise, we must push ourselves beyond our normal limits… this makes us grow. Well the same principle applies with the mind: If you want it to grow, you need to exert, strive, groan, and push forward toward the objective of receiving benefit. The worst that could happen would be that you learn a few new ideas that could be helpful. Now that’s not so bad is it?

Chapter 49

2010-04-26T22:51:00.000-07:00

In this chapter, you will find one of my brief attempts at philosophy as a layman. I would like to discuss the perfect ideal of wisdom and virtuousness as being our chief and essential prototype, and see if this leads us to rational faith in God through simple deductive logic governed by our ability to reason.

Perfect virtue and wisdom in their purest form are ideals. At any time, we are free to use this standard of perfection to reform ourselves without pretentiousness. We are, however, bound to confess the impactful measurement that our pragmatic elements of pain and pleasure impose on this ideal as a reliable motive source; otherwise it could fully govern our moral actions without difficulty. And accordingly we would recognize any abstraction from the pursuit of this ideal as contradictory to the sum of all possibilities. It is necessary to possess a knowledge of all that is possible within our power despite an awareness of our deficiencies, as this ideal is the only proper indefectible absoluteness.

In and through it, the ideal is the correct and highest prototype of all things, and an incongruous detraction from it could be considered little more than an illogical division between competing forms of false reality. We may discover that any demotion of the highest presentment of truth to our minds that has a connection to a possible perfected experience would be the source of a problematic illusion, and could even be treated as a phenomenon peculiar to the human mind. In consideration of our sinful nature, this would not be unpredictable.

We are free to choose our interpretations and opinions of reality, but we are not free to choose the facts that govern our reality. We might rightly presuppose this homogeneous nature of things as primitive and thus, original. Since there cannot be an infinite regression of causation, there has to be an original cause; thus, anything truly original befittingly originates from God. Consequently, the only deduction we are left with cannot be considered as anything other than an aggregate of the highest reality, the sum total of all possibilities filtered through the limited power and understanding granted us by God.

This is all so palpably correct, seemingly simple, and even intuitive. It is at least quite clear that our intuition to this standard of correctness and perfection, which is only possible by our capacity to receive clear directives from God, should resign itself upon the faculty of sensation. We now have proof of the nature of empirical intuition from an undeviating certainty outside ourselves, which is yet another design clue God left for us leading right back to Him. This then characterizes a peculiar nature of the origin of knowledge, intuition, reason, pragmatism, and the other various kinds of certitude available to us. We do not enlarge, but rather disfigure ourselves when we lose sight of our respective limits; however, we are rather foolish not to aspire toward the perfect ideal set before us and within us.

Chapter 48

2010-04-26T18:43:00.000-07:00

(here is a chapter written in painful simplicity to appeal to a broad audience)

It is important that we (in recovery) do a daily moral inventory. Since it is clear we are to ASPIRE toward an ideal of goodness (despite our incapability to achieve that perfect ideal), I would now like to examine some of our God-given faculties of the soul that empower us to make such progress.

The first empowering faculty we possess is consciousness, which enables us to know ourselves as distinct from other people. By this we recognize our thoughts, feelings, and actions –what we know, think, and feel. Another faculty of the soul is reason, which enables us to discover truth, acquire knowledge, and to form opinions or judgments. Reason enables us to manage our life skillfully and to pursue happiness successfully. Under the guidance of reason, a man will act intelligently and responsibly. Another empowering faculty of the soul is willpower, which enables us to choose or refuse -to do this or that. Willpower enables us, at least to the extent of our natural strength and capability (which is suspended in active addiction), to do as we please. Willpower qualifies a man as an independent agent, free to act voluntarily to do as he sees fit. One last faculty of the soul is our emotional nature, which is indeed quite a great power (though if it is unchecked, emotions can be dangerously treacherous). Our emotions include such feelings as love, happiness, desire, joy, anger, sadness, envy, hatred, selfishness, covetousness, and greed. We must control our emotions because they are the moving forces of our soul; they impel us to action.

We are also given a transcendent moral faculty, or a sense of right and wrong. Our moral sensibilities enable us to judge whether a human action deserves to be approved and rewarded or reprimanded and punished. The sense of moral obligation that we all feel moves our conscience and willpower to act upon our emotions which then positions our actions and determines our life results. Do you see the connection? All of our faculties seamlessly work in harmony to produce either good or bad, and the choice is up to us individually.

The next obvious (and simple) question may be: What then qualifies an action as either good or bad? Actions are either good or bad, depending on the qualities found in them. Qualities that make an action good are willing obedience to rightful authority, truthfulness, honesty, unselfishness, love, charity, and so on. The qualities that make an action bad are the very opposite of those just mentioned such as disobedience, untruthfulness, dishonesty, selfishness, hatred, greediness, and so on.

Though it is easy to notice a logical relationship between all our God-given faculties of the soul, doing the right thing is seldom easy. An easy trap we all quickly fall into is pride, vanity, and covetousness. To covet means to desire too strongly what belongs to another. Not only are we to watch our thoughts that we may think no evil, but we must also watch our desires that we may wish for nothing beyond what we may justly obtain. This practice is quite difficult, to say the least, but is required of us nonetheless.

Chapter 47

2010-04-24T21:44:00.000-07:00

Sometimes a wise, quiet, humble leader will restrain his use of power for the good of others. A leader of this type would focus on the provision of intellectual stimulation to responsibly empower those around him and he would also try to set an example by doing what is right. It may be difficult to discern and isolate motives for this degree of constraint in the expression of ideas; though a true leader does what he knows is right despite an immediate ability to understand or appreciate the reasons why it is right.

Any expression of ideas exercises a definite influence upon the audience. One train of thought is almost always followed by its contradiction, and no feature known to our reasoning ability is immune to this. The term regression can be fairly applied to any process by which we submit to a selective interweaving of unconstructive fundamentals maladapted for the transformation of hope into certainty. I believe we should always move forward. The only time it is necessary to renounce all claims to the restitution of logical thought processes may be when the means of expression are regarded as meager in comparison with the health and happiness of those to whom it applies. The person is always more important than the idea.

Good ideas and thoughts should proceed with tolerable frequency in a normal method of presentation, and should not be guided or influenced by fear or intimidation. The common and easily accessible forms of expressing disagreement, if unchecked by wisdom, serve the purposes of representing impulses. Conceptions which stand in opposition to one another should eventually yield to an ideal of loving acceptance, tolerance, and love.

Everyone has a tendency to see the world and others only through their own needs. Here is another thought: In the business world, it is well known that a man with an obsession has very little sales resistance –and a similar principle here applies in recovery. Anyone who is obsessed with the veracity and proclamation of his own ideas at the expense of others has very little sales resistance to unrighteousness.

Chapter 46

2010-04-23T20:28:00.000-07:00

Since it is thoughts that occupy the space in your head (so to speak), this is where the center of your life is. If you have a disproportionate number of negative thoughts in your mind, the few good thoughts you do have will get easily brushed aside (for some odd reason) in favor of a mental state that begs to be “medicated” in order to relieve the “pain.” Negative emotions will also influence your moods and then cause your actions to vary widely with no good direction. So, if you do not carefully manage and control your thoughts, you cannot control your behavior –or life.

One way you can control your thoughts is to detach yourself from them occasionally, think before you act, and try not to react to negativity. Remember that you do not have to act on every impulse, and are better off slowing down and progressing in the way you know you should. This takes patience, courage, character, and experience. The battle is in your head, because that is what controls you –always be mindful of this.

Another helpful tactic to control your thoughts is to recognize and isolate defective, cynical ruminations about life and ask God to help you see things differently. Since you will act on your thoughts, identify and rid yourself of the defective ones –because defective thoughts lead to defective behaviors. Do not let an unhealthy desire become a fire. Instead of regularly inviting foulness into your mind, try being more open-minded and allow fresh, new, healthy ideas to come in instead. This may take great courage, but is well worth the cost (of pride).

I see no good reason to excitedly revel in ignorance or spiritual immaturity and obsessively attract others to follow that path. There is a pathway to Godly wisdom, and each of us can discover it on our own –gently, lovingly, slowly, and kindheartedly. We are all capable of imagining acts of Christian loving-kindness, and that is the class of thoughts I want floating around inside my head today.

Chapter 45

2010-04-23T18:06:00.000-07:00

The question may be asked, is AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) a true and legally valid form of “Group Therapy?” The official answer is, of course, NO. To be even more specific, AA group members (including sponsors) are not licensed therapists, the groups are not granted any state license, the groups have no legal surveillance, the groups are not given any clinical or hospital supervision, and accordingly there are no legal remedies to manage charges that could arise from malpractice, negligence, or wrongful guidance. And to be even more specific (and technical), any AA Group member that is not a licensed therapist is forbidden (ethically and legally) to provide personal psychological or therapeutic advice to anyone for any reason, even if well-intentioned.

An authentic and legally valid “Group Therapy” setting involves an educated, legally licensed therapist who interviews and screens the group participants in advance, leads the group direction and discussion topics, and requires a pre-set number of mandated group sessions. The goal of this therapy is to generate psychological insight and provide helpful instruction to assist behavioral changes in all group members. In this type of setting there is typically an avoidance of any discussion of spirituality, God, religion, or anything of the sort –and more of a focus on the psychology of change (which is helpful to anyone suffering from sensitive or traumatic issues). Anyone in recovery from drugs and/or alcohol will GREATLY benefit from this highly structured form of treatment in addition to regular attendance in AA meetings.

Now this brings up my next point: Is there any similarity or overlap between traditional Group Therapy sessions and AA meetings? The answer is, of course, sometimes yes. An AA Group, however, starts and ends every meeting with a prayer, reads “steps” to connect with God, and is specifically designed to urge all members to rely upon “a Power greater than themselves” to relieve their destructive alcoholic obsessions. AA is a spiritual program designed to lead attendees to a belief in a loving God and seeks to help members “clear away the wreckage” of their past rather than psycho-analyze it. AA Groups have no official leader (other than the chairperson who simply reads off the spiritual creeds), and as such, are not designed to be therapeutic in nature.

The Big Book of AA is about morals and spirituality, plain and simple. AA Group members share “their experience, strength, and hope” after “having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps” in order to “stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety.” AA meetings are about a spiritual program of recovery, NOT therapy, and when the lines are crossed, it creates problems. There is a danger in Group Therapy posing as an AA Meeting and vice-versa, though they are extremely similar in nature, because each has its place.

Chapter 44

2010-04-21T22:56:00.000-07:00

The Bible passage from Matthew 7:1-2 states “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (NIV) There is a critically important characteristic within the proper interpretation of this passage, and generally there are a great many misunderstandings correlated with the proper exercise of its implication. The most common misuse of this teaching is to believe passing judgment of any sort is unacceptable and we should all just do whatever we think is right. That would be a false belief.

In Strong’s Concordance we find the word “judge” can also be translated as “condemn.” Since we are incapable of seeing another person’s heart, we are not to “play god” and condemn or “judge” the other person. The inculcation to be cognizant of our own weaknesses and need for humility is clear; however, we are in NO WAY to be indulgent and tolerant of immorality, depravity, or wickedness in ourselves or others.

