It is not at all comfortable to talk about our addictions. It is a subject we avoid so as not to confront our deep weaknesses, with complex roots and entangled in our powerful self-defense systems.
Those addicted to drugs or alcohol are a little more visible, while those addicted to work, sex or themselves are a little harder to recognize. Addicted to money, addicted to exercise, to tobacco, to that never slim figure in the mirror, addicted to intense emotions, addicted to the cell phone or the computer, addicted to what anesthetizes us, addicted to isolation, video games or the casino, religion or an unhealthy relationship, addicted to all kinds of addiction, a word that hurts and recognizes us as weak dependent slaves.
It is possible that all or many of our addictions have to do with our desires and permanent cravings. In English, our “cravings” refer to that which makes us restless and drives us to seek. Often, however, we do so from the wrong sources and so it is not surprising that we fall into addictions that can only destroy. What is your quest? What is your innermost desire? Again, What do you crave for?
There is one path among many that has a particular condition. It is undoubtedly El Camino and because of that, we all have hope if we recognize that we cannot do it alone.
In the video above, we hear from a dear friend, Erwin McManus, who leads an extraordinary organization in Los Angeles, www.mosaic.org, focused on the urban youth in need and search. His mission is uplifting, exemplary and inspirational.
In Costa Rica there are many organizations focused on connecting people on the road to a relationship with God, a name that unsettles and alienates many, but one that then means, sustains, repairs and comforts forever.
In Unidos por Cristo, you will find a multi-denominational organization for transformation in study groups, www.unidos.co.cr. In Vida Abundante a church of great outreach, www.vidaabundantecr.org with locations in Coronado, Cariari and Pavas. The music at La Viña Escazú is particularly uplifting, www.lavinaescazu.org with special support from Chris Dearnley.
Mentioning La Viña, of course, requires a special paragraph to the ministry of Hans Wust, his wife Liz Head and their group of extraordinary musicians. Be sure to visit them in person at La Viña Escazú, or on their website: www.adoracionenlavina.com.
. Online, and for those who speak English, you can find more at www.northpoint.org/messages, or at www.unagranfe.com which contains key messages to face the challenges of each day. Another option is the Openhouse, www.openhouse.cr for those who do not like conventional churches and are searching, starting or returning.
We cannot do it alone. Getting out of our addictions, codependencies or harmful patterns requires daily support. The 12-step program established by Alcoholics Anonymous states it forcefully, and its millions of success stories around the world reiterate it: we need help, especially from the Higher Self.
I have chosen to look in the direction of Jesus, for only then will I find the Answer, and only by His Grace will I come out of my own codependencies and addictions. We can live in this world and seek in the only right direction, whether we are creatives, entrepreneurs, students, bankers or advertisers, whatever we are today, no matter the origin or the deviation.
It is time to overcome our addictions.
