A Night to Remember!

Last Friday night at Celebrate Recovery at Memorial Road Church of Christ was special for many reasons!  First, Tommy from the “The skit guys!” came and did a special “one man show” for us. He shared some of his life story and talked about the idea of “baggage”. (You can see the skit here: http://skitguys.com/videos/item/baggage-skit).   He challenged us with what we do with our own baggage. Do we hide among our baggage like King Saul in I Samuel 10:22 “So they inquired further of the LORD, "Has the man come here yet?" And the LORD said, "Yes, he has hidden himself among the baggage." Or do we leave it with the keeper like David did a few chapters later “David left his things with the keeper of supplies, ran to the battle lines and asked his brothers how they were. – 1 Samuel 17:22?  Through his skit, Tommy encouraged us to let go of our baggage, leave it with God, and let Him take control. 

After his powerful performance we had our usual small groups and then a special Christmas dessert night and talent show! We had cookies, some homemade goodies, hot coco, coffee,   and a “build your own cheesecake” bar!

Then the talent night began! We had several “Celebrate Recovery” themed performances including one from our own “Tobey Keith” with his remake of “I Love This Bar” into “I Love CR!”  We also had some great kid performances with singing and a little ukulele playing! 

We also had some great gift card and Celebrate Recovery door prizes.

Everyone got to take home a "homemade" (Thanks Andrew!) Celebrate Recovery Christmas Ornament. 

It was a great night filled with tears and laughter for the Celebrate Recovery “Forever Family” at Memorial Road Church of Christ.

~Jen

The Skit Guys. {Well....we've got one guy.}

Illustrations help us to remember.  They are powerful.  That is why the Master Teacher, Jesus Christ, used them all the time.  He told stories that were sticky and help us to remember impactful truths.

This Friday night at Celebrate Recovery we are going to talk about how God recycles pain.  He never wastes a hurt.  So, he takes the pain and shame of our past and uses it to bring glory to His name and comfort and hope to others.  We are going to talk about surrendering our lives to God's will so that He can then use our lives to serve others.  Simply, we are going to talk about saying "yes" to God.

To help illustrate this lesson, Tommy Woodard, one of the members of "The Skit Guys" will be with us.  He is the Skit Guy with the hair [check out the picture :)] and he will help us understand God's love through skits.

I really hope that you can be with us to celebrate the power of Jesus Christ working in and through our lives.

Grateful believer,

Micah

Anna's House Foundation 2011

What a blessing it is to be a part of such a wonderful group of people!

This year I was again got to be a part of our now yearly donation to the Anna's House Foundation. Specifically, buying gifts for foster children who would quite possibly not have a Christmas without the generosity of others.

This year we set out to buy gifts for 8 kiddos.  While last year they were all small kids this year they ranged from toddlers to teenagers.  

From bicycles and tricycles to new clothes, toys and gift cards the more than $700 raised a few Friday nights ago did not go to waste.   James 1:27 says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widow in their distress and to keep ones self from being polluted by the world." 

Through your generosity, this year our Celebrate Recovery family has once again been able to care for these children who by many definitions could be considered orphans. There parents aren't around for whatever reason, by choice of the state or choice of their own, but this year they won't be forgotten. 

I do hope these children can feel that they are loved. While we will never meet them, I know our God cares for them and is always there for them. Hopefully the families caring for these children will too feel the love and see how through your donations God is watching out for them, providing beyond a need at this time of year.

Thanks for donating. I look forward to being a part of this for many years to come.

Grateful Believer,
Chellie

What are you thankful for?

I had a bad day.  It was July 13, 2011.  The whole day wasn’t bad really, just long and by the time we got to our rooms I was in a bad mood.  I was tired, ate dinner later than normal, and was cranky.  We were on our CR trip to Honduras and had a morning of manual labor and then CR workshops.

When Micah and I got back to our room I unloaded all of my “problems”.  He listened and then asked me, “What are you thankful for?”

I don’t know if you are like me, but when I am venting the last thing I want to do is focus on what I am thankful for.  And if I do manage to think about some things I am thankful for I have a special ability to turn that into something to vent about too.  “Yeah, I have great friends, but….”

It’s all about our perspective isn’t it?  That night in Honduras while we were eating dinner two small boys came in begging for food.  This past weekend some friends and I went to San Antonio and had a great time, but I was disturbed by how many homeless people I saw sleeping in doorways and wandering around with vacant eyes.

It is so easy to see past some of my blessings, because I receive them everyday.  Every day I eat, have a home to go to and a bed to sleep in.  If these things were taken away I wouldn’t know what to do.  However, I focus my time and energy on things that don’t matter as much.

What do you focus your time and energy on?

What are you thankful for?

Grateful Believer,

Andrew

Step 12

Hi, my name is Erin and I am a grateful believer in Christ who struggles with people’s approval and being a workaholic and celebrates recovery in my marriage.