Jesus warns us not to judge someone else’s sin when our own sin is even worse… this is a warning against hypocrisy –which is not tolerated by God. The Bible teaches us to learn wisdom and practice discernment though, and there are instances in which we are to avoid certain people because their behavior could unfavorably influence us. If we see another person in the wrong, we are to respectfully point out the truth to them in love, with the hope they will change. The Bible says plainly what we are to do in 2 Timothy 4:2 “...correct, rebuke, and encourage –with great patience and careful instruction.” (NIV)

(implication = the act of implying // inculcation = to teach and impress with frequent repetitions // cognizant = knowledgeable of something especially through personal experience

Chapter 43

2010-04-19T16:54:00.000-07:00

(In response to suggestions, I have decided to include definitions to difficult words in parenthesis as opposed to eliminating them. Always remember to embrace learning and seek to expand your vocabulary.)

One must have the inimical experience of belief in falsehood before he can have the thrill of liberation from its stranglehold on his potential. Each of us has a potential to lead. Any wholehearted disinterest in the abrogation of moral indecency should be vigorously overcome if one seeks to aspire to quality leadership. One key to release a world of untapped capability within each of us is to overcome the pathologically stupid insistence to justify undeveloped self-awareness. (inimical = being unpleasant often by reason of hostility / abrogation = formal act of putting an end to)

That being said, I would like now to examine a little closer some ideas related to effective leadership, as this character development is required of everyone in recovery. How can we ask someone a question expressing appreciative inquiry? If we ask every question beginning with a positive presumption that the other person is alive with endless creative and constructive capacity, how can we use this in order to help steer the answers we know they need in order to help them grow?

I have decided to give a quick outline of my tips for success in this chapter. You will notice I suggest a change from the inside-out, rather than the contrary. Here is my short (and simple) list of how to sow seeds of leadership that reap rewards:

1. Let others know of your intentions and invite feedback on how well you are achieving your goals (don’t forget to actually set goals).

2. When you encounter a problem of any sort, move into problem-solving mode instead of looking to blame others for what went wrong.

3. Honor the confidence of another person. Remember that it only takes one incident of passing along confidential information that can result in a permanent loss of trust by the person whose confidence was violated.

4. Maintain a high level of integrity and reliability. Build a reputation for doing what you know is morally right in spite of consequences.

5. Tell the truth, especially on yourself. Let others know how you’re doing and what you’re thinking.

6. Make trust pay, in terms of receiving rewards. Trust needs to be seen as a way of gaining advantage. Never forget that which gets rewarded gets repeated (this applies to everyone and everything).

7. Keep your behavior consistent with your intentions, or “practice what you preach,” and of course help others do the same –without being quick and eager to judge their shortcomings (as this reveals pride and reflects spiritual immaturity).

Chapter 42

2010-04-16T12:09:00.000-07:00

What makes the process of recovery singularly difficult is that you must hold your spiritual ground against hostile forces which seek to hide and even nullify their very existence. The disheartening expansion of trained ignorance and incorrect thinking involves power struggles that can be seen or unseen, and can be obnoxiously unpleasant at times. I am, however, forced to pick up on these endless variations of disrespect as nothing at all new in the fiery posturing of these agitations. Often we must courteously listen with disinterested attention in order to validate the other person and their seemingly useless viewpoint.

My myriad thought processes are derived from what is called meta-analysis, which can also be referred to as a quantitative and qualitative synthesis of studies. I have learned though that deep thinking creates isolation, but does not a bit of detachment from his audience allow a philosopher to think freely? Through much toil, I have gained theoretical posturing which is not arbitrary, but rather is my source of optimism, potential, and hope. It is important to understand that potential points beyond itself, and accordingly this is the source of hope.

I do recognize we are subject to many temptations, not the least of which is vanity. But despite every effort to pervert my way of thinking, I will resist the easy answers. I shall continue forward against all odds and accomplish what others view as rubbish but what I recognize as a fuller and more complete life. Historically speaking, men who always think they are right have led to wars, slavery, persecutions, racism, chauvinism… and even today we are not free from its gravitational attraction. So all in all, I shall remain humble and teachable, and I urge others to do the same.

Chapter 41

2010-04-13T12:38:00.000-07:00

Even though unguided introspection may yield unnecessary or unconsciously premeditated self-criticism, I still notice it as an unavoidable and elemental advantage to self-awareness if done carefully. It is, however, not enough to effect lasting change. If an addict can be induced to abandon his self-criticism and to pursue the trains of thought which are yielded by concentrating his attention on the more significant matter of an observer’s opinion to the causes of his behavior, more progress can be achieved. By following the conclusions of an honest appraisal, the deductions that may be a consequence of its invariable success should successfully disrupt the destructive patterns and hidden psychological associations that accompany any desire for continued substance abuse.

Any inexorable, obstinate, incongruously self-deprecating admittance of character defects unaccompanied by an urgent action plan for immediate change should be considered as worthless rubbish and indistinct fancies. Once an addict is made aware of the disadvantage in overlooking a vigorous action plan of self-reformation and is holding onto any conception of negative experience which appears confused and meaningless to his memory –and still does nothing, this then satisfies the requirements of inadequate and even derisory self-contentment. (inexorable = not to be persuaded or moved / incongruously = inconsistent within itself / deprecating = to express disapproval of / derisory = pathetically small and scornfully sarcastic)

There is no question that part of the treatment process for an addict should include long-term group psychotherapy (and/or AA meetings) to help address the following typical personality muddles: rebellion, disorderly conduct, defiance, apostasy, hostility, and general moral lawlessness. All in all, there is personal work required on the part of the individual (though not exclusively), the group, and God. I believe no time should be wasted projecting, blaming, or accusing other people or circumstances for our problems, as this is a waste of life. And quality of time is our only common commodity. It has been said that time = life; therefore, waste your time and consequently waste your life. The converse is also true –master your time and accordingly master your life.

Chapter 40

2010-04-11T23:00:00.000-07:00

It may be a huge step to help an addict see how positive outcomes to behaviors closely aligned with spiritual principles are useful, beneficial, preferable, and desirable; however, it may prove difficult to identify and isolate the personal logic used to justify an unconscious willingness to suffer. Though this may be due to a wide variety of misplaced psychological incentives, an addict is perfectly willing to suffer for reasons of at least some significant private values connected with self preservation. The irony here is that the symptom or solution of chemical abuse achieves the opposite end-result. Because of the dual nature of chemicals used as a preventative to pain or a celebration of the absence of pain, an addict learns that drugs are the cure-all. The medicine that cures, in this case, becomes the poison that kills.

Sometimes the delusion of a power position in being a victim is thought to deserve special consideration and may be carefully, yet unconsciously safeguarded against loss; therefore, it may be difficult to achieve an initial breakthrough. I believe an initial treatment approach can simply be asking the addict to envision what a life would look like in the absence of drug use by merely calling upon common sense. Is it possible to learn or visualize life operating any other way? Since we can only do what we have learned how to do, are you teachable? Here we want to identify the apparent personal values, judgments, and convictions that argue against spiritual principles and direct a new life movement.

Curiously enough, addiction is a disease that has foundations resulting from our habits of thought, feeling, and action. I believe it is helpful to attain a complete mastery of ideas linked to the use of drugs and alcohol as inflicting physical damage that must be interrupted, though this knowledge is not to be relied upon as a cure, nor is the disease concept to be used as an excuse for continued drug abuse.

Chapter 39

2010-04-11T19:29:00.000-07:00

Perhaps the greatest literature ever written on the process of recovery from alcohol (and drugs) is the great book Alcoholics Anonymous. One teaching from the book explains that alcoholism (which is a form of addiction) is but a symptom of many deeper lying issues. It also popularized the disease concept of addiction (which was a topic already being seriously discussed among medical professionals at the time), and it helped pave the way for millions to recover. (*special note* If one reads this book through the lens of Christianity, all of its contents open up clearly –and it can function as highly effective witnessing tool used to lead others to an understanding of salvation through faith in God with the subsequent pursuit of spiritual ideals.)

On the matter of symptoms: In the realm of psychology, it is understood that symptoms are chosen without conscious realization on the part of the sufferer; similarly, the symptom would lose its compelling value and significance as an alibi or excuse if truly exposed, understood, and treated. It is important to note here that true and effective understanding of the correlation between cause and symptom will elude an addict in the absence of total and brutal honesty. The symptom (alcohol and drug abuse) as a physical behavior is part of the addict’s general procession of life movement consistent with his unconscious (or conscious) striving toward a subjectively conceived goal, and often he is unaware of it being a faulty guiding characteristic.

We all have the same types of problems: how to earn a living, how to make and keep friends, how to find mates, how to cope with loss… And each of us has a solution to these problems that we answer according to our own perspective and notions. In recovery, we learn how to address and change our faulty solutions. An addict must understand that his symptom (alcohol or drug use) has served as a personal solution to what was perceived as an unsolvable problem. Once the addict understands that his symptom is his own creation that has functioned as a faulty solution, he is free to reconsider, reorient his life, and retrain himself according to known, proven, spiritual principles.

A tremendous feeling of relief may be felt once the addict is permitted to realize that his symptom no longer functions as a necessity or purpose in the pursuit of his new life-plan. He is now liberated to choose and act according to God’s revealed plan for his life. But this is only the beginning.

Chapter 38

2010-04-08T18:18:00.000-07:00

The biggest trap anyone can fall into that prevents success is FEAR (fear of the unknown, fear of failure, fear of success, fear of pain, fear of rejection…). Overcoming fear is a major obstacle for most, but like anything, it is easier to conquer if approached a little bit at a time. Consider the analogy of a weightlifter who desires to lift heavy but can only handle small dumbbells right now –well, you have to start somewhere and at least you’re taking action, so just remember to lift a little more than you did last time and –walla, you’re making progress.

Sometimes people procrastinate and put off till tomorrow what should be done today. Remember that the road to “someday” leads to a town called “nowhere.” How can you get started? Make a decision… right now, to change, and make measurable progress in your life every day. I am now purposefully (and simply) writing in very universal platitudes in an effort to appeal to those who wish to overcome life problems other than just drugs and alcohol.

Sometimes people have no idea what they want, and when they do know what they want, they do nothing about it. Others take action and get easily discouraged with little or no immediate results. Do your actions always work out? No, of course not –many people fail far more often than they succeed. But the key is –keep on trying. Knowledge is not power in and of itself, it only has the potential for power if used properly and accompanied by action.

Here is the pathway to success, God’s way, beautifully laid out for us in the Bible in 2 Peter 1:5-8 “…make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (NIV) For after all, being productive and useful in the Kingdom of God is our ultimate success.

Chapter 37

2010-04-07T04:23:00.000-07:00

Many of the choices we have made in our lives have consequences we would rather live without. That which is a mistake is simply the awareness of a choice we would rather not have made –in light of the regrettable outcome. There is no need to project the responsibility of our choices onto anyone or anything but ourselves. Once we are unbound and self-aware, we are free to choose our response with its attendant consequences –both good and bad.

If you become aware of a potential problem, not correcting yourself is a mistake of an order of magnitude that leads to self-delusion, rationalization (which is telling rational lies), justification, and the general acceptance of a state of inadequate weakness. In Galatians 5:1 we find this message "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." (NIV)

While we are free to choose our response and actions, we are not exculpated from the natural consequences of those actions. This is an area governed by the Law of Human Nature (or Moral Law…). Here is a vivid example from the natural world: We can react to overwhelming stress in our lives by diving in front of a steaming locomotive train raging down the tracks, but we cannot separate the consequence of that train splattering us apart. Here is another thought: When we can faithfully drive a car down a good road following a great road map, why would we purposefully put a blindfold on while driving and ask for forgiveness when we wreck into a tree (over and over…). Once again, what we need to know is quite simple and intuitive, but not easy. I am grateful God’s mercy knows no bounds.

