Addict

Addiction. What is it? The dictionary says it is "the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma." Okay, let's break it down. Note that, first, a "habit" is not "addiction". Instead, addiction is enslavement to a habit. Second, addiction includes the idea that if you stop it will be traumatic. Another definition says it is a "compulsive physiological and psychological need". It is a physical or psychological perception of a need.

The first definition I listed references narcotics as an example. What else can we be addicted to? Clearly it doesn't necessarily need to be drugs or alcohol, even if they are the most obvious examples. Addiction to gambling or sex or pornography are well known and commonly understood. There are many things that can be considered addictions. Some addictions are not necessarily bad. Robert Palmer's hit "Addicted to Love" suggests a good thing -- that we cannot live without love. And that's not bad. I've read about people who become addicted to volunteerism. They just aren't happy if they aren't volunteering their time for others.

What about other very common things? Can they be addictions? And if they are, are they good or bad? I wonder about television, for instance. How many of us are actually addicted to TV? Can you turn it off if you want to? What about the prospect of going without for extended periods of time? There have been studies that suggest the television is detrimental to its users. It is worst for children who are still developing. The medium itself is a problem for them. But even adults suffer consequences. Apart from content, there is wear and tear on eyes, extended sitting (you know the term: "couch potato"), and the elimination of other activities. That is, if you are watching TV, you are not doing other things. You aren't reading your Bible. You aren't visiting with your neighbors. You aren't at church or having a Bible study. Then there is the content. First, most of us know that TV cannot be trusted to tell us the truth. Worse, we have a tendency, even though we know it, to forget it. So we allow this stuff to seep in anyway. And the worst is that TV tends to eliminate thinking. If you read a book, you are making the pictures in your head. If you watch TV, you are simply absorbing the feed. It is detrimental to imagination. And, yet, no matter how many problems are included on the lists you can find, most of us will say, "Welllll, yeah, I know ... but I just don't think I will turn off my TV." Addiction.

How about something even closer to home? How about computer addiction? I know people whose spouses complain that they are being replaced by a computer. Wives speak of being "computer widows". Kids "need" to spend time gaming or chatting with friends online. What about computer addiction? Can you turn your computer off? If you went without for an extended period of time, would it be a problem for you? Do you think of it as a "need"? You may be addicted to computers.

Or how about telephones? Me, personally ... I dislike phones. I prefer face-to-face conversations. Phone conversations are brief if I have anything to say about it. But judging by the numbers of people I see with cell phones glued to the sides of their faces while driving, walking, in the restaurants, in the theaters, anywhere you care to mention, I have to wonder if there isn't a significant problem with cell phone addiction.

Paul wrote, "All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything" (1 Cor. 6:12). Is that your idea as well? Are you (and I) willing to examine your life and see if you are, indeed, engaging only in that which is "profitable" and not in that which has mastaered you? You might be surprised if you look very closely.