Taproot Church

Addiction, Grace, and Mystery

I’ve been reading this book, Addiction & Grace, for about the last year or so. I’m not happy about that. I’ve read several books in between, but for whatever reason there are just some books that I can’t read straight through. Is that true for you as well? Anyway, I finished it today, and it sure ended with a bang. The book is an examination of sin, so often manifested in addiction (think big, not just drugs, but approval, comfort, work, play, attention), and how it is that we actually get beyond those things.

The greatest moment for me in any book, film or story is when I feel like my thoughts or experiences have been lifted out of the life of my mind and translated and subsequently dissected for all to behold. Those random inklings and unclarified meanderings that I possess are articulated exactly the way I would say it if I knew that’s what I was trying to say. Those are moments that make me very happy to be alive, and I like to share them with people to see if they’re on the same page with me as well.

So here are some of those passages that made me feel like I am not alone in the way that I happen to be experiencing some of the trials and tribulations that this world offers us:

“We are neither gods nor puppets. Nor do we exist at some point on a line between these extremes. Instead, we exist in a dimension that is different from all such images. God is in us, we are in God, we are in one another, and we are very much ourselves. We are mysterious and so, therefore, is our responsibility.”

“Often I do not sense any clear guidance from God, no matter how carefully I try to open myself to it. And even when I do sense it, I can never be certain that I am not deluding myself. Because of my attachments, I can be sure none of my conclusions will be perfectly pure. Yet, in the very act of sincerely seeking God’s guidance, in the simple and sometimes pitiful attempts I make to turn to God, I do know that God responds. In addition, I have a head on my shoulders; I know, to some extent, what kinds of actions are loving and what are not. Further, I have Scripture and faith tradition and community to help me in the process of discernment. Once again, we are called to faithfulness, not success. We can only do what we can do.

“Doing what we can do means having the courage to act in accord with our best judgments, even though we know those judgements are not perfect. If we refused to act until we were completely sure of God’s will, we would be committing ourselves to one or another disaster. We would either avoid responsibility by doing nothing at all or abuse responsibility by convincing ourselves that we know God’s will. Authentic responsibility means acting with our best prayerful judgement, acting without complete sureness, acting in faith, but acting.”

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