We say the Serenity Prayer and ask for elevated acceptance of others, relief from being judgmental, and the courage to change. What do we have to gain then from confessing other people’s sins? Though it is a very natural character trait for an addict to project, we are required to resist this impulse as it is useless and destructive. Let us focus our efforts on the things we CAN change, and DO something. We can be more resolute, more diligent, more creative, and more positive.

Chapter 36

2010-03-28T17:07:00.000-07:00

On the topic of self-improvement, many times the way you see a problem is itself the problem. Much good can be said of the intrinsic value in a thorough paradigm shift, which when properly consummated can produce an initiation of vigorous self-reformation. One very basic and important shift process is from dependence (depending on others to get what you want) to independence (depending on yourself to get what you want) to interdependence (depending on God and one another to get what everyone wants).

A dependence problem is usually a personal maturity issue and has little to do with circumstances (other than ones we create or exaggerate). Though a step up, independent thinking alone is not suited to interdependent reality. I firmly believe you can create an empowering center of correct maps from high quality values which enables you to resolve problems, capitalize on opportunities, and amalgamate spiritual principles into an upward spiral of growth. Your unique contribution capacity in self-development depends on your level of enthusiastic, passionate change, and this constant movement must become habitual. An advantage in the habit of being proactive is that we acknowledge our behavior is a byproduct of our decisions and values, and we thus refuse to empower those things to control us which are harmful. We must also realize that reactive people are too easily affected by their environment.

Here are some great questions to reflect on: How can you live in greater harmony with the Law of Human Nature? How do you attain a higher degree of positive and useful life results? Do you constantly tell people what you think, rather than listen to them? Do you truly have the skills to listen? How is your mind working, can you describe your current mental state? Are you quick and alert or indolent and lifeless? Do you recklessly attempt to recruit others into your way of thinking despite its known ineffectiveness? Though change is very hard to accept emotionally, and not very endearing, it is necessary for growth. So, all things considered, here is a great life lesson: Be value-driven.

Chapter 35

2010-03-25T22:28:00.000-07:00

The only irresistible impulse is the one which is not resisted. I refuse to entertain the illusory knowledge that sufficiency of truth need lie in bad experience. Every dark corner of evil need not be explored before the pursuit of moral decency is asserted as priority in one’s life.

It has been said by some early in recovery “at least I haven’t done that yet.” Well, by all means, do not feel there is any requirement to perpetrate every conceivable evil before pursuing goodness. Remember that temptations sometimes appear as impulses, and once you have the power to choose, you CAN resist. You MUST resist; for you alone are responsible for how your life turns out.

What happens to a seed when it has no sunlight shining on it? It withers and dies. While we may plant good seeds in our minds, they still need exposure to sunlight; for nothing can grow in the dark. Let us plant good seeds in our mind and ask for God’s light to shine on it so we can grow.

Chapter 34

2010-03-24T11:40:00.000-07:00

Perhaps my greatest antithetical observation in recovery is this: With honest resolution, some well-intentioned people still have a propensity to fragment reality into an endless series of “either-ors;” they think the world to be abstruse. (i.e.: you can’t have your cake and eat it too). I suggest rather than succumbing to the tyranny of “either-or;” the wise will fastidiously embrace the genius of “and.”

Recovery can be a huge, yet selective tent of loving tolerance of differences in thoughtful creativity. I do not mean to suggest fundamental changes of course, but rather advocate open-mindedness toward those with unusual mental capacities. Everyone seems eager and quick to listen to foolishness, why not offer deference to those with cerebral acumen? (ie: don’t make ugly comments to smart people and push them away, this hurts their recovery just like anyone else)

There is no need to exude copacetic, passionate intensity in the wrong area (i.e.: don’t worry about the wrong thing). For, in this line of reasoning, we may find that unanticipated innocence can be drowned in a sea of forgetfulness. We must also not push away unexpected wisdom if and when it is offered; but rather, examine the ideas closely. Though I must acquiesce, all matters involving complication do not share equal nobility (i.e.: when everyone yells “fire!” it is best not to quibble over the definition of “smoke”).

Should we then effortlessly accept unfamiliar philosophy with dogmatism or relativism? Well, the question is both simple and complicated, and the answer is both yes and no. However incongruous this may seem at first, ALL matters upon closer examination need proper balancing. (ie: don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater) Consider this example of proper balancing: We should reject moral relativism, as decency and morality are based on concrete spiritual laws; but we should affably accept other people lovingly as they are, dogmatically. The only change we should help reinforce or encourage in others is closer adherence to the moral law (in AA, this is known as doing a “daily moral inventory”).

Chapter 33

2010-03-22T16:12:00.000-07:00

In order for any person to be well, he must feel love and acceptance. His contributions to others should be considered important no matter how miniscule or trivial. For, what is superficial trivia to one may be trampling upon sacred ground of the heart of another. We find this helpful message in Philippians 2:3 “… consider others better than yourselves.” (NIV)

Along with virtues of loving-kindness toward others, we find self-control is another difficult ideal to aspire to at times. For example, being eager to rush into judgment without investing any effort to collect sufficient details to even make a clear opinion (much less a judgment) is imprudent, dangerous, impulsive, and reckless. Excitedly spreading rumors with limited or no factual data is another type of irresponsible rush to judgment, and may reveal the indolent, insensitive, egocentric motives of a heart bent on evil.

Within self-control, we sometimes find difficulty adjudicating the appropriate, necessary time-interval between acting and reacting. Consider this: Between stimulus and response is a space. In that space lays our freedom and power to choose our response. In these very choices lay our growth and happiness. If we use our spaces wisely, we can experience quality change from the inside out. And remember - effective and lasting change must always come from the inside out, not from the outside in.

While these general platitudes are useful to anyone, addicts must pay particular attention to self-improvement in the areas involving human interaction. It may well be said that knowledge is a mind that is accurately informed. Christ changes men who then change their environment; and the real estate between our ears sometimes needs the most attention. If we ever avoid reflecting on these inward truths by justifying our actions or using rationalizations, we protect ourselves from the experience of change, and cling voraciously to some spiritual semblance of false hope.

Here is the creed I now try to live by (and maybe this will help my readers): I am trying to find that slight glitter of light in a very dark world. I am slowly learning that temptations are suggestions, not commands. I am accepting more responsibility. I am becoming more fully human (as opposed to the animalistic, self-centered, survival-of-the-fittest mentality that I had in addiction). I’m trying to help folks eliminate from their lives the pain over which they have control. And I’m trying to help folks see that the single-minded desire to be respected at the expense of honor is a fast track to misery. I have had to learn many of these lessons the hard way; please learn from my mistakes and grow into who God wants you to be.

Chapter 32

2010-03-19T14:12:00.000-07:00

In the realm of science, the primary model of discovery, according to Francis Bacon (great 16th century philosopher and scientist), is through systematic observation and measurement; basically, the way you get the right answer is by finding the right method of inquiry. This has been popularized in the “scientific method,” which is still used today (as is effective as long as the scientist is free from too much Darwinist philosophy obfuscating his judgment, but that’s another story).

Bacon went on to posit that the way in which natural phenomena occur is traceable to the causes from which they proceeded, and that any moral action is a by-product of the human will, which is governed by belief and spurred on by the passions. While Bacon did not propose any actual philosophy, he argued rather that the method of discovering philosophy (which is simply the pursuit of wisdom) should proceed through inductive reasoning from fact to axiom to law.

These ideas have merit among those wishing to remove themselves from addictive lifestyles. As we travel along, we realize the pursuit of higher ideals spurs our growth and development; but we can support our own growth by asking the right questions before we decide which way to go. Questions lead to answers which lead to choices which lead to direction. The everlasting principle of human choice, an irresistible, yet hazardous constant in the cosmos, must serve as an alluring appeal to help from God in recognition of our powerlessness over our human condition. One simple technique to assist spiritual growth is to ask this simple question: What would a selfless, loving, Christian act look like?

After much reflection, this really is not a philosophical puzzle after all. Once we pray and then answer the question according to known, proven spiritual principles, it should be treated as law to us, never questioned.

Chapter 31

2010-03-19T10:37:00.000-07:00

It is not a new concept that people with a predisposition toward addictive behavior seek purpose in their lives and feel disaffected and alienated from those unlike themselves; hence we see the openhanded, magnetic attachment to gangs, cults, drug cultures, and other forms of exclusivity. To a high degree of accuracy, one can predict the likelihood that cultural influences would help steer a person of this kind into destructive behaviors. It is important, however, to emphasize yet again that predisposition in this kind does not require future dysfunction. A good and simple illustration would be the NFL star that, though he had a crack-addicted mother and grew up in a ghetto, rose above all odds and made something out of his life.

Studies in clinical neurology indicate you can achieve almost any desired change from systematically altering the central nervous system, and addicts have mastered the art (so to speak) of chemical augmentation of the worst variety. It has been rightly said that using illegal narcotics for prolonged periods of time is biologically identical to performing brain neurosurgery with a rusty scalpel.

In treatment, initiation of the process of healing is difficult because most addicts act like grown-up, rebellious children who defy discipline and deny they have a problem. And to complicate matters, their very brains have been altered in such a way (this is where the disease aspect comes into play) so as to hinder recognition of the damaging aspects of their drug and alcohol abuse because they are only capable (at times) of remembering the good feelings produced by the “temporary chemical enhancement.” They have absolutely no idea of the severity of pain they have caused others and the general lunacy that surrounds the tornado-like damage addictive behavior causes everyone. In one sense, because of the brain and central nervous system damage an addict suffers from, he is quite incapable at times of controlling his compulsions or, life for that matter. But the sad truth is, addicts do this to themselves, unknowingly, on purpose. Once they have what in the realm of psychology is known as a “break-through,” and they are able to finally understand what’s going on, it is imperative to teach adherence to spiritual principles immediately, so as to assure the likelihood of future success.

Once the chains of addiction are broken, this is the beginning of the possibility of a brand new life with exciting opportunities. There is no cure for addiction though, and since relapse is always a dangerous potentiality, a life-long fight against these compulsions is required. The fight gets easier with time, but there will always be the danger, so one must stay on guard.

There is so much more to freedom than just being free. If a man was bound in chains in a communist country, fed next to nothing, thought he was going nowhere, and led a life of decadence (even unwillingly at times), suddenly was taken to a free country to do as he pleased… what would he do? What should he do? These are evidentiary questions that I think need to be answered by each individual honestly and openly.

Chapter 30

2010-03-18T23:33:00.000-07:00

Along with the problem of evil, many people struggle to understand the problem of pain and suffering. The reason it is commonly referred to as a problem is that it provides yet another excuse to refuse belief in God, or a sufficient reason to be angry at God, and thus refuse belief by protest. This is a difficult area in philosophy, as many great thinkers over thousands of years have struggled with a concept that works for everyone. It is a very personal issue with strong emotional attachments, and when people are suffering, they don’t need words, they need comfort. Jesus is the only true comforter.

