Sober living with Jesus

Stop loving this evil world and all that it offers you, for when you love these things you show that you do not really love God; for all these worldly things, these evil desires—the craze for sex, the ambition to buy everything that appeals to you, and the pride that comes from wealth and importance—these are not from God. They are from this evil world itself. And this world is fading away, and these evil, forbidden things will go with it, but whoever keeps doing the will of God will live forever. -1 John 2:15-17 (TLB) Wow. Tough words. Most of us that read such things are probably thinking to ourselves that we still have affection for those worldly things and may even question whether we truly love God or not. I submit to the reader that the fact they are concerned about the matter probably shows that they do love God and want fellowship with Him. Certainly, there are times when I battle with things of the flesh--such as lust, pride and the desire for material gain. The point is,

He controls the times and the seasons; he makes and unmakes kings; it is he who gives wisdom and understanding. -Daniel 2:21 (GNT) I saw this scripture posted on Celebrate Recovery's Facebook page and wanted to share it with everybody who might not be on Facebook or 'like' the Celebrate Recovery page. Autumn is probably my favorite season of the year [hard to say for sure because I like them all] and it is a good reminder of who gives it the beauty that is has. Living in New England as I do, I am blessed with an obvious change of seasons and the outdoor beauty that it can bring. Even the dead of winter can be made splendorous in appearance by the sparkle of ice or the clean brightness of freshly fallen snow. Being alive and sober through God's grace has allowed me the use of my senses to truly enjoy the world around me and brings a newness to it all. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for all you have done and continue to do for me. Praise God for sobriety.

The healing of Tobit - by Bernardo Strozzi. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Never do to anyone else anything that you would not want someone to do to you. - Tobit 4:15a (GNT Apocrypha ) That is obviously a converse statement of the "Golden Rule' taught by Jesus:  “Do for others what you want them to do for you: this is the meaning of the Law of Moses and of the teachings of the prophets. -Matthew 7:12 (GNT)  When I read it last night, it gave me pause to stop and think about people in my life that I sometimes struggle with. Some I know, but many I don't. They could be the 'other driver' on the road who is in my way when I am in a hurry to get somewhere. You can tell how well a tree has been cared for by the fruit it bears, and you can tell a person's feelings by the way he expresses himself. -Sirach 27:6 (GNT Apocrypha) As a Christian, claiming a relationship with Christ requires a but more than a few mumbled words on a Sunday morning. I believe I was s

That was the topic and title of a sermon I listened to Saturday afternoon on the Internet by a Pastor who I am fond of named Mike Dodson. As usual, his message was timely for me. In conclusion, my friends, fill your minds with those things that are good and that deserve praise: things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and honorable. -Philippians 4:8 (GNT) When I got sober, it was [first and foremost] because I was ready and willing to do so and asked God for help. It began (as everything does) with a thought. Often in my life, bad things began with thoughts like "one more time" or "this time will be different." Sometimes, near the end, it was more like "I just can't control myself and don't care anymore. I am what I am." It is true that God does not control thoughts. We have been given free will--which means we have the freedom of our thoughts from which we may act on. Obviously, if God did control thoughts, we would not have

Last night I went to a "Celebrate Recovery' meeting in Groton,CT at the Lifehouse Foursquare Church. This coming Monday I shall attend another meeting of Celebrate Recovery, this one at the Groton Bible Chapel [I can't seem to get out of Groton most weeknights]. Having spent many years in a mainstream 12 step fellowship, I want to make it plain that I love it and recognize wholeheartedly that I am there as a result of prayer. Moreover, I could never imagine the number of people helped by it who would have otherwise not found any recovery from alcohol or other substances. However, I have been sensing the need for something more Christ-centered and this seems to fit the bill. [I don't want to give the reader the impression that I am replacing my involvement with regular twelve step fellowship meetings with something else; this is meant to augment my recovery--not fundamentally change it]. I will not attempt to explain Celebrate Recovery or offer any in-depth