Step 12 states “Having had a spiritual experience as the result of these steps, we try to carry this message to others, and practice these principles in all our affairs.”

As a newcomer, this step seemed to be the most unattainable to me.  Spiritual experience?  Share with others?  Practice this in my daily life?  I never thought I would see the light at the end of the tunnel much less share those horrible, dreadful things with others.  Yet, as I went through the Celebrate Recovery program, I began to see God’s good in my horrible, no good situations.  I begin to wonder if others shared similar stories.  I felt compelled to tell my story.  I began thinking about sharing with total strangers and even to friends and family.  I prayed that someone who was going through something similar would find hope and strength to follow God through their hard times.  

I still love telling my story.  I love being totally open and honest.  I have been telling my story to the ladies of Capitol Hill’s Celebrate Recovery.  These are women (and men) who never realized there was another way out of their pain and bad habits.  Hearing stories of recovery and God’s unconditional love, has brought them back Monday night after Monday night.  These people love hearing stories of the real you and adore even more once you open up.  This is a place where we can complete the first part of Step 12.  

The second portion of Step 12 seemed to come a little easier (and be a little less frightening).  I believe that God is in control and never wastes a hurt.  I try to use all the other steps in my life, such as taking a daily inventory and making immediate amends (Steps 9 and 10) and being in constant prayer with God (Step 11) to continue my recovery.  I fall off the wagon but my support system steps in and encourages me to continue working.

To any newcomer, please listen to our stories and know that there is hope and joy in your recovery. 

Grateful Believer,

Erin

Step 11

Step 11 has been and probably always will be a challenge for me, but it is without question vital to my spiritual health and recovery in Jesus.  Step 11 says, “We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and power to carry that out.”    

This step truly is a maintenance step for me.  Much like when I neglect to have my car serviced and tuned up, if I recklessly abandon all spiritual outlets of renewal and encouragement, I will eventually feel the effects of it.  If I disregard going to God’s Word and throne room for wisdom and guidance, eventually my spiritual tank light comes on telling me that I’m near empty.  And the thing that really zaps me and leaves me empty is if I ignore my deep, spiritual need for community.  For me, I improve my conscious contact with God when I am around other Christ followers in an authentic, God-honoring group.  

So, I believe that Step 11 reminds us that we need to daily fill up our spiritual tanks.  I’m not much of a Nascar fan, but I do enjoy watching the movie Cars. The opening scene of that movie illustrates well the truth and importance of this step.  Often times, we are prideful like Lightening McQueen and believe that we can do it on our own.  We believe that a pit stop to refuel and get support is a waste of time.  We believe we just need to try harder to accomplish our goals.  The truth is that we all need a pit stop to recharge.  

For our recoveries, that is exactly what a daily time with God is all about.  It is a spiritual pit stop from the craziness of the world going on around us.  God’s Word fills us up with encouragement, wisdom, strength, joy and hope.  That is why Paul admonishes us to “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (Colossians 3:16).   

The practical strides to carry out Step 11 are really up to you.  You need to decide when you will do this on a daily basis.  Pick a time and do it.  Decide what you will read.  If you are undecided, a gospel account is always good to begin.  Decide how you will meditate.  Sitting quietly thinking about God’s greatness?  Perhaps, you think best as you write or type.  This works for me.  The bottom line is that you must get started to experience the benefits of truly seeking out God’s presence through prayer and meditation.  So, get started!

Grateful Believer,

Micah

Step 10

Hi everyone, my name is Braden, and I am a grateful believer in Christ who struggles with lust and a fear of intimacy. Hi Braden. Hi everyone.  I have been asked to write about Step 10 which says:

We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.

And its corresponding verse:

“So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!”

I Corinthians 10:12

That doesn’t sound fun, convenient, or easy to me: more inventories, admitting when I am wrong (my wife nods in agreement), and the whole falling when I think that I am standing firmly thing.  When is the step where upon being completely recovered, I get my picture in the Celebrate Recovery Hall of Fame in between the pictures of John Baker and Andrew Claxton, and I never have to think about recovery again? When is that again? Never?! Boo.

To me, Step 10 is a daily application of everything that I have learned through recovery thus far.  In Step Study Participant Guide 4, John Baker writes, “Steps 10 through 12 are where we will live out our recoveries for the rest of our time here on earth.” I believe that recovery up until this point has been about resolving the hurts, hang-ups, and habits that had developed in my past, but from Step 10 forward, I am responsible for resolving my hurts, habits, and hang-ups that are happening in the present.  Step 10 is designed to ensure that I am continuing to work my recovery by making it a priority daily in my life.

The enemy of Step 10 in my recovery has been complacency.  It is really easy for me to look at the growth that I have had in my life the previous year and a half and think that I am rockin’ and rollin’.  I start to think that my hurts, habits, and hang-ups are under control, and everything is cool.  Ironically, I was telling myself the very same things before I started recovery.