Philosophically speaking, perhaps the failure to understand pain is due to a lack of discernment or use of proper perspective. God, in His infinite wisdom, foresees that we sometimes need pain for reasons which we may not understand but which He foresees as being essential to some ultimate good. Even though God is good and He loves us, sometimes to be good is NOT to be kind. Ever since the ancient Greek thinkers (Plato, Aristotle, Socrates) first posited the problems of evil, pain, and suffering, they realized that sometimes wisdom is taught through suffering, and moral character is formed through hardship by overcoming obstacles. Oftentimes we learn obedience through suffering (addicts are notorious for learning things the hard way, for example). But the important point is this: Learn from it, grow from it. Be who God wants you to be. In Romans 5:3 we find this lesson, “… suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” (NIV)

Many people have uttered bewilderment at why good people suffer, if there is a God, and why evil people sometimes get a “free pass.” The quick and simple answer is, first of all, that there are no good people, so the point is moot. Some people claim to see no justice in this world. Once again, due to lack of philosophical guidance or lack of independent deep thinking, people tend to focus on what is seen rather than on what is unseen. God tells us (in the Bible) there WILL be a judgment day, when evil WILL pay the ultimate price. Please keep in mind that justice delayed is NOT justice denied. This brings up my next point: Since God does not judge man until his life is over; perhaps we should follow that example.

(for further study: please read The Case for Faith by Lee Strobel, Making Sense out of Suffering by Peter Kreeft, and Where is God When It Hurts by Phillip Yancey)

Chapter 29

2010-03-18T14:10:00.001-07:00

Since the beginning, we have had freedom of action based on a certain level of deliberated choices, credentialed judgments, instinctual desires, varieties of personal preference, and other self-deterministic paths which can all be summed in the theological term “free-will.” It is the ultimate will of God that we have free-will, which of course lends the opportunity of evil. While God did not “invent” evil, He did invent free-will, which allows the existence of evil under the theological category of “the permissive will of God.” This is important to understand: Once again, God did not create “evil,” only the possibility of evil; and we as people actualized that potentiality.

And keep in mind, we are under the universal power of God, which means if you don’t like how He set things up you are free to go create your own universe, and if you can’t do that then you better submit to the universal power of God. Apparently God desired a love relationship with his highest beings (us) which can only be possible by allowing us the freedom of choice to love Him on our own, or not. He, of course, knew full well in advance the possibility of evil by allowing us free-will, but still thought it worth the cost.

Many uninformed, unintelligent people claim the existence of evil proves the non-existence of God. This type of ignorance is of the highest order of philosophical inconsistency. First off, if there is no God, where did we get the standard of goodness or decency by which we judge evil as evil? Even the word “evil” would have no meaning. The great ancient theologian Augustine put it best: “If there is no God, why is there so much good? If there is a God, why is there so much evil?” There are countless unfortunates over many thousands of years who, in their eagerness to promote atheism as a viable and (get this) even intellectual alternative to faith in God, search out any excuse not to believe. Funny thing is, I see no advance in intelligence when someone proclaims proof of the non-existence of God (which is EXACTLY what atheists do), since, philosophically speaking, one would have to have absolute knowledge (or be godlike) in order to make such a pronouncement truthfully with any confidence.

Like most things in life, sometimes people plainly do not understand concepts or beliefs in the right way, which leads to doubt, bewilderment, and then apathy. Upon deeper thinking, we find our freedom includes the possibility of sin within the context of its definition. Our actions must be within our powers, such that sufficient moral freedom is required for us to be held responsible for what we do.

Chapter 28

2010-03-16T20:28:00.000-07:00

How could you ever know a law of nature was true? The simple and quick answer: It has been tested in every possible way; every attempt to falsify it has proven unsuccessful; its origins are from the Divine. We have immutable laws of physics (created by God) that govern physical reality. We have mathematics (created by God) to explain observable physical reality. We have ourselves, human beings, (created by God) that are subject to unassailable Laws of Human Nature. What is the source of our ignorance and confusions? What constitutes a virtuous and decent life? Why should we care? What happens if we don’t care? What is the ultimate purpose and fate of man? (a little clue: your trusty little Bible has these answers if you know where to look)

For present purposes, let us discover additional clues about the Laws of Human Nature that we can find out on our own steam. The metaphysical (which is simply the philosophical term for the supernatural) origins of math, music, logic, and reason (things only accessible to humans) should increase our curiosity to learn more about God and appreciate our Great Creator. Whenever delving into discovery-mode (as I like to term it), it is crucially important to embrace a proper attitude of respect, love, admiration, worth, and utmost reverence for God FIRST, then go ahead and see what we can learn through that lens.

The great Pythagoras (ancient mathematician) argued ultimate truth only expresses itself in the form of number, which can be translated relationally, in the form of harmonic relationships and rational order. He posited that the number one is the numerical source of a point, the number two constitutes the possibility of a line, the number three constitutes the possibility of a plane, the number four constitutes the possibility of a solid; and out of these simple 4 positive integers, all our perceptions of physical reality can be explained. He then went on to explain that the ability to enjoy music is derived from our soul that is tune to match up with precise mathematical relationships in the harmonic scales (basically, it sounds right because it is right). As discussed in the previous chapter, we can use the normological deductive model of scientific explanation to account for a great degree of mathematical predictability and reliability in the physical world and our attachments to it; but we can also use Spiritual Principles in the Laws of Human Nature with the same degree of precision.

Now what is interesting about all this is that deep within us, we find additional evidences not only of creative design leading us to God, but upon closer examination, we can find clues to the mind of God and His purposes for us that come from the immutable laws of Human Nature. Taking charge of our lives and pursuing His purposes for us is the ultimate blessing and challenge.

Some of the answers we spend a lifetime seeking are found when we simply realize that we always had the answers within us already. By using rational power and using philosophical guidance to lead us to our own understandings, we can find clues God left for us that lead right back to Him. The reason these truths cannot be found easily is because we are saddled with materialistic perceptions of the physical world, which upon closer examination, can be explained with 4 simple numbers.

Let us NOT focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. In 2 Corinthians 4:18 we find this message “… do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are unseen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (NKJV)

Chapter 27

2010-03-16T13:43:00.000-07:00

As a reader of my writings, you will be taken on a fully encompassing intellectual joyride all over creation, with no (current) rhyme or reason. Some days you will see mini Bible studies, some days you will discover my views on addictive psychology, some days you will notice my viewpoints on philosophy and theology, some days you will find references to the general sciences (which I love), and some days you will find (well-intentioned) intellectual rants replete with many awesome new words (forcing you to open a dictionary and use your brain); though obviously sometimes you will find a combination of all the above. Now that you have been lovingly warned, let us continue our exquisite journey into the delightful realm of self-discovery.

The normological deductive model of scientific explanation explains a phenomenon or an event of any kind by showing that it is an instance of a universal law known to be true. The right answer to a question filtered through this model is not a generalization based on what happened in the past, but rather is a reference to a universal law known to be true, such that this event had to happen the way it did because this event is an instance of the class of events covered by that law. Is there anything as dependable or unfailing in its influence as a set of universal laws subject to this governing criterion?

This exposes us to truth with absolute certainty; as far as the epistemological limits to knowledge allow. Allow me to provide a clear example of what I’m talking about: What did Newton do in the 17th century? Through his Universal Law of Gravitation, he proved all objects attract each other with a force that’s directly proportional to a product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. What does this mean to you? Well, it explains the physics and mathematics behind something as simple as dropping a ball to the ground (which lands you into mysteries and complications you can hardly get to the end of). The ball did NOT fall to the ground simply because in past experiences - you just know that balls always fall to the ground. This would be an over-simplified generalization based on past experience, but does not follow the normological deductive model of scientific explanation. The true explanation will be that the mass of the ball and the mass of the Earth will attract each other with a force proportional to the product of the mass of the ball times the mass of the Earth and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between the ball and the gravitational center of the Earth. So the answer to the question of why the ball falls to the Earth is: It had to, since this class of events is covered under known, proven scientific law.

This begs the next obvious question, what universal laws are known to be true, beyond all uncertainty, in the realm of psychology (the study of behavior)? Are there laws that govern human behavior that provide the same advanced level of predictability? What about the Spiritual component? What’s really going on here? (stay tuned, we’ll go deeper into this soon)

Chapter 26

2010-03-15T22:51:00.000-07:00

Listening with non-judgmental acceptance and offering empathy to suffering newcomers are core values offered in AA meetings. Attendees will notice creative power (what to say each night) and communication skills (how to say it) usually improve with prolonged membership, and oftentimes a deeper level of helpful introspection also develops as a result of this wonderful therapy. In recovery from alcohol (and drugs), many forms of therapy actually work, including psychoanalysis, cognitive-behavioral, psychotherapy, and group therapy; however, the AA fellowship has an outstanding (and free) track record of helping millions of suffering alcoholics (and addicts) find God and heal.

In many ways, it is a beautiful spiritual mission field of opportunity; however, the Bible verse that states in Matthew 9:37 “the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few” (NIV) is quite descriptive of the situation as a whole. The Christians who attend these meetings have a unique opportunity to witness and help bring these precious souls into a healthier walk with God. You may ask how this is done... (and for my friends who possess devotion to simplicity, here is something simple): Lead by example.

Christians have a responsibility to help those in need. In Proverbs 24:11 we find “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter.” (NIV) And in verse 14 it says “Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you.” (NIV) We also find in James 5:19-20 “My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.” (NIV)

Christians not only have a responsibility to lead others to a healthy walk in Christ, but most importantly must show by example how to live a life exhibiting the fruits of the Spirit. Warn of the dangers of wickedness, encourage the pursuit of wisdom, and help people turn away from errors in their thinking.

Simplicity may provide comfort at first, but one must not stay there. Change and growth are vital to all persons in recovery - and keep in mind - you cannot remain the same and somehow change. The Bible speaks about the matter in Proverbs 1:22 “How long will you simple ones love your simple ways?” (NIV) Then again in Proverbs 8:5 we find “You who are simple, gain prudence…” (NIV) In Proverbs 14:15 it says “A simple man believes anything…” (NIV) And we find in Proverbs 14:18 “The simple inherit folly, but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.” (NKJV)

While there is clear danger in overcomplicating matters for a newcomer, there should be gentle, steady progress toward the ideal of intelligent wisdom. Wisdom leads to clear judgment, and paves the way to long-term success.

Chapter 25

2010-03-15T12:04:00.000-07:00

When a farmer goes out to plant, the ground does not care what he plants in it, but it will always return what he plants. For example, he may go out to the field with two types of seed (one in each hand). In one hand he has corn seeds; in the other hand he has seeds of a poisonous plant. When the farmer feeds the ground with these seeds, he will get a beautiful harvest of corn as well as a beautiful harvest of poison. Once again, the ground does not care what you plant in it.

Our mind is like the ground in the same way. It is a highly complex biological mass with mysteries beyond comprehension, yet in light of all this, it is there simply awaiting input so it can supply output. It has been rightly said, “garbage in, garbage out.” Or you may have heard the Law of Nature known as “sowing and reaping.” This is an important life principle we all need to be conscious of, especially addicts.

We alcoholics and addicts usually have a poignant, wretched history of inviting foulness into our minds with elation and ebullience while simultaneously ignoring or rejecting goodness and decency. Accordingly, we should recognize no great advance in ratiocination when examining life results in violation of this great life principle. Since we become what we think about, let us think on constructive, useful, positive thoughts. Let us guard what we allow into our minds and lives. Let us guard our eyes, which are the window to the soul.

The apostle Paul said it best in Philippians 4:8-9 “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” (NIV)

Chapter 24

2010-03-14T22:56:00.001-07:00

There may be those who through a curiosity or desire of learning, of their own accord, understand the exceeding difficulties inherent with disentangling truth and its adjuncts from pervasive and insidious falsehood. These painful new truths I am adumbrating throughout my philosophy may be conformable to prevailing principles, or may be qualified as discoveries of the highest kind, and of the greatest possible utility to the erudite paucity.

