Addiction

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this lesson is to help students understand that God can give you the strength to overcome addictive habits, and to equip students with the word of God as a means of staying pure. The subject of addiction is one of the most dangerous issues a person faces ruthlessly in the current modern world that can lead to the destruction of the person, their family, and society if not faced with knowledge, prayer and firmness. The students will be able to recognize types of addiction, stages of temptation, the impacts and how to prevent/overcome addiction.

INTRODUCTION & HOOK - 5 Minutes

Due to the subject matter of this lesson, it may be appropriate to conduct this study in gender-specific groups. While the content is not graphic, nor are any of our discussion questions, you may discover that you get greater honesty and participation from students if you serve in this targeted way.

Please review the previous week's lesson. (5 minutes)

Ask the students if they have gone fishing before, or if they know someone who has. Ask them the following question: What do you need to go fishing? (Hook, rod, fishing line)

Explain to the students that even if you have all your equipment for fishing, the most important thing to have is bait. The bait is what attracts the fish to the hook. When you go fishing, the fish see or smell the bait, go towards it, and begin to eat it. As they eat more and more of it, they eventually get stuck on the hook as they try to get more of the bait.

Just like the fish get attracted to the bait, which eventually causes them to literally get hooked on a fishing line, there are many temptations in our life that can lead to us getting caught and trapped in sin.

In this lesson, we will discuss addiction and the stages of temptation that can lead up to it.

HOLY SCRIPTURE - 5 Minutes

Memory Verse - Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. (1 Peter 5:8)
"How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You." (Psalm 119:9-11)

CONTENT (KEY POINTS) - 5 Minutes

What is Addiction?

Ask the students for how they would define addiction. After gathering answers, explain:

Addiction can be defined as an urge to do something that is hard to control or stop. It is characterized by craving, compulsion, and an inability to stop simply by exerting your own will power, leading to a person becoming consumed by their addictive habit.

What Does Addiction Entail?

Ask students for what they think are some examples of addiction in our lives? (Answers will vary. The servant may make a list on a board)

Some may think that addiction only refers to things such as drugs and alcohol, however addiction can take many unexpected forms.

Addictive habits can be categorized into 3 types:

Addiction to substances: drugs, alcohol, tobacco...
Impulse control disorders: stealing, gambling, setting fires...
Behavioral addictions: food, shopping, screens (phones, internet, video games), pornography, cutting...

Stages of Addiction

Ask the students, "Do you think addiction happens overnight?" (answers should be no). Then, ask, "What do you think leads a person to reaching the point of addiction?"

Explain that addiction begins with temptation. Next, we will discuss the stages of temptation that ultimately lead to addiction. (For this section, it may be helpful to display the attached diagram).

Exposure:

This is simply an initial suggestion or idea that can provoke you to think about sin. Think back to the fishing analogy at the beginning of the lesson: it is like the bait simply dangling in the water.

It can come in any form: a thought, memory, image, word, misplaced glance. They are virtually everywhere...

In and of itself, it is not a sin. Another example is like a chocolate bar during Lent. It may be sitting on the counter, or on the shelf at a store. By itself the chocolate hasn't done anything, it's just sitting there making a suggestion.

Trigger:

This is a momentary disturbance when you notice the suggestion to sin and your emotions are stirred up. The opportunity for sin has entered your mind. At this point there may still not be active sin, just mental awareness of its possibility.

Imagination:

This is the point when you begin to actually consider and imagine the action or sin. This is the conception of sin, and is a dangerous place to be. At this point, we often bend and toy with the idea, and it is important to get out of this stage quickly because it can quickly escalate into reality. "Fantasy is the realm of the demons." St. John Chrysostom says, "What happens is this: in a moment without a word being spoken or an image presented, a sudden passionate urge lays hold of the victim. It comes faster than anything in the physical world and is swifter and more discernible than any spirit."

Surrender / Assent:

This is the point at which a person gives in to the idea and commits the action. This is the stage that we typically understand to be active sin.

Captivity:

Captivity refers to the breaking down of our will. When we voluntarily keep giving in to specific sins, it becomes increasingly more difficult to resist, and the action/sin becomes "second nature." This is usually when you stop fighting back & become numb.

Addiction:

Addiction is the final stage of temptation. At this stage, the temptation dominates your life, habitually and repeatedly. When in this stage, nothing else matters to the person except for fulfilling the sin, and they become overly preoccupied and obsessed with the practice of that habit. Imagine a robot that is programmed to only find or do one thing - that is how one's mind becomes when they are overwhelmingly preoccupied with fulfilling their addiction.

Impact of Addiction

Similar to the fishing example in the introduction, if a fish is caught in a hook, it would be painful and not easy to remove the hook from its mouth. The same is with addiction - it is extremely difficult and painful to get rid of.

Additionally, it is important to realize that even if one has not reached the addiction stage, being repeatedly in the surrender or captivity stages is also risky and makes one much more prone to addiction.

Social Impacts

School grades may fall
Loss of interests and activities
Friendships/relationships suffer
Potential harm to physical health or leading one to neglect their health
Neglecting responsibilities or other people in your life

It is also important to understand that these impacts will be noticed during the time of addiction, but some will also be irreversible, long-lasting and costly (e.g., permanent damage to health from smoking, failed courses leading to expulsion, etc).