One of the main ways that I fight complacency in my recovery is by taking a Step 10 daily inventory in my journal every night.  Each night, I ask myself four questions:

1. What did I do well today?

2. What did I not do so well today?

3. What did I learn from today?

4. Do I owe anyone an amends? If yes, who?

Through these four questions, I am taking an open and honest inventory of my day: my ups, my downs, and my lessons learned.  I use what I write in this inventory to identify weaknesses in my life that I need to work on, strengths that I need to take advantage of, and any resentment that could be festering.  This ensures that I am continuing to work my recovery while I am on the path to the person that God has planned for me to be.

“Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord.”

                                                                                      -Lamentations 3:40

Grateful Believer,

Braden

Step 9

There is something powerful about the words “I’m sorry” and “I forgive you.”  If said from a broken and sincere heart, they can begin the healing process in a once severed relationship.  Step nine states: “We made direct amends to such people whenever possible, except when to do so when injure them or others.”  So, we take the list we made in step eight and with God’s help are ready and willing to make amends with those people on the list.

Every amends that I owed was important for my recovery; however, the two that meant the most to me were the amends I owed God and my parents.  I had made a conscious choice to turn my back on God and live a life of habitual sin.  I became apathetic to the fact that I was slandering the Lord’s name by my actions and words.  Though I went to church when the doors were open, my faith was null and void.  I was a hypocrite.  So, I sat down to write an amends letter to my Father in heaven.  For me, it was really a love letter.  I knew that He had never left me.  As a loving Father he let me go and allowed me to figure things out.  When I came back home, He was looking for me and called me by name and wrapped His arms around me.  I had been gone for four years, but when I made the conscious choice to turn back to God, I felt like I had never left.  I feel the most confident and comfortable with myself when I’m in His presence.  So, I asked for his forgiveness and thanked him for His faithfulness.

My amends to my parents was a difficult one too.  They trusted me.  When I told them I was going to someone’s house, they trusted me to go there and stay there.  However, the majority of the time, I would end up at a party drinking and engaging in sexual sin.  I routinely lied to my parents to fulfill my selfish wants and desires.  Coming clean with them about this bad habit was difficult for me to admit and certainly hard for them to hear.  Nevertheless, it was the right thing to do and they extended their forgiveness to me.  It has taken time for the trust in our relationships to be reestablished, but the Lord has blessed this process too.

Making direct amends when possible was a turning point in my recovery.  It was never easy, but through this vigorous step God refined my faith and I grew.

Some people have asked me over the past six years, “When does the ‘except when to do so would injure them or others’ come into play?”  First, let me say, do not use this as an excuse to avoid a tough amends with a person who deserves to hear from you.  This exception clause is for special circumstances only.  I believe a good example would be a person who struggles with lust.  I would venture to say that a person who lusts after another is doing that in their own minds.  It would be inappropriate then for that person to go and apologize to a list of persons who were the objects of their bad habit.  It would do more harm than good because these people were not even aware of the other person’s actions.  In the end, my best advice for anyone struggling with the thought, “Is it going to cause harm to this person if I seek them out to make amends?”, is to consult with their sponsor and accountability partners.  Together, you and your accountability team can prayerfully ask the Father to help you make a wise decision.

Grateful believer,

Micah

Step 8

I like to make lists.  Specifically, I enjoy making “to-do” lists.  It gives me a sense of accomplishment to be able to cross something off a list once I have completed it.  This past weekend Tara and I decided (when I say we, I mean Tara J) to deep clean our house.  Our two oldest kiddos were at Nana camp, so we took that opportunity to roll up our sleeves and clean until it hurt.  We made a list.  Sweep.  Mop. Vacuum. Unfortunately, that meant every floor in the house.  Clean bathrooms.  Windex. Dust. Do Laundry.  Organize Laundry room.  If you like to make “to-do” lists like me, you should be getting excited by now reading this!  It really was nice to cross off those chores as we completed them.  We had a clean house by the end of the day and all was well…that is until we went to Norman that night for the game. L

Back to making lists…step 8 reads, “We made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.”  Now, that is the lists of all lists.  I will be the first to admit that this was not an easy list for me to make, but it certainly was rewarding to cross those names off during step 9 (but that is next week’s step).  Making the list can be difficult, but it is imperative not to leave names off the list that must be on it.  No matter how difficult or uncomfortable you might feel, if you owe someone amends, their name deserves to be on the list.  So, I prayerfully make the list, asking God to help me be rigorously honest not leaving anyone out.

Finally, I become “willing to make amends to them all.” Willing. Not begrudgingly or sparingly, but I become willing to make amends.  This is an attitude of the hurt that requires much prayer and consideration.  I urge you not to take this lightly.  If my approach in making amends with someone is done in a spirit of duty or “this is something I have to do,” I want to submit to you that you are skipping this step.  And if you skip a step on the road to recovery, you will find yourself stuck wandering what went wrong.  So, as you prepare your list, also prepare your heart.  Ask God to produce within you a spirit of kindness and love as you prepare to act on your list and make amends with those you have harmed and to those who have harmed you.  Jesus said it like this: “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:31).