It may feed vain imagination to assume the general public would voraciously cling to new ideas constructed in such a way as to overthrow conventional thinking, to some degree. It would, however, be my hope that the few, the wise, the learned would rapaciously devour my precepts and teachings with the same level of fervor that some people exhibit with regard to love of simplicity. In my way of thinking, pursuit of intellectual simplicity is slothful and representative of an idle mind. And we all know the saying “an idle mind is the devil’s playground.”

Idleness, minimalism, or quick and fierce denunciation of any suggestion of mental exertion is a clear testament to acceptance of the mental condition of someone who, at best, could ever ascend to mediocrity. That being said, let us journey even deeper into the mind.

Chapter 23

2010-03-12T11:16:00.000-08:00

It is of no value to decide what you want to accomplish - before you decide what you want to be. At the end of your life, it will be too late to announce your intentions; for it is of no use to say you want to sit when it has become impossible to stand. Who you are - will determine the direction, quality, and eventual results of your life. We addicts often have identity crisis problems, and learn to acclimatize ourselves to whatever seems necessary at any moment in time; this is sometimes called being a chameleon. Today, right now, you can make a decision to turn your life over to God and be who He wants you to be, and never turn back, never change again.

Though a great deal of consideration to proper moral behavior should be deliberately offered, it is a terrible mistake to falsely assume obedience to The Ten Commandments or adherence to moral guidelines alone ensures you a place in Heaven. Please remember that morality (or the Law of Human Nature) is given to us for the human machine to run properly. Just like a set of instructions for a complex machine, if ignored, the machine breaks down. It is for our own good, and God is intensely interested in us functioning correctly.

From a theological standpoint (theology means the science and study of God), all our good behavior alone does not earn us salvation. In Isaiah 64:6 we find this message “… and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags…” (NIV) Again, we find in Romans 3:10 “… there is no one righteous, not even one…” (NIV) And finally, we find Jesus said in John 14:6 “… I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (NIV)

In the Bible, the word heaven does not appear in the books where God gives the Law. There is also no verse anywhere that says if we keep the commandments, we will go to heaven. This is important to understand clearly: good people do not go to heaven on their own steam; we are completely dependent on Jesus to get us through. Only forgiven people go to Heaven. Trusting in Christ alone will get you to Heaven; and it naturally follows that disciples (or followers) of Christ seek to follow His moral precepts (which are so beautifully laid out in the gospels).

Now, if we have specific moral instructions to follow, it would be unthinkably foolish to disregard them. A great collection of moral virtues is located in Galatians 5:22, which lists “… love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Since we are commanded to love, let us discover the most beautiful description known to us which is found in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, and it says “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” (NIV)

As clearly established, every answer we need is found neatly tucked away in our Bible, awaiting our discovery. It is a wonderful tool given to us, which has literally led countless billions of people over many thousands of years to a healthy walk in faith. And if you follow Christ, the retirement plan is out of this world.

Chapter 22

2010-03-10T20:45:00.000-08:00

The particular religious book of antiquity I find most authentic and valuable is the Holy Bible. It is the only religious book of its kind which has stood the test of innumerable skeptics for thousands of years, and has been verifiably confirmed accurate in geography, archaeology, and history. The Holy Bible is quite remarkable in many respects, not the least of which is the fact that it is actually a collection of 66 different books, written by 40 different authors, on 3 different continents, in 3 different languages, over a period of 1,500 years. And in the face of all this, is remarkably continuous and fluid in its message of morality and redemption.

For present purposes, I want to examine a certain attribute of faith, which is: responsibility. Faith carries with it responsibility and duty to uncover truth and confront darkness. In Romans 13:12-14, we find the following message: “… So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” (NIV)

The warning against drunkenness and debauchery (extreme indulgence in sensuality) is clear and easily understood as destructive; however, the instruction to behave decently should not remain subtle, elusive, or unacknowledged. If we are directed to behave a certain way, surely this implies the possibility and opportunity of doing so. Are addicts who honestly work a quality program of recovery capable of reinstating a high standard of morality? Yes, certainly. Does this or can this happen overnight? No, certainly not.

An old, commendable church saying deserving meritorious exaltation among addicts working a serious program of recovery is: “come as you are, but don’t stay as you are.” Since it has been rightly said “there is no standing still in recovery,” we might deductively suppose progression is an ideal worth pursuing. It is, however, precarious to ever entrench oneself in a false set of ideals, so as to cause progression in the wrong direction. That being said, let us reflect on the highest and best set of principles and moral values attracting our pursuit.

Chapter 21

2010-03-10T20:28:00.000-08:00

It is a great advance in knowledge to become aware of one’s own ignorance. No one among us who is intelligent declares all that is presently known as anything in comparison to what remains to be discovered. Let us then continue our voyage of discovery into the meaning of the universe and our place in it.

We humans are troubled, so to speak, with the inspiration of a sort of behavior we know we ought to practice, which is what I term the Law of Human Nature (or rule of fair play, or decency, or morality, or Law of Nature). Without listing an endless litany of examples, here are but a few: “hey, I gave you some you some of my candy so give me a bit of yours,” or “hey, you took my seat, that’s uncouth,” or “hey, the other team isn’t following the rules of fair play.” I could go on ad nauseam, but you get my drift. Each of us appeals to a higher standard of conduct we expect the other person to know about and this is a cross-cultural phenomenon throughout all recorded history. To what standard, if not the Law of Human Nature, could we be appealing? Where did this come from? Humans are the only beings that have this rigid system of governance that reminds us what we ought to do.

In self-discovery, comfort is the one thing you cannot get by seeking it first. If you seek truth, you may find comfort in the end; but if you seek no more than comfort, you will discover neither truth nor comfort, only malleable and dangerously impressionable wishful thinking. The primary premise I hope to eventually convey throughout this entire philosophical work is that the greatest achievement of wishful thinking the world has yet known is belief one can operate independently of God (I base this premise on John 15:5, which states “… apart from Me you can do nothing”).

The Great Designer of the universe instilled a sense of awe in His highest creatures, with a capability and eagerness to discover all that that there is available to us. Rather than fight against God, His purposes, or the beautiful Human Nature He placed within us, let us discover its purpose and usefulness to our wellbeing. You discover more about God from the Moral Law He placed within us than you do by discovering the vastness of the universe through a telescope, in the same sense that you discover more information about the way an engine works by the engineer speaking with you rather than just driving the car making up the rules as you go along.

We can thus fairly deduce that this great Creator of the Universe is intensely interested in right conduct – in fair play, unselfishness, tolerance, courage, good faith, honesty, truthfulness, kindness, reliability, compassion, and so forth. The Moral Law prompts us to do the right thing and is not lenient or soft about how painful, dangerous, difficult, or challenging it might be to us as persons. None of us obeys the Moral Law completely and yet we want off the hook, so to speak, or we may come up with a thousand excuses why we cannot do it and need forgiveness (or a free pass).

God is love, absolute goodness, absolute power, and in every way immeasurably superior to us. God is the only comfort, and then in one sense also the supreme terror: the thing we most need and the thing we most want to hide from. Romans 11: 22 says, “Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in His kindness…” (NIV) God is either the great shelter or the great danger, depending on how you react to Him.

You will now start noticing a great deal of scriptural reference in my philosophical viewpoints. There are a great many reasons why I choose the Holy Bible as the supreme source of information about this great Creator God. In the next chapter, we will examine what makes the Bible special.

Chapter 20

2010-03-09T20:07:00.000-08:00

Since it is important for all addicts to discover God, I have compiled a few thoughts to facilitate this conversion. Atheism turns out to be too simple. It is rationally effortless and undemanding of the intellect. If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have discovered that it has no meaning. As far as falsely ascribing creative power to evolution (that being chance, random mutation, and natural selection being the driving forces of life), this faces a fatal difficulty, not the least of which is: that is logically identical to claiming the likelihood a tornado ripping through a junkyard is capable of blowing out a Boeing 747. This, on one level, is statistically absurd to even consider, even using mathematical chaos theory or considering the possibility of quantum fluctuations (yes, I am aware of EVERY aspect of evolutionary teaching, after two decades of self-study... so if you ever need an outright refutation of evolution, give me about 3 hours to speak with you, and you won't have that problem anymore).

For, even this wouldn’t solve all problems… one would want to then know what caused the tornado to blow in the first place and where the materials came from to construct such an engineering marvel as an airplane. What’s interesting in this analogy is that the heightened degree of complexity in something as simple as the design of our cells alone is more complex from an engineering standpoint than an airplane. That being said, we are logically correct to deduce that a Master Designer is Creator of all. We humans are the only known intelligent life in the universe, and are therefore by default the Creator’s highest physical beings (that we know of). This special status makes each of us unique and important on a cosmic scale.

If, on our own steam, we could discover certain attributes about this Creator, or God as I like to call Him, what would we find? Let us first start with the Rule of Right and Wrong, or Law of Human Nature, which is a real, pre-existing phenomenon inside each of us. One could argue that right behaviors, or morality as I like to call it, are simply learned behaviors passed on to children from parents. This is true in one sense, but morality is pre-existing in the same way mathematics is, humans have only discovered it. For example, when a teacher teaches mathematics to a child in a school room, the rules by which addition and subtraction operate would be no different than a man on a remote island would find if he were to discover mathematics simultaneously on his own. We each find this Rule of Right Behavior pressing on us, making us feel responsible and uncomfortable when we do wrong. This gives us our first clue into the Mind of God.

Human beings all over the earth have this curious idea they ought to behave in a certain way, and cannot rid themselves of it. We all know the Law of Nature, a basic Law that we did not invent, and yet still do not obey it fully (hence the need for a Savior, but more on that later). This Law is over and above our basic instincts, and acts as a governing force between the two, silently but insistently urging Right Behavior. These basic facts are foundational to all future clear thinking about ourselves and the world we live in.

Now, since we acknowledge this sense of morality as originating from the Designer of the universe (where else would anything pre-existent come from since there cannot be an infinite regress of causes, thus, there had to be an original cause), we realize this Creator has purposes and appears to prefer one thing to another. We can deduce that this controlling power behind the universe, the great Designer, created a vast and beautiful universe partly for reasons we do not know, but yet still intends to show us details about His purposes inside us as an influence or a command trying to get us to behave in a certain way. Certainly this ought to arouse our suspicions?

Relax, I am not yet within a thousand miles of the God of Christian theology… but let us sum up what we have learned so far: there is a Something which is directing the universe, and which appears in us as a moral law urging us to do right and making us feel responsible and uncomfortable when we do wrong, and it is similar to a mind in the sense that it has purposes.

The next subject matter I shall delve into will be the discussion of the rigidness of this moral law, which is hard as nails, and doesn’t seem to care whether or not it is convenient or easy to obey. (More on this later, so stay tuned)

(many of the thoughts listed in this chapter are representative of my personal summation of ideas from the great book Mere Christianity, by C.S. Lewis… read it if you haven’t already)

Chapter 19

2010-03-08T17:39:00.001-08:00

Men of even the lowest grade of intellect are capable of joining together different words, and thereby constructing an unambiguous declaration by which to make their explicit thought processes understood. Intelligent judgment relating to the veracity of such proclamations is reasonably subjective to each individual to some degree; unless the inequality of mental capacity is too great. Some men are more capable of being instructed than others, some men parrot others to disingenuously mimic intelligible output, and still other men find greater comfort denying the possibility of the existence of innovative, original knowledge. Wisdom may be cleverly disguised in unassuming packaging; and most definitely is reserved for the few, the deserving, the thoughtful, the hard-thinking, and the attentive.