Spiritual Impacts

Addiction, especially substance addiction, destroys God's holy temple
Addiction can drive you into a series of sins
Addiction leads to feeling of defeat and hopelessness, and losing faith in God's power
Addiction hinders a person's repentance and causes apathy in their spiritual life
Addiction takes away from time that can be spent with God

Addiction can lead you to lose everything: energy, health, senses, family, relatives, community and happiness. Most importantly, addiction can lead to an unparalleled loss, namely the loss of the Kingdom of God and eternal crown.

Preventing or Overcoming Addiction

Prevent:

Fill your time wisely, particularly with Godly things (Bible, spiritual songs, etc.)
Surround yourself with the right people
Avoid things, places, or people that you know can trigger temptation
Be aware of your weaknesses and be active in your spiritual life (regular confession, prayer, communion)
Use the power of the sign of the Cross, as well as the Jesus prayer at the first sign of temptation

It is important to not actively expose yourself to situations or scenarios in which there is a risk of being tempted. We must be wise in our choices and not push boundaries and willingly put ourselves in dangerous situations. (E.g., going to a party where you know there will be a lot of drugs/alcohol, visiting websites that you know have a lot of inappropriate content). "You shall not tempt the Lord your God" (Matthew 4:7).

Overcome:

Make a conscious choice to change
Admit to God that you need help
Dedicate your effort to re-growing spiritual life
Seek guidance from others
- A spiritual guide, father of confession, or even professional help if needed

There are going to be times when a person is tempted to turn back to these addictive habits because they seem so fun and can make life less boring. You can resist the temptation to use these addictive habits as an escape by turning to God through prayer and studying the Bible. When you admit to God that you need help with overcoming an addictive habit, He will hear you and provide you with a way out -- it might come in the form of guidance from other godly people, strength that goes beyond what you have on your own, or by giving you a different focus that helps you see beyond what you desire right now. In some cases professional help may be required. It is not wrong to seek trustworthy professional help.

Just like if a fish gets caught on a hook, it is possible, even if painful, for it to be brought back into the water and continue living, there is always hope for a person to overcome addiction if they get caught in the cycle of temptation and sin if they confess and repent. "But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father---Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." (1 John 2:1)

DISCUSSION (Challenge) - 10 Minutes

Do you feel that there may be aspects of your life that may be addictive?
How much time do you spend devoted to social media, video games or some other form of entertainment? How does that compare to how much time you spend with God?
- Research has found that students spend an average of 9 hours a day staring at a screen. That includes computers, tv, video games, phones, etc.
Why do you think social media, video games, and TV can be addictive?
- (Wanting to see what friends are doing, wanting to see different responses to something you posted, wanting to beat a game before anyone else does, etc.)

LIFE APPLICATION - 5 Minutes

Many times, addiction manifests itself as something that may not be inherently sinful, but how much you allow it to control you.

For example, in and of themselves, things like media, phones, or even food etc, are not inherently sinful. However, when we allow the things that consume our time to take priority over our responsibilities, commitments, or relationships, we need to ask ourselves why we are spending so much time doing those things and ask God for help. Anything that takes priority over God becomes our idol.

Like every other area of life, when we surrender to God and rely on Him, He can give us the strength to overcome whatever it is that is consuming us. Just remember -- God never expects you to try and live life on your own, His desire is to guide and direct your steps as you turn to Him.

CONCLUSION - 5 Minutes

Addiction can be characterized as an ongoing and consuming sin that takes us away from our relationship with God and others. It can be as severe as alcohol/drugs or as inconspicuous as social media, video games, shopping, food, tv (movies) and even "friends." The question we should ask is, "is this bringing me closer to God, or pushing Him away?" If the act is taking me away from God's will, then its presence in my life needs to be addressed.

ACTIVITY - 10 Minutes

This activity is quite simple, but effective and engaging. Start with a square area on the ground. You can use masking tape to tape off a square, or carpet squares, etc. The square area should be large enough to fit your entire group into it fairly comfortably, but be able to be reduced in size quickly as well. Encourage your whole group to try to fit into it. After a successful attempt, make the area smaller. Either re-create a smaller square with the tape, or remove sections of plywood/carpet squares one at a time. Then encourage the group to do it again, and again as the space available gets smaller and smaller.

Rules:

Every person must have at least one foot in the play area.
They can hang over, but nothing can touch the ground outside the play area.
They must stay in the area for a count of five.

Decrease the overall size of the area more and more until your whole group can fit in a space of about one square foot. Even a group of 10 can do it with a little ingenuity. If your group is any larger, then you might want to do multiple stations or form teams and alternate play.

After playing, ask the students the following:

What was challenging about that experience?
As the area became smaller, what did you have to do to fit?
How many of you became frustrated? Why?
Why do you think it's so hard to get everyone to fit in such a small space?
What does this experience tell you about your heart, your mind, your life? How did you decide what you had room for?

In the game, the square represents your life (time, heart, and mind). The square getting smaller represents what happens when addictive habits take over your life. As addiction begins to dominate, it becomes impossible to fit other priorities, (such as God, or responsibilities, or relationships with people), which ultimately leads to isolation and separation from God.

PARENTS CORNER/HOMEWORK

Select verses from the following list for each group to memorize:

1 Corinthians 6:18, 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4, 1 Corinthians 10:13, Psalm 119:37, Matthew 5:28, Colossians 3:2, Colossians 3:5, Psalm 119:133, Romans 13:14, 2 Timothy 2:22, Proverbs 6:32, James 1:13-14