Grateful Believer,

Micah     

Step 7

I dig.  The ground up here is rocky, and the soil is hard.  I have an old shovel with a splintery handle and a rusty spade, but I start anyway.  I know that once I break through the first layer, the going gets easier.  I jam the shovel down and I jump on it, and I pull up a spoonful of dirt.  Resistance has built up in this spot, but I'll break through it eventually.  All I have to do is keep digging and not stop, so I dig some more.  I strike a stone, but I dig around the rock enough that I can finally pry it out, add it to the pile, and keep going.

I'm sweaty and my hands are beginning to blister even through the calluses I've built up over the years of doing exactly this action in many different places.  I think this would be a great analogy for my life: a bunch of holes and a lot of piles of dirt.  I tell myself it's not my life; I'm digging for treasure.  X marks the spot an all that, only there are three X's here, so there must be a lot of treasure.  My back aches and I'm not even halfway, but that treasure at the end will make it all worth it.

This won't be like last time.

I dig some more.  The hole is up to my waist, and the pile behind me is over my head.  I suddenly notice I've had a pair of yellow work gloves in my back pocket this whole time.  I put them on, and the pain is diminished.  Good, I can keep going.

I dig some more.  Weird, the shovel isn't as old as I thought it was.  I've passed through a layer of clay, and the dirt is coming out like butter.  I keep digging.  It's easy now, almost fun now that the resistance is gone.  I could do this all day.  Then I look up, and the sun is setting!  I have been doing this all day!  Might as well continue.

I dig some more.  I feel renewed.  I have a second wind.  The deeper I go, the more on top I feel, until—I hit something hard with a jolt that travels all the way up to my shoulders.  It's a box!  I've found it!  I work some more to clear away enough black mud, then I haul the chest out of the hole.  The chest is surprisingly light, but I'm not worried.  What's awesome is that I've found the treasure!  I did it!  It's mine!  I feel so good that I don't even care what happens next!

There's a lock on the chest.  It seems that even now, even after all the work, I could still stop.  I could stop, but I'd have to explain away my sore, aching back, and the loss of an entire day.  For a moment,  I actually consider turning away.  Then I hit the lock with my shovel and it breaks, the chest flying open.

Inside is . . . paper.  Maybe it's a deed.  Maybe it's a bank note.  No, it reads, "Idiot.  You've done it again.  Good job."  It's not addressed to me, but it's my handwriting.

I've written that note countless times.  I must be getting better because the words are nicer than what I used to write.  Is that the kind of better I want?  At least I didn't curse myself this time.  No adjectives, no expletives.  Just, "Idiot."  That's better, right?  Or—and this scares me—is that worse?  Is that acceptance?  Am I beginning to accept what I should except?

That's not what I want.

I want the kind of better that's based on love.  I want the better that runs away, that sees the XXX and doesn't linger.  The kind of better that doesn't follow the crooked path in the first place.  I want the better that leaves me feeling right.

"'Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.  Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him'" (Romans 4:7-8).

"If I rebuild what I destroyed, I prove that I am a lawbreaker" (Galatians 2:18).

I want the better that both promises good and delivers great.  "At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures.  We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.  But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.  He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:3-7).

I want to be an heir.

I had been worried for some time that my struggle with pornography wasn't giving me the pain that my anger did, the fear-conquering pain that I suggested was necessary in Step 6, that I was missing the secret ingredient that enabled me to be entirely ready for God to remove that character defect.  I felt like I had it at one point, but that I missed the opportunity to use it.

I don't believe that anymore.  King David's lapses did not stop his relationship with God.  He kept on going, writing psalms and conquering enemies and paving the way for the temple.  Paul had some kind of big struggle he had to give to God every day, and he went one-on-legions with the Roman empire.  Now, that Rome is dust and Paul has moved on.

Waiting and worrying for me is really just procrastination.  A missed opportunity is still an opportunity.  I know I'm ready.  I can bring up the pain just by writing about digging.  God gave me that idea.  I just developed it.  I dug it out.  He gave me that so I could be ready for Step 7.  Now that I've identified what my struggles and defects are, I'm ready to "humbly ask God to remove my shortcomings."

Father God, it's one of those days.  Help me to get through it.  I am weak, Lord.  You are amazing.  You are mighty.  That's why together we'll get though this, one day at a time.  That's all it has to be.  Thank you.

If there's a secret to Steps 6 and 7, its this: it won't be just once.  That's not really a secret, and it's not even secret wisdom.  It's just Step 10.  I get to do it every day.

I'm not going to get into humility too much.  I'm a droplet in the mist that quickly vanishes.  Jesus knows every droplet in that mist, how and when each one is going to collide with others.  When I have a collision, Lord, please help me to bounce the right way.  I'm going to struggle and be tempted today.  I ask only for what you've promised already: a way out.  I have a great, understanding, and powerful support team of sponsor and accountability partners.  It only comes down to my decision to use them.  Decide me, Lord.