There may be some men whose peculiar mental limitation compels them to regard new philosophical propositions with fearfulness and mistrust. These types would seemingly rather evade study of the intellectual proposals to discover more and more intricate relations between the lines of reasoning presented. Otherwise they could then sort these relations out with great toil into confident regularities to distinguish whether or not useful knowledge is present. Perhaps scholarly laziness is the motive for this rationality, but then again, it could be a general mistrust of the source of such new information. If one were invited to enjoy an intellectual feast on a gourmet meal, it would be ill-advised to eat this meal on the back seat of a toilet… granted. To a certain degree of sympathetic understanding, consideration of the source of any new information and the manner of its presentment - is justified and valid reasoning.

But if one is able to detect underlying wisdom throughout any new such philosophical proposition, academic consolation should be manifestly obligatory. For is not wisdom itself simple acknowledgement of the nature of things which are unchangeable, immutable laws of human conditions? If one is able to intelligently describe laws of nature and portend a certain vernacular exclusive to a specific, intentional audience – then all will be well. Relax… new, high quality knowledge can only enrich your life, not endanger it.

Chapter 18

2010-03-07T21:28:00.000-08:00

Overcoming denial (which can take many clever forms) is an ongoing challenge for all addicts. Too many people in recovery only want to conquer the denial that they have a drug problem… and stop right there. A great deal of moral laziness and half-stepping prevents the abundant life from taking over and keeps us stagnant and unfruitful. This is what I call bottom-feeding, or being perfectly willing to accept the bare minimum that is required in the restoration to sanity.

Let us think for a moment exactly what we mean by the concept of sanity. The dictionary defines sanity as “the quality or state of being sane; especially: soundness or health of mind.” If we wish to re-establish healthiness of mind, we need to retrain our brain using the only formula proven to work: appeal of pleasure, avoidance of pain. Positive reinforcement of healthy habits in daily activities will certainly counteract harmful addictive behavioral tendencies over time. Pursuit of religious ideals (after a clear mind is obtained) helps tremendously - and provides excellent groundwork for positive change and growth.

Moral laziness is an easy trap to fall into, and cessation of drug or alcohol abuse alone rarely reconstructs a tattered and torn life. It is irresponsible to persist in moral slothfulness, and attempt to nudge the fence as closely as possible. Irresponsibility is almost impossible to see in the mirror, though it is easy to recognize in others. We must be careful nevertheless, since it is dangerously contagious. We all know that which gets rewarded gets repeated, so when working with others, it is important not to reinforce laziness or moral irresponsibility; but on the contrary, encourage a course of vigorous action based on quality knowledge, wisdom, and direction.

Repetition of rewarded behaviors and habits is not a phenomenon restricted to addiction; this is really truthful in all facets of life. Addicts in particular have a heightened awareness of this truth because while they traverse through progressive stages of recovery, memories of reward based drug use occasionally steamroll through their minds without warning. It is difficult to reprogram an addict’s poisoned brain with new reward-based habits and reinforcements that over-ride the pleasure sensors (which have been well trained) while simultaneously reminding him of the pain that chemical abuse causes.

A key insight into helping an addict is to facilitate understanding of his immorality and wrongdoing, while encouraging the promise of a better life, a new life. There is so much more to freedom than just being free. We can be happy too, and this is only fully possible when we try and seek God. God set us free to be happy, plain and simple. We are free to love, and live. You will never live out your God-given potential or live your best life if you refuse responsibility. Likewise, you cannot run away from problems, but you must face them head on… this is the quickest way forward. If you realize you have been on the wrong road, change NOW… get on the right path and clear your thinking.

We will always live in a manner consistent with our self concept. Be the change you want to see in others. You do become what you think about, but you can’t build character on what you are hoping to do. Do it now, CHANGE, and do not procrastinate hoping for a better day that may never come. What are you waiting for? People get unmotivated when they realize deep down they’re not living the life that could be. The journey into self discovery can be exciting and rewarding, so go ahead and cross the bridge from what you are into what you want to be. Our circumstances reflect our belief, whether we like it or not. We need to c0llect new ideas every day, and then put them into action. What the mind can conceive and believe it can achieve.

Chapter 17

2010-03-05T21:46:00.001-08:00

The question may be asked – is drug abuse a moral problem? That is a simple and uncomplicated question, and the answer is: most definitely YES. The dictionary defines the word moral as: “of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behavior; ethical; expressing or teaching a conception of right behavior; conforming to a standard of right behavior; sanctioned by one's conscience or ethical judgment.”

One every level, an addict most assuredly engages in immoral, depraved, dishonest, self-indulgent, hedonistic, deceitful, and untrustworthy behavior bordering on outright wickedness and debauchery; hence it should seem perfectly clear that all addicts are by definition morally wrong (or immoral). An addict usually commits every known possible sin, and then invents a few more to go along with it.

This may be an uncomfortable self realization for some, but it is unavoidable truth: we are what we do, plain and simple. There is no use brushing aside responsibility for wicked behaviors in favor of the delusion that addicts are “not imperfect people who need improvement, but sick people who need to get well.” The fact is: we are rebels who need to lay down our arms. You cannot avoid obvious truth by white-washing decadent behavior, denying its existence in our lives, or blaming it on a disease. This is not to say there are not biological causes motivating behaviors in an addict, because obviously there are. But I intend to clearly point out that alcoholism has gone on for thousands of years and is mentioned in the Bible numerous times as a sin – and all sin leads to death.

All of our lives are driven by choices, plain and simple. Some choices are harder than others, and some urges, desires, or compulsions are overwhelming to the point of insanity (as is the case with addiction); but this still does not relieve us of the responsibility of choice. On some level, you could make the argument that Adolf Hitler himself had some good in him and was not morally wrong, just misunderstood, misdirected, but yet still well-intentioned. The fact is: good intentions alone pave the way to hell. If at any time you falsely believe that addiction is not a moral problem, ask yourself this simple question: why does society frantically want to lock an addict away and toss out the key? Could it be the logical consequence of wicked behavior committed by a desperately wicked person? Yes, of course.

Now this brings me to my next point: once an addict recognizes his moral problem, and acknowledges the harmful and negative impact on his life and society – this makes no difference and is seemingly still not enough to effect change (insomuch as the simple awareness of moral transgressions does not seem to matter at first). Hence we see the problems inherent with jailing an addict: too often he is unable to draw the connection between the good feeling of the drugs or alcohol with the punishment of that behavior, so upon release he repeats the bad habit… and on goes the circle of eternal punishment with no healing. The reason the paradox is so baffling to those outside addiction (that being confusion of why an addict engages in temporary pleasure knowing full well enormous pain will soon result) is simply that the addict has trained his pleasure sensors (so to speak) and simultaneously numbed his pain sensors. The neurobiological study of addiction teaches us these simple principles.

Is there a solution? Yes, indeed. Good programs of recovery reconstitute good habits in well-intentioned people to properly develop morally upright behaviors over time, which of course leads eventually to being morally decent. You have to walk the talk. Be the change you want to see.

Chapter 16

2010-03-04T20:04:00.001-08:00

It could well be said that the greatest continent yet to be fully explored is the immense human mind. The human brain is the most complex and orderly arrangement of matter in the known universe; nothing is more intricate, capable or elaborate. Yet despite all this, it is the most unexplored, underused, and unfamiliar aspect of ourselves. Our possibilities are endless, yet we take it all for granted. Why is this? (I’ll answer this mystery shortly)

Since the mind controls the body, and the body controls our actions, and our actions control our destiny, should we not pay more attention to how our mind is controlled? Addicts rarely seem to exhibit strong will-power outside drug seeking behaviors (an unfortunate paradox), which means we allow our minds to be controlled by external forces. If we so easily abdicate control of our minds to the whim of urges (something every mature adult recognizes as childish and harmful) or allow ourselves to be led by others (with little regard to the quality of leadership), we should not be surprised at the unsettling lunacy that settles in nor should we blame anyone other than ourselves for our predicaments.

The reason we don’t pay more attention to the wonderful gift freely given us, which is our minds, is just that… it was a free gift from God to us at birth. We are all given a brain, yet we never seem to want to use it positively or train it in the way we want it to perform. All good and perfect gifts come from God and are free to us. We humans have a tendency to only place value on things that cost us money and disregard the rest. This is a terrible mistake; for the best things in life are indeed free (i.e.: love, care, family, successful accomplishments, charity…)

I once thought of a giant earth-moving tractor hauling 30 tons of dirt, and a little man sitting on top of the machine driving it… what a spectacular display of powerful control. Our life is the same way, we have tremendous potential to effect positive change and do wonderful things with our lives, and whether we admit it or not, WE ARE driving our lives each day with every little choice we make. Every little decision we make in our minds steers our life in a certain direction and will take us exactly where that road leads. Let us make sure we are on the right road. This all starts with a quality spirit-filled life. (more on this soon, so stay tuned)

Chapter 15

2010-02-15T23:02:00.000-08:00

Difficulties inherent with addiction recovery management too often result in the disillusioned approach of self defenestration. It is useful to understand the neurobiology of the craving experience and the mechanisms of drug induced neuroadaptation, though you should not necessarily expect this to account for much of an elevated level of predictability in future behavior. In consideration of the long lasting brain alterations an addict suffers from, much of this becomes self-evident in time. These very brain alterations are well known to participate in consolidating stimulus response habits and may produce unforeseen cravings, so it must be carefully unlearned over much time with great endurance. Basically, an addict can be triggered (which is to say, unexpectedly launched into full-blown craving mode) without even realizing it, or where it came from, or what happened.

When deep into recovery, over time, there will be a decrease in the drug’s inventive value; however, regardless of how effective this ongoing practice of conditioned suppression of drug-seeking may be, it will still have unexpected resurrection potential. Here, once again, we find conventional wisdom of no use (like the analogy of comparing addictive behavior to sticking your face in a fan – this seems strange to someone outside addiction). But we must never give up hope. Attention bias to euphoria in previous drug experience serves as a reward-based and yet dissociative lure to resumption of abuse, despite all dangers and consequences. We must never let our guard down, and constantly remain on the offensive.

Any progressive deviation from a prolific daily maintenance of spiritual principles exposes the addict to the daunting vulnerability of relapse. This is all so palpably correct and seemingly simple, why is it so hard to do? I will investigate this soon, so stay tuned.

Chapter 14

2010-01-29T20:54:00.000-08:00

Any expression of indignation toward people with misunderstandings of the disease concept of addiction has pitfalls; whether one is trying to understand addiction from inside or out. It is obviously true and not a concept entirely without merit or application; but rather is frequently misused as a convenient excuse not to change. The driving impetus in viewing addiction as a disease is to remind the addict (and others around him) that anytime he picks up a drink or drug, something happens in both mind and body that causes him to be virtually powerless to stop at will. At advanced stages of addiction, the ability to control many types of other compulsions also seems to evaporate. There is overwhelming empirical evidence that points to this absolute truth. As the saying goes, “one is too many and a thousand is never enough.”

Anytime the language of invective insult is used against those who wish to understand the addiction problem from outside the restrictive boundaries of addiction itself, a great deal of bewilderment settles in. Someone trying to understand an addict may assert, “If this ‘disease’ concept is known as some sort of spectacular extrapolation of understanding why you can’t change; then let’s have additional reasons for believing it.” Many uninformed people view addiction, not as a disease, but simply an unwillingness to control impulses; but it is so much more complicated than that. Addicts do not like being told their problem is within their control, because they personally know from dreadful experience that unaided willpower alone is typically insufficient to stop.

