By Gonny 
Imagine someone standing before you, addicted to drugs. The instinct might be to judge or feel pity. “What a shame,” you think. But if we look at this through the lens of A Course in Miracles (ACIM), we see something different: a call for love. Yes, you read that right.
According to ACIM, everything in this world is either an expression of love or a call for love. And addiction? It’s a clear example of the latter. Someone who is addicted is really trying to fill a void, to ease a pain. But what they’re seeking can’t be found in a bottle or a pill. What they truly need is the remembrance of who they really are—the perfect, beloved extension of God.
Why Drugs?
Addicts use substances to numb a deep inner pain, a fear, or a sense of being lost. From the perspective of ACIM, this pain reflects the illusion of separation from Source. Drugs provide a temporary escape from that illusion, but once the high wears off, the emptiness returns. As ACIM reminds us: nothing real can be threatened, and nothing unreal exists. The peace they seek has never been lost—it’s just buried under a layer of fear and illusion.
Forgiveness, Not Judgment
Often, we are quick to judge a drug user: “Why are they doing this to themselves?” But imagine seeing that person as ACIM asks us to see them: as a child of God who has simply forgotten who they are. Instead of judgment, we offer forgiveness. Not the traditional kind of forgiveness where we say, “You did something wrong, but I forgive you.” No, in the light of ACIM, forgiveness means letting go of the illusion that anything went wrong in the first place. The truth is they were never truly separated from God or their true nature.
Love is the Answer
So, what can we do when we see someone struggling with addiction? We pray that they remember their true Self. Not by trying to “save” them (that’s the Holy Spirit’s job), but by seeing them through the eyes of love, without judgment. That might mean setting boundaries with love, or offering a helping hand when they’re ready to find their way back to healing. But it always starts with love.
Humor as Medicine
Let’s also not forget that life, even in its toughest moments, always offers room for a smile. Imagine the Holy Spirit gently chuckling as He watches us, addicted to all these material things, including drugs, and thinking, “Oh, there they go again. But no worries, they’ll come home eventually.” Because no matter how far we stray, we can never truly be lost.
A Return to Truth
Addiction is a kind of deep sleep, a way for someone to move further from the truth. But awakening is always near. And when we send love instead of fear, we remind not only them, but also ourselves, that love is always the answer.