I'm a grateful believer in Jesus, the Christ.  I struggle with pornography and anger.  My name is Joel.

Step 6

My name is Joel.  I'm a grateful believer in Jesus.  I struggle with sexual addiction, anger, and control.

So, I've got this big list of other people I've hurt or I need to forgive.  I've shared it with God, myself, and my sponsor.  Now I'm ready to go out and make amends.  Send me in, coach!  However, Step 6 is not the amends step.  This gets skipped in all the movies and TV shows.  The characters come to realize they have problems, they admit the problems, and then they go out and make amends.  I've never seen how they handle Steps 6 and 7, but whether your name is Earl or you used to be a song writer struggling with alcohol, these two steps are essential to being reasonably happy in this life.

Step 6: We were entirely ready to remove these defects of character.

Wow.  What about all of the other people?  They need to know I have this problem, and that's why my life stinks, and why they have to forgive me, and that's why I can forgive them!

Well, no.  I need to slow down and remember why I'm in recovery.  My focus still needs to be on me, not on others.  By sharing, by Step 5-ing, I have given all of those people and situations to God.  The weight has been lifted off of my shoulders so that I can attack the real issues.

How can I be entirely ready?  How can I ever be entirely ready for anything?  I've been thinking about this, and it's not always easy.  I have to remember; this is why I came to Celebrate Recovery in the first place.  My pain is finally greater than my fear.

Take my rage, for instance.  I was always in the wrong place, and it was always the wrong time.  I was constantly shouting down my wife in arguments, verbally abusing her; and, worse, in the presence of my child.  And when that wasn't enough, I was hitting my hands, feet, and even my head against walls.  My right knuckles were always puffy, scarred, and/or bleeding.  Trying to keep my CR anonymity when the people at work are asking what happened to my hand because it's so damaged.

I was entirely ready to remove that defect. 

And that was the easy one.

All of that amends and forgiveness stuff is meaningless until I have begun to change.  I mean, guess what!  People already know that I've messed up and done them wrong.  I'm sure that I've apologized profusely already.  The constant attitude of sorry-ness has probably been feeding my issues.  My wife, my family, my other "relationals," they want to see that I've turned the corner on that.

It takes time.  There's nothing instant about Celebrate Recovery.  We are not a quick fix.  Take the time to do it right.  Let God change you as you work Step 6.  Have a real life experience.  "Let us approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).  I would say that you get such confidence by asking for it.  God, will you help me?  Will you help me to remember that the place I'm in now will always be better than the place I was in when I was trying to be in control?  I kneel before the throne because I can't sit on it; it's not my place.  I see that now.  The joy I'm capable of feeling comes from you, and it will always conquer whatever I get from giving in to my hurts, habits, and hang-ups.  Continue the changes in me so that I can share the joy, not the pain.  Others need to know that I belong to you first.

Grateful believer,

Joel

Step 5

We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

My name is Joel.  I'm a grateful believer in Jesus, the Christ, and I struggle with sexual addiction, anger, and isolation.

I can do 2/3 of this step real well, but what's up with that last part?  Another human being?  If I've admitted it all to myself, and given my past away to God, why do I have to involve someone else?

I've done the first four steps, and they didn't require any outside participation.  Sure, the wording of the steps all say "we" did this and that, but they were my decisions to make; I may have told a few things to somebody else by the way of accountability, but partners, sponsors?

I had made it to this step without a strong support team, but 5th Step is the first step that requires me to go to someone else.  Sure, it helps to start that way, but I hadn't done that.  One of my struggles is that I seek loneliness, and I often find it just when I need it the least. 

I had to go to someone else to share my inventory.  Otherwise, it would have been me talking to myself, and that's just not balanced.  The burden doesn't go away when I'm only handing it back to myself.  That's not letting go, that's juggling.  If I haven't given it away, it stays.

Let it go.  Share it.  Give it away.

Build a relationship.  That's what 5^th Step really is for me.  I step out of myself, out of relying on just me.  I let that stuff go.  I tell it to my sponsor,  and it has no power over me anymore.

If I may use a baseball analogy, in giving my fifth step I was the pitcher.  I threw all sorts of pitches, and I had so many in my inventory.  I had curve balls, brush backs, cutters, cliff-hangers, good cheese, and backdoor sliders.  Mostly, I wanted strikes, but sometimes I wanted that ball to be hit right back into the field.  So I threw my past out there with a vengeance.

You might think my sponsor is going to slam those balls right back at me, hard, but remember, my sponsor is the catcher.  He's on my team.  At the end of the game, he will say, "Good job," and we will pray, like in James 5:16: "Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed..."

