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 analysis of it, especially since I have only recently been introduced to it and have attended one meeting. What I will do is offer a brief accounting of what took place while at that meeting.
The meeting began at 7 with a brief welcome and announcements. This was followed with a time of worship, singing along to songs sung via video by various artists. From there, one of the leaders read from an outline as they discussed that night's topic (in this case, the tasking of one's personal inventory--referred to as the '4th principle' or 'step' in A.A./N.A. terms). Experience was coupled with Bible verses that explained and reinforced certain principles talked about. Once that wrapped up, we broke into male and female small groups and each was given a few minutes to discuss either what was read or what was going on in their lives (I'm guessing the same was true for the women). That concluded with prayer and met together again for fellowship along with refreshments. So it was like a typical A.A. meeting, but with worship and Biblical reinforcement thrown in. The bottom line: as a Christian, I liked it a lot and am looking forward to returning next time they meet.
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