The essence of any addiction is Idolatry. Addictions begin when we seek relief from the trials of life by looking to some other god to meet our needs. We may not consciously think of whatever we turn to as a god, but because we are refusing to go to God or to wait on Him, we begin to look to the counterfeit as our refuge. Eventually the patterns of our behavior become so ingrained they become bondage. As the bondage grows, little by little, we become more and more slaves of the false god and less able to serve and obey the true God.