Grateful Believer,

Joel

Step 4

Hello my name is Travis, I am a grateful believer in Jesus and I struggle with dipping and gambling.  You might ask why anyone would want to write about the 4^th step.  Step 4:  We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

For me this was the best step.  It was the step that I tried my whole life not to do.  This step made me get real with myself, God and someone I trusted.  I wore so many different masks throughout my life; however, this step forced me to be real.  This step made me think of every person, place, or thing that was good and bad in my life. 

I completed my inventory by evaluating my life in four stages:  Elementary, Middle and High School, College, and the years I have been married.  By using these stages I was able to concentrate only on that time instead of jumping around my whole life.  As I wrote down on paper the good and the bad things I had done it was a humbling experience.  So, these four stages helped me stay focused and balanced.

 

I have done my fourth step four times now.  I truly try to think back to these four stages of life and see if there was anything I missed.  I try to not have any secretes untold to myself, God or my sponsor.  Having a good sponsor is a critical key to completing this step; so, select your sponsor wisely.  

If you haven’t done a fourth step you need to.  It is one of many ways in the recovery process that will change not only your heart but your mind as well. 

Grateful believer,

Travis

Step 3

Hello, my name is Jennifer.  I’m a grateful believer in Jesus Christ and I struggle with suicidal thoughts and PTSD. 

Step 3 states that I am to make a decision to turn my will and life over to the care of God.  I would not have predicted this being as hard for me as it has proven to be since I accepted Christ when I was 17.  I had already made that decision, right?  Yes, I had accepted that Jesus Christ died on a cross for my sins and that he rose again and lives today at the right hand of the throne of God.  That was shortly followed by Baptism, so I was all set.

That was 21 years ago.  I had “accepted” that, but I became lost inside myself until the urging of a wise counselor sent me through the doors of Celebrate Recovery 27 months ago.  I got started and was on step 8 when I realized that I had taken steps 1-3 for granted.  I needed to start over. 


Starting over started on my knees, I made a decision to be willing to seek and follow God’s will.  I have to stay focused to remember that my life is worth living and that God has a plan for me.  It’s a daily struggle and when I think I am making progress, I sometimes stumble.  Sometimes I want to hold onto options that are outside of God’s will. 


For me, I learned from a member of my recovery team that it’s okay to recover slowly, it’s okay to focus on the decision part of step 3; after all, maturing as a Christian is a daily process of giving my will over to God because He is the perfect manager for my life...


"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  Jeremiah 29:11


Grateful Believer,
Jennifer

Step 2

I've said it before, but when Micah and Karyn ask you to do a lesson, write a blog, etc it usually happens to be something that you're dealing with at the moment.  Except the time they asked me to talk about being humble.

Anyway, I "got signed up" to talk about Step 2.  Part of my recovery is my struggle with depression and all of the lies that come with it.  Even if you don't struggle with depression, I'm sure there are times when you question your own sanity.  This is where Step 2 comes in.

Step 2 states, We came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.  That power of course is God.  "For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose."

Philippians 2:13.  Sanity is defined as good sense or soundness of judgement.  Maybe you're believing the lies of depression, or maybe your divorce has you making questionable decisions, regardless of the specific cause, at some point our hurts, habits, and hang ups affect our sanity.  No matter what is having you question your sanity, God can restore it.

Your part is to be willing to let God work in you to restore your sanity.

Maybe you're believing the lie that you're not ready, you don't have time for a step study, your accountability partners are too busy and tired of hearing about your problems.  Maybe you think you're not worth it.  Why would God take the time and effort to restore you to sanity when there are so many deserving people who need it?  These are lies Satan wants you to believe.  The truth is, like the prodigal son, God rejoices when we turn to Him.

To work Step 2 requires prayer, open communication with your accountability team, and faith.  Regular attendance at your CR program doesn't hurt either.  Much like all the Steps, you may revisit this one and need to be restored to sanity more than once.  That's okay!  I know that I do.

Grateful Believer,

Andrew

Step 1

My name is Micah Hobbs and I’m a grateful believer in Jesus, and I’m in recovery from alcoholism and anger.  Twelve years ago I would not have been willing to say that.  I thought I was in control and I certainly was not grateful, or a believer in Jesus.  I was living in a dark insanity of dysfunctional behavior and addiction, but I thought I was fine. 

God blessed me with a moment of clarity nearly 12 years ago, and I admitted for the first time in my life that my life was out of control.  Step one puts it like this: “We admitted we were powerless over our addictions and compulsive behaviors, that our lives had become unmanageable.”  Paul puts it like this in Romans 7:18, “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.  For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.” 

That was so true for me.  I had a lot of good intentions of putting the alcohol down and changing my behaviors, but I could never carry it out.  My life was unmanageable in every way.

For me, the most powerful part of step one is stepping out of denial and admitting that I had a problem.  For four years I was the “manager” of my life and I did what I wanted to do.  It was humbling to admit that I was the maker of my mess; but, when I said that out loud, it was truly the first step in my road to recovery.  There is power in saying to the Lord, “ I cannot do this anymore.  I tried to manage my life and I made it a living hell.  I need You to step, take control and do for me what I could not do for myself.”