The disease of addiction is not to be confused with, say, catching a cold (by accident). It is an intentional, acquired, unremitting, and deadly (if untreated) behavioral and mental disease that rivals in comparison to other deadly sicknesses. Research has discovered that long-term drug abuse results in significant alterations of brain chemistry with damaging effects that persist even long after a person stops using drugs (known as PAW – or, post acute withdrawals). These drug-induced changes in brain function can cause many serious behavioral hazards, including a lack of ability to exert control over the impulse to use drugs yet again despite adverse risk or repercussion— which is the hallmark distinguishing characteristic of all addiction.

There are actually many paths to freedom from addiction. There is, however, one pathway established far beyond doubt or uncertainty as the most excellent way. God, our Creator, is accessible by sincere prayer. The power and influence of earnest faith can move mountains, and so much more. All we must do is ask, seek, and find. In order to ask, one must believe. In order to seek, one must do. In order to find, one must have faith.

Chapter 13

2010-01-27T21:17:00.000-08:00

It is not the absence of challenge, provocation, or aggravation that makes your life gratifying or meritorious. It is the choices that you make in your reactions to deal with them that determines the quality of your life. Ever since Adam and Eve, it has proven apparent that humans have the inescapable requirement of making choices.

The reason the tree of knowledge was placed in the Garden of Eden was to show man that he is not autonomous (self-governing); that he is a created being with limitations on what he may do. This principle of choice is an everlasting example of how we are to view our relationship with God. If at any time you do not want to submit to God, then you are free to go create your own universe. If you cannot do that, then you better submit to the universal power of God.

Most times you don’t get to select your challenges; sometimes your challenges are the direct consequences of previous choosing. You may not even like any of the available options. However, you never lose the freedom and responsibility to choose. When these choices are determined by moral virtue and high values, you bring purpose, meaning, and integrity to your life.

On earth, you are not punished for your sins, but by them. To learn and not to do, is really not to learn. To know and not to do, is really not to know. It is, therefore, imperative to transform belief into faith and exemplify faith with actions. Life is about taking action. Quality beliefs set in motion good actions.

The discipline of clear thinking is crucial to success. Some people think, some people think they think, and still others would rather die than think. The quality of your thinking determines the quality of your decisions and choices. Your decisions determine the actions you take. The actions you take determine your results. Your results determine the quality of your life. And all this starts with thinking clearly.

You need to take time to think. Fast decisions are usually wrong decisions. If you’re going to make a decision that will have long term consequences, then you have to give it a lot of thought, look at it from every side carefully. The more you think about a decision, the better chance of it being right and good. How many times have we thought “if only I would have thought things through a little more...”

Chapter 12

2010-01-27T20:52:00.000-08:00

According to studies in clinical neurobiology (and various recognizable criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-IV), addiction is classified as a disease. There are a great many misunderstandings, false impressions, and misapplications of this theory. Partly why I don’t think the entire focus of treatment should be centered around disease concept of addiction - as it is commonly understood - is this: While the recreational use of drugs will certainly cause a disease state of various tissues and organs in the body (including the brain); it is also VERY much a disease of the will (willpower to achieve what is right, healthy, and decent), of character (acknowledging the hurtful shock you’re putting on others and not letting it persist), and of courage (sustaining yourself through the difficult part of beating a habit – which could realistically take years).

If you truly desire to change and have a life of meaning, value, and goodness, then you must respect this delicate, temporary entity you call your life. You must have a higher purpose for existence and being. You must have a “why” to even care at all. There is a way, through God, that self-will can be directed through faith into a glorious existence of fulfillment with benefits lasting an eternity. (More on this later…) What is so enticing about the old way of living? We addicts tend to have selective amnesia. This is sometimes called “euphoric recall” – an unusual and harmful characteristic addicts share in common, which prohibits the recollection of the dreadful aftermath of chemical abuse, while remembering only the ephemeral good “high.” To all of this I say - you have to vigorously want something better for yourself.

The ultimate truth of your freedom is this: no matter what the stimulus is (fear, lust, need, historical hurts), your response to a temptation is never predetermined; you ultimately choose. Nobody should continually offset blame on “a generational curse,” or being “genetically pre-determined”, or “having a disease” as excuses not to change. You can choose to act like a one-celled amoeba, rigorously determined to avoid all discomfort and find pleasure at any cost. Or, you can choose to act like a human being, with the ability to make choices, acknowledging that the absence of hurt and discomfort is insufficient to give your life meaning or purpose. Everyone must face challenges, hurts, disappointments, and the like; not just addicts.

Chapter 11

2010-01-27T12:57:00.001-08:00

At some point in recovery, one has to be willing to forsake the perpetual, psychotherapeutic ruminating about his past and reach out with courage to build a stronger future. The development of moral fiber with greater resilience to rampant wickedness will ensure long-term survival. Some blame their unwillingness or incapacity to develop moral fiber on psychiatric or psychological problems. Without doubt, anyone familiar with addiction knows full well that deep psychological problems are usually pre-existent or arise as a result of that lifestyle.

It is, however, interesting to note that what so many people mistake for psychological problems - may really be a reluctance or unwillingness to do the work it takes to become someone notable, purposeful, and suitable that would enjoy and attract others with those same admirable attributes. To put it plainly, engaging in full self-reformation is hard. It is thoroughly arduous to move from the familiar (no matter how bad) to the unfamiliar (no matter how good). It takes work and time.

So much phony, yet popular psychological beliefs give the impression that people with difficult or ugly histories are somehow ineradicably connected, and discernibly marked; hence the perpetual identification with survivor-victim, adult child of something or other, and lifelong membership in a never-to-be-recovered group. I worry about how the misuse and overuse of the aforementioned is actually helping people unconstructively fixate in the negative and in yesterday, and in the mere “understanding” of why they aren’t being and doing more with their lives. You must understand that the ultimate power of perception is not only recognizing your wrongs, but also growing and learning from them. You have new choices to make, so initiate courage and move on at some point. Regardless of past circumstances, remember that your perception, adaptation, and action are in your power now.

The modern, therapeutic trend of alleviating most of all personal responsibility from the equation of behavioral choices is simply about making sure nobody feels dire or hopeless. We must not forget that not only is pain very motivating, but that guilt and shame are necessarily painful. For these reasons alone, it is vital to learn from our mistakes, and then be eager to courageously change and grow.

Chapter 10

2010-01-25T22:03:00.000-08:00

There are quite a number of common threads that weave addictive behavior. When contemplating the unadulterated motives behind this concept of “victimization,” which is an observable mindset almost all addicts share in common, I no longer buy into the popular, theoretical, cognitively appeasing notion that we are all victims of our addictions. This in part because I believe we create our own predicaments from the oftentimes-tainted paradigm in which we view ourselves and the world. We have become a nation of excuses and victims. One inevitable consequence of that way of thinking is a vilification and detraction from individuals who do well in spite of circumstances.

Much of the following flow of thought is a culmination of what I’ve observed with general addictive behavior over the years. Granted, the support and sympathy you get from calling yourself a victim temporarily distracts you from the inevitable pain of acknowledging your own weaknesses and inappropriate choices –but you still must realize that all of this constitutes personal responsibility. You must face the fact that something more than circumstantial occasion led to your dilemma; you know you made choices that led you there. It is only when you understand that humbling yourself to this truth enables you to become free from the internal misery of guilt and regret and become empowered to be and do better.

This is all so palpably correct and seemingly simple. Why is it such a challenge? Why do so many people agonize over these simple moral decisions? One reason is the innate need of people to belong, to be attached to family, friends, and “support” groups. There is comfort, safety, security, and exclusivity in belonging. In this, we see the unabashedly, quixotic attraction to openhandedly giving in to peer-pressure – both good and bad.

People often permit themselves to be plagued and overwhelmed by their cowardice; their need to fit in somewhere; opportunities to inappropriately vent rage; displacement of personal responsibility; and their desperate desire to seem important even if only by the exercise of raw power - sometimes malevolently rationalized through a distortion of religious values and obsession over control.

Chapter 9

2010-01-25T21:08:00.001-08:00

You must believe that you matter to God and that He has the power and willingness to heal you. BELIEF is the cornerstone upon which all additional building blocks of recovery are built. Conversely, living by false beliefs (i.e.: “my using only hurts me, I can handle just one, I’ll quit when I’m ready, this time I’ll control my dosages, I’m still in control,…”) are all clichéd preventatives to recovery. These common and unimaginative excuses only propose a delay to the change and growth that is necessary.

As soon as you stop growing, you start dying. There is no standing still in recovery; you are either moving forward or backwards. As in driving, when you are looking in the rearview mirror, you are either focusing on what is behind you or you are backing up. If you want to drive correctly, look through the front windshield to see where you are going and only occasionally glance in the rearview mirror to see what’s behind you. When driving your life, it’s all a one-way street anyhow, so pay close attention to the road you take and don’t get distracted or you may drive your life in a ditch.

Addicts are in the habit of using. They are in the habit of wanting to use. They are in the habit of doing everything necessary to continue using. Habits don’t just go away. Addicts are, in effect, programmed to mismanage their lives; their minds are hijacked.

Addicts have beliefs, habits, behaviors, and lifestyles to unlearn. This takes a precarious amount of time in which insecurities and instability will threaten to reclaim priority. Times of rough going require higher attention to the Moral Law value system rigidly embedded in one’s soul.

Since the brain controls the body, and the body performs actions, and actions have consequences (good and bad), it is essential to reprogram the brain with habits that serve healthy purposes and avoid pitfalls. If one seeks to reprogram, it is essential to use the highest and most effective information possible. For it is undeniably true: what you believe in your mind will always manifest in your actions. Once again, I ask, what do you believe?

Chapter 8

2010-01-25T18:15:00.000-08:00

At base level, all human behavior is motivated by either a desire to gain pleasure or a wish to avoid pain, though sometimes obviously a combination of both. Strangely, it is far from obvious why pain avoidance serves no basis for motivating behaviors in addiction. Those afflicted by addictive lifestyles rarely extricate themselves from harmful situations for reasons of the occurrence of pain.

Clearly, one would normally learn from blunders and mistakes and not aggressively seek to repeat them. But in addiction, we find this is not the case… why? Is it possible one’s desire to gain pleasure is so profound that all common sense is easily brushed aside in favor of outright hedonism? Is it possible that one in addiction, who claims to seek pleasure, could utterly resign themselves to continual horrors at the expense of their very lives? Does this not seem acutely ironic? Is it sensible that one could be so fallaciously obsessed with pleasure seeking that any extreme seems plausible? Anyone familiar with addiction would answer surprisingly and tragically: yes.

Now this begs the next question: can this cycle of dysfunction be broken? Is it possible that one enslaved to addictive lifestyles could learn that temptations are suggestions, not commands? Is it possible to reprogram an addict's brain? Anyone familiar with the way of spirituality would answer refreshingly and cheerfully: yes.

As you cannot face truth by hiding from it; likewise, you cannot heal a wound by saying it is not there. Overcoming denial of the realities addictive living brings upon its unsuspecting victims leads one to the next obvious step in recovery. What next?

Chapter 7

2010-01-24T18:49:00.000-08:00

Facing truth is the first step in change, and this change is first brought about by reasoning from self-evident propositions. Facing truths is often unpleasant because it forces you to do something (change is scary) or consciously do nothing (live without hope). You must endure physical and emotional discomfort until you find a way to deal with it that rightly serves you. Otherwise you may focus only on emotional harm, and not emotional health. An addict’s exaggerated elevation in importance of emotional hurt provides them with a thousand or more excuses to take a moral detour right into demented, demeaning, counterproductive, desperation-based-situations, and to stay there.