Step one: turning the powerlessness of my life over to the ONE who has the power to turn it around.

Grateful Believer,

Micah

Notes from the Mission Field

Over the last month, I find myself reciting the Serenity Prayer a lot! Sometimes without even realizing I am doing it.

When I have visited Rwanda on short-term missions trips, I have spent my time exclusively with missionaries. Everything is positive and uplifting, kind of like church camp. Since moving here one month ago, my mountaintop experience has hit valleys from time to time and I rely on some of the tools that I have learned through Celebrate Recovery.

As a missionary, there is a lot of pressure to live inside the box. There aren’t any introductions starting with, “Hi, I’m Jamie, a grateful believer…” here. But I have found a couple of friends to share a few things with just to have someone who is aware of my struggles and for accountability.

I have spent time with other people about my age who are working here, not necessarily in the missionary capacity, who live a life not congruent with what I am trying to achieve for my sobriety and myself. It is sometimes tough discerning where a positive place is and where I should not go to protect my sobriety. There are limited places to hang out after about 6pm, but I don’t want to be stuck at home every single night, so I try new places with friends. I have found myself feeling trapped in an environment that is not healthy for me and around people who could care less if I was struggling or not.

There are moments that are so culturally frustrating that I find myself whispering, “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change (which are many today), the courage to change the things I can (hopefully it won’t be many because I’m really tired) and the wisdom to know the difference (wisdom, seriously?! I just spent 30 minutes waiting for someone to arrive and another 30 minutes explaining why they shouldn’t be late and another hour explaining why I am explaining what being disrespectful of time means)….”

I have had to make amends for criticizing and judging why people do things a certain way that I am not accustomed. And I have prayed a lot. I pray for a friend that I can rely on and who I can open up to; who will willingly get up and leave if a situation becomes to tough for me to handle.

I have found one missionary guy who was involved with CR at one time and mentioned an interest in starting a group here. We are not sure how it translates to a culture that does not open up about their feelings and rarely expresses more than a lift of the eyebrows. But God planted a seed that it is a possibility because there are two people here familiar with recovery. What a better place to find recovery than a country who is trying to heal from so many deep scars.

I thank God for asking me to come to such a beautiful place with so many beautiful people.

Philippians 4:4-7 New Living Translation (NLT)
4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5 Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. 6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Grateful Believer,
Jamie

Step Study Info...

Our Celebrate Recovery program will be starting men’s and women’s step studies soon.  If you have considered being a part of a step study but talked yourself out of it, I encourage you to try it!  If you’re not even sure what a step study is here’s a little definition:   A participant of a step study can expect to gain a deep understanding of themselves and discover the "how’s" and "why’s" of their particular hurt, hang-up or habit. They can expect to form lasting friendships with other participants in the group who serve as an accountability team. The step study is multi-issue and gender specific. It is designed to last approximately 10-12 months, and the group meets once a week. 

Now that, THAT’s out of the way let me tell you what being a part of a step study means to me.  When I sat in my counselors office almost 3 years ago she said “ you need to do a step study”.  My first thought was, “crap.”  (Hey, I’m being honest here.)  I didn’t want to commit to it and didn’t think 4 little books could change my life. I walked in that first night and thought, “these girls and I will never have anything in common, this isn’t going to work!”   Well luckily, God knew more than I did and He DID use those 4 little books to change me AND I love those women, I still keep in contact with many of them.

Here’s some Q&A about a Step Study…

Q. Do I have to have been coming to CR for a while before I join a Step Study? 

A:  No!    You can be a newbie!

Q. Do I HAVE to do homework and answer questions?

A.  Yes.  It does require some homework. 

Q.  If I quit in the middle, can I join another step study and finish some other time?

A.  No.  You’d have to rejoin a new group and start from the beginning.  (It pays to finish!)

Q.  Is there childcare for my kids?

A.  For the groups starting up in the fall, YES.  Our groups will be meet on Wednesday evenings and children will be dropped off at 6:20 PM, our childcare staff will keep them until 7 PM and then they will take your child to bible class at MRCC.  You will be out of Step Study by 8 PM and can pick up your child from bible class.  And YES, childcare is FREE!

Q.  How much do the materials cost?

A.  The CR bible is $12 (which we do recommend purchasing because of the recovery specific content we cover) and the 4 booklets are $5 each.  If the cost of those books is keeping from you joining – please don’t let it!  Our ministry leader, Micah, can work just about anything out if needed.

Q.  Are people going to be giving me their opinion on what I need to do to change?  Giving me advice?

A.  NO!  Our groups never offer feedback on what you share.  You’re there for you, and we’re not there to fix you. 

Q. Where do I go to sign up?

A.  You can call the MRCC Church office at 405.478.0166 and ask for Micah Hobbs, he will add your name to the list. Or, you can come to CR on a Friday night and sign up.

I remember when I had my ah-ha moment in my first step study. I was half way through and I felt like my life was a box of puzzle pieces dumped on the floor and for the FIRST time I was seeing why and how those pieces fit together.  Things started to make sense.  It was both helpful and healing.  God used those 4 little books to change me!

I really hope you’ll consider getting signed up for a step study…then let God do the rest!

Grateful Believer,

Karyn

Day 3

Today was a blessing. In the morning, we had amazing worship, a thought-provoking skit about surrendering everything to God's work in you, and more information-packed workshops on CR leadership topics.

The afternoon, though, brought my favorite part of Summit each time I come. We were given a number of scriptures to consider about issues that we still might be keeping back from God and our recovery process: pain or shame from the past, current struggles, and fear about the future. We each had a card on which to write what was uncovered in the process. We were then invited to nail those cards to large wooden crosses. We waited in lines with our cards and nails, until someone handed us hammers. Even though there were a lot of people behind me, I found that I wanted to hammer my nail quite a few times - I felt like I was securing that struggle firmly in Jesus' hand.

As I was handing the hammer to my friend in line, I remembered the issue I had written on my card at last year's Summit. I laughed to myself when I realized that the struggle I had given to Jesus in this process was one that had been lifted from me in the past year. I had even commented to my friend at the beginning of the summer, "I don't know why, but I just don't have that struggle any more." I had forgotten that I had nailed it to that cross! God had answered my prayer in taking that struggle from me.

Before Saddleback's Friday night CR meeting, our Memorial Road group gathered for some debriefing and prayer time. We sat and talked about our favorite moments from the conference, some truths and tools we were taking away, and our renewed excitement for recovery and the CR ministry. We then had some prayer time, for some specific requests for our group, and some of our friends back home.

The evening ended with the Celebrate Recovery meeting: my favorite way to spend a Friday night. I thank God for the CR program, for our elders who have allowed us to benefit from it, and for the leaders at our church who bravely stepped out to start the ministry.

Grateful Believer,
Angi

Day 2

Day 2 started with more than one trip back to the hotel for forgotten items...but once we were all at the Summit things got off to another great start.  My favorite part of the Summit today was naturally the lesson on Fellowship, being the E on the TEAM it is something that I really enjoy.  We learned how important Fellowship is and how essential it is for those in recovery.  We even had an activity where we had to go meet four strangers at the conference and talk about our recovery with them.  It was a great experience.

We also were able to go to the beach for dinner where we put the concept of fellowship into practice.  We prayed as a group on the beach while the sun was setting and had some great conversations about our own recoveries and things we can get involved in at our program back home.  While all the knowledge we are getting during the day is not new information it is so good to get to the root of why we have certain guidelines and why we do things the way we do.  As the encourager on the TEAM, I learned some things that I am excited to take back and implent in our program.  And the trip continues tomorrow with our last day and CR at Saddleback.

Grateful Believer,
Andrew Claxton

Summit 2011

Our group of 15 made it safely to California yesterday.  After a long day of traveling we were able to make a short stop by the ocean before dinner.  Today was the first day of the Summit, we learned about the first two keys of CR- Leadership and Pastor Support then we went to various workshops to learn about specific areas of the program.  After dinner some of our group was able to return for special workshops about the TEAM.

We have already learned so much and many things we want to implement in our program.  We were able to listen to Rick Warren, Dr. Henry Cloud, and John Baker.  We were blessed again this year to get to watch the Skit Guys perfom. They are able to mix humor with recovery- something we have tried to do with skits after seeing them last year. 

We have two more days of workshops and lessons.  We are having a great time and really looking forward to it.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers!

Capitol Hill

Capitol Hill church of Christ is near and dear to our hearts.  We have been serving there for close to four years.  We met there and we got engaged here as well. We have seen the kids and families there grow physically and spiritually.   We have become very close to the families there.  We have made strong friendships with some of the teens and parents there.  We have even "adopted" a few of the toddlers there as well.

We are used according to God's message at Capitol Hill. 

In Matthew 25, Jesus says to feed and cloth the poor.  We are doing that at Capitol Hill.  We have a food pantry, medical clinic, and clothing center on site for our members and the surrounding community.  While the volunteers there are meeting the physical needs of our members there has always been a need to help those that are hurt by others or in addiction.  Many years of prayer have gone into looking for a program to provide resources for these hurts and habits.

Near the end of last year, Micah and Andrew came up with a plan to help the members at Capitol Hill.  We began men and women's step study with Capitol Hill members as well as the Landing for the teenagers in January of this year.  We plan to start a Celebrate Recovery later this year to assist the members and surrounding community.

Capitol Hill church of Christ has always been a resource for those that come there.  It may be the only resource for those hurting and now we are able to provide another method to show God's love.  God calls us to love others as ourselves and to love those different from us.  Here is an opportunity to do that, whether caring and loving on the kids, feeding them possibly their only meal of the day, or providing help to get out of their damaging habit or hurt.

Grateful Believers,

Braden and Erin