Does this not lead into wishful thinking? Hiding from truths does not abolish them. Courage is necessary to suffer through and endure irrational thinking without letting it dictate behaviors. Learn to diagnose and analyze each situation with common-sense reason, not emotional reactions. Learn to struggle (at first) with new, healthier interpretations and actions that satisfy your rational mind without, for now, appeasing your emotions. This takes great courage. Doing right is very challenging, and there is rarely an immediate reward or reassurance. The reward for doing right is mostly an internal phenomenon: self-respect, dignity, integrity, and self-esteem. The rest of your life depends on what you do with any one moment. For the most part, no one knows or sees those clandestine micro events of integrity. But what matter? You know. And therein lays the greatest reward for integrity, your self-respect.

This is an overwhelmingly difficult, yet simple truth: the effectiveness with which we use common-sense reason to counteract emotionally-based decisions is utterly reduced when we refuse to surrender our power position of using hurt feelings to control or change others. When we’re afraid to be strong, we use weakness to try to control others. We hope the weakness (the hurting, the pain, the “look what you’ve done to me”) will somehow create pleasure, whereas we fear that an appropriate use of strength (assertiveness) might cause us pain. Maybe this is additional knowledge we don’t want to risk having.

Chapter 6

2010-01-23T12:59:00.000-08:00

The term “human condition” is quite descriptive of the one enslaved by addictive lifestyles. “Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.” (Rom 8:8 NIV) For it is true that one who continues in any lifestyle sin with no repentance faces the ultimate penalty. This basic human dilemma is that sin separates us from a Holy God. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom 6:23 NIV)

It is impossible to please God except through faith in Christ. “And without faith it is impossible to please God…” (Heb 11:6) Faith in Christ leads one to the next obvious step in the fortification of recovery, which is to do good works God prepared in advance. “…In Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Eph 2:10 NIV) God desires obedience. “But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him…” (1 John 2:5 NIV) The crisis of being in addictive lifestyles is rightly identified as a spiritual problem, and we only know one true way of deliverance. “Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life…” (John 14:6) If you do not yet know God, may you find him now.

Deciding importance between faith-or-works is akin to asking which blade of the scissors is more vital. They work together. “…Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead.” (James 2:17 NIV) It is important to understand faith in Jesus Christ comes first (otherwise good works have no meaning or value); this produces the only type of righteousness God recognizes. “…The righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.” (Phil 3:9 NIV) It is then God acting through us that produces good works. “…For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” (Phil 2:13) The key point to notice here is this: if you are fully seeking God first in all you do and pray for guidance in your decisions, you will grow spiritually. If you are busy growing spiritually, you will find no time to continually please the sinful nature.

The law of non-contradiction states that “A” cannot be “A” and “B” at the same time; therefore, you cannot change and remain the same concomitantly. If you honestly seek Christ, He will change you. If Christ is changing you, you will not participate in addiction or any continual lifestyle sinning. “Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is.…” (1 John 3:6 NLT)

The converse is also true: you cannot remain the same and somehow change. This acts as a self-test. If you do not experience change, you do not know Jesus or follow Him. “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you – unless, of course, you fail the test?” (2 Cor. 13:5 NIV)

Within the life that only Christ can offer, there is no further room for co-existence of addictive lifestyles. You will know true Peace, as only God will provide. “For He himself is our peace,…” (Eph 2:14 NIV) If you do not know peace, may you find God now.

Chapter 5

2010-01-21T21:58:00.000-08:00

The primary characteristic all addicts share in common is denial. An addict in denial is like a man with his pants on fire standing next to a river. To all others around him it is obvious: the flames, the injuries, the fumes, and the impending stench of death. Others may shout “JUMP IN THE RIVER” to douse the flames. In response to such pleas, the man may take one or more of the following tacks: “why me, why should I put these flames out, who started the fire, I’m angry at pain from the flames, this pain doesn’t hurt anyone but me, don’t tell me what to do…” Clearly, all that is needed to extinguish the fire is to jump in the river, everyone knows this. Everyone sees obvious truth, except the man with his pants on fire.

Anyone who knows about rivers realizes they contain water –which is well known to extinguish flames. How the fire came to be, how immense the flame, whether injuries are yet noticeable, or any other distraction from observable truth (the truth that being on fire will kill you unless you jump in the river to douse the flames) serves only as intentional misdirects. The man whose clothes are on fire may come up with a thousand excuses, none of which matter, or change circumstantial fact.

You will notice several key points in this analogy. First off, the fire represents addiction with all its attendant suffering, and the river represents the Living Water of Jesus, which can put out flames. The man’s refusal to jump in the river symbolizes denial. It is quite fortunate the same health restorative from addiction applies to any situation; therefore, it is simple.

Simple should by no means be confused with easy. What is simple may not be easy at all. The Moral Law (which is placed in each of us), for example, is hard as nails. The gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ is simple and free, but discipleship will cost everything. Make no mistake; if you seek to flee addictive lifestyles, you are in for the fight of your life.

Renouncing an attitude of denial, recognizing wrongs, and looking to Jesus for help is the only way out. This is the first step in glorious deliverance from our human condition.

Chapter 4

2010-01-21T18:30:00.000-08:00

Within addiction and other life-controlling problems, anger can be used as a protective strategy – a kind of armor. Anger can shield from many incoming assaults; whether the fears of assault are real or imagined. Anger is often invoked instead of being open, bold, and honest with ourselves, others, and situations. In addiction, anger protects complacency, rejects change, and justifies any means. In effect, anger shields one from change.

Until the pain to remain becomes greater than the pain to change, you never will. By remaining in unhealthy environments for whatever reason, you justify and perpetuate a belief system you have experienced as destructive. This pain should illicit a flight response, and should seem more clear-cut than reality manifests. Perhaps misery does indeed love company.

Exaggerated grumbling, fault finding, and blame-gaming to avoid taking responsibility is a self-defense technique. One is thus angrily protecting his right to choose: how to live, how to act, and how to find pleasure. In spite of how it affects others –and even through horrific proofs of failure, persistence in this is a kind of selfish living, which is central to nearly all consequent troubles.

Complacency and self-contentedness is comfortable. Change is uncomfortable. True honesty is uncomfortable. If one seeks comfort at first, truth may be evaded; if one seeks truth first, comfort may be found in the end. Change must be embraced as necessary, and truth must be heralded above all else; therefore, in order to be free one must honestly seek truth to find comfort. Those contemplating leaving an unhealthy addiction or situation need to make a complete break –and flee.

It is interesting to note that discovering blameworthiness does not uncover solutions –the usual direction of that path is intemperance (lack of moderation), which leads of course to overindulgence. Overindulgence can lead to obsessive addictive behavior, which when fully consummated, leads to death. Maybe that is the knowledge no one wants to risk having.

Chapter 3

2010-01-20T18:10:00.000-08:00

Addiction, like all types of life-controlling sin, is a spiritual problem. Anyone living in defiance of common sense Moral Laws expecting pardon from the very God who so placed the Laws is in denial of the innermost self-evident human dilemma. This is fundamental, for indeed the greatest accomplishment of wishful thinking is believing one can operate independently of God.

With relation to the Moral Law (selflessness, charity, good will, humility…), is should appear quite clear we do not often do as we ought. We all know what we ought to do, and in many cases do not do it. In a depraved spiritual condition with no hope of cure, apathetic and bewildered people wander endlessly and aimlessly through life in search of meaning, purpose, and escape. Quite true this search ends in utter fatality if help is not sought. Who then will help us? Who can deliver us from this death? The answer: only God Himself can -and will, if He is sought.

Admitting weakness and sometimes even powerlessness to drugs, alcohol, hurts, habits, or hang-ups is the first step toward dependence on God for recovery. The only true method of permanent deliverance from any sin is continual and absolute reliance upon the Power of God. Let me be perfectly clear, this Power to heal our human condition is not of ourselves, or of our own making.

We all tend to see the world and others only through our own needs, yet selfish compulsions that do not wreak havoc are mostly disregarded and thus remain unnoticed. The luxury of overlooking selfishness and other character defects (violations of Moral Law) is not something the addict can ever afford to do.

It starts with a problem of compulsion. The addict’s compulsory desires are grounded on genuine incapableness to employ self-restraint with regard to immediate gratification, pleasure seeking, and escapism. This governing faulty belief system converges around the following: denial, projection, rationalization, and minimization. In this very belief system the problem remains.

Part II

2010-01-18T19:16:00.000-08:00

If we are to heal, then to face the problem head-on is the quickest way forward. It is time to change our beliefs so that we can progress. If one wants to move forward, yet is lost for failure to suitably interpret correct direction, then to advance is only a circle that will lead right back to the start point.

The core problem in living by false beliefs is that if you’re heading the wrong direction, you won’t know it until you end up where you did not intend to be. There is no need to drive a car in reverse going backwards ninety miles per hour in the wrong lane. It’s time to get on the right road, with the right map, with the necessary driving skills, with the same destination in mind, and with the same co-pilot to guide us through the minefields of change.

I shall now focus on the belief system of an addict, for after all this is where the difficulty begins. What makes him tick? What goes through the mind of an addict before he uses? Why is there such an easy break-down in the same kind of self defense that keeps one from putting his face in a fan… or bare foot on a red-hot coal? After such extremes to achieve a high, why do addicts always search for unproblematic ways out of the consequence of such behavior? All the thrills with none of the cost… what a great achievement in wishful thinking!

I have developed majestic creations of philosophic reflection that seek to answer these and other riddles once and for all (so stay tuned). But as stated initially, the problem starts with BELIEF. There is a Spirit governing the universe who gives us inside information to His purposes, which appears in each of us as a Moral Law urging us to do right and making it painful when we do wrong. Mere common sense tells us that we operate lives in opposition to this Moral Law, and covering up or medicating the painful and otherwise motivating feelings of guilt and shame is no cure to this troublesome reality. For this is our starting point: what do we believe?

Part I

2010-01-16T19:59:00.000-08:00

The abuse of illegal chemical narcotics in our nation (and world) is reaching epidemic proportions, far beyond any practical reach of law enforcement. It is a large-scale decision making problem affecting society in a costly and desperately wicked way. Jails, prisons, hospitals, and rehabilitation facilities accommodate millions of people worldwide who are captive to a way of living that harms themselves, others, and our very civilization itself. Any civilization experiencing large-scale catastrophic harm becomes progressively weakened.

Using drugs is a way of living. The way one lives his life is based on personal decisions. The decisions one makes are based on an individual moral system. The arrangement of moral values within each of us is based on a belief system. A belief system is the very thing that shapes our lives and determines our providence. Living by false beliefs is the quickest way down.

Now that I have set the stage to draw attention to an alarming epidemic affecting the health of our great society, let’s get down to the core of the problem. The central problem of all addiction is this: BELIEF. Since we all act on what we believe, let’s make certain we have it right. When it comes to the belief system of one who takes drugs, there are many causative factors that lead to the broken-down moral system that governs their lives. When it comes to society at large, there are many wrong beliefs fueling insufficient philosophical approaches to treatment and the overall problem itself. Neither the addict nor society has their thinking right.

An addict thinks he can hide from his problem, while society hides the addict from his problem… and on goes the merry-go-round. Is not hiding from problems a form of evasion? How can we cure that which we cannot see? Is this not wishful thinking?