Recovery

Addicts talk alot about recovery- Recovering Alcoholics-Recovering Drug Addicts=Recovering Sex Addicts........... Well, I am more and more coming to believe that I am a recovering sin addict. In fact I am wondering if all of us who have been brought from death to life by the work of Jesus are not really just recovering sin addicts. Now wait a minute before you start picking this statement apart to see if it fits your theology- Slow Down- Whoa Horsey- This is not about trying to fit a theology. Please don't get sidetracked by things like A.A.'s talk of a higher power- I resolutely, uneqivocally believe with all my heart there is only 1 True God and that His perfect expression to men is Christ Jesus. All my being is found in Him.In Him I live and move and breathe! Amen! My point is that as a recovering sin addict I must be diligent to participate in my recovery. There is a path to recovery (sanctification) for the addict. Let me be clear once again-I am not talking here about a path to salvation, but a path to living the life I long for. There is a way to get back to what was lost- to recover the life I was made for. Most of the addiction groups talk about a 12 step program. Many of the steps align very well the Christian Faith- Surrender to God- Admitting our need for a Saviour and so on........ I think the difficult part that we may have missed the boat on as Christians is the fearless moral inventory of own hearts and the admission to God and at least one other person our sin- specificly- fearlessly- in the present tense and unrelentingly. Instead of taking active participation in my own recovery as a sin addict I would rather gloss it over and hide it- you know- "I can handle this stuff- I really don't need to go there- It's really all just so ugly, and besides anyone I share any of my struggles with will think I am crazy or worse..... They might not like me any more. It's all so uncomfortable and so hard. Everyone else has it all together. I am the only one with these struggles. Lies, lies, lies, and more lies our enemy the Devil brings up to keep us in hiding- To isolate us from our brothers and sisters who can help us find the freedom Christ won for us. Father God, empower me- move my heart with courage to be intentional about participating in my own recovery- to engage my brothers and sisters in Christ to live everyday authentically as such a community of believers that we are able to experience more and more the life You have for us. Amen

Never Surrender- Never Give Up!?

I hate even the thought of surrender.

"Not My will but Thy will be done" - Jesus As a man full of pride- As a coach- A leader of young men- for so many years I have continually preached the idea of no surrender- Never give up the fight- Never lay down! Stay in the fight! Surrender is totally against my nature. Giving up has no place in my life.

But like so many other good things

The Enemy has twisted this and used it against me.

Surrendering my way to God's way is not the same as giving up.

Instead, surrender is about embracing with all that is in me something new. Surrendering to Christ is joining a new fight. Trusting God is entering a new arena. Surrender does not equal resignation. Maybe it is more about joining the fight in a new way- from a new perspective.

Surrendering my will- my attempts to find life on my own terms- Does not equal failure.

The accuser has brought that against me so many times. Oh Charles you might as well give up- things will never get any better.- You are such a failure.

Surrender to Christ does not steal hope, but redirects hope.

I finish where I started- Not my will but Thy will be done. Jesus' surrender to the Father's Way of the cross- to the Father's will- was a Glorious thing. There was such power in it. His Trusting the Father's Heart for Him- to the point of death- has accomplished Life- The Life we were made for.

Father God, move in me today- take these thoughts from my head and seal them to my heart. From my heart give me courage to surrender my will to Your Will. Empower me to join the fight in this new way. Amen

Who am I?

I am a man I am a husband I am a father I am a teacher I am a coach I am a follower of Jesus I am an achiever I am a failure I am a blogger I am a weakling I am a leader I am a provider I am a man in need of a Saviour On and on and on it goes........but who am I.......... really? Some of these things describe me- Some of these things define me. Some of these things are roles I play- Some are at the core of my being. So again, who am I? In which of these things will I find the life I long for? Psalm 87:6 "And the Lord will write in the register of the peoples: This one was born in Zion. (He is Mine- He is a Child of the King)- My interpretation Psalm 87:7 "And as they make music they will sing, All my fountains are in You Lord" (All my life- all that I long for is in You Lord)- My interpretation

In the end, I think there is only one thing worthy of defining me-

God's Love for me

And what a great love it is that while I was powerless Christ died for me, so that I might say with Paul, "I have been crucified with Christ- it is no longer I who live , but Christ who lives in me" Father, Father of mine in Heaven, be powerful in me today to live from my true identity- to find my security in You- to find my worth in You- to find all my fountains in you. Amen

The Right Word at the Right Tme

A quick story- Along time ago in what feels like a galaxy far, far away I went out jogging one day. Well I must have been either really hyped about getting in shape or brain dead, because I had waited until the hottest part of the day to do my run. I use the word "run" here in the loosest terms possible because if you have ever seen me jogging you might have a difficult time characterizing it as a "run". You've heard the story of the tortoise and the hare- think tortoise! Anyway, I was coming to the end of the "run"- and I do not mean by that the end of the course I had laid out in my mind that I would run that day- but I was literally coming to the point in exercise right in between throwing up and passing out when I realized the next little stretch of road was a hill about 100 yards long that at this stage looked like Mount Everest. Sweating, pale, disheartened, cursing my stupidity for heading out at such a hot part of the day- I started up the hill- dying a little bit with every step. About this time- I noticed a guy on a bicycle who had come along beside me- I looked up in time to catch a glimpse of his face and he's smiling- looking like he doesn't have a care in the world. At this point the guy looks straight at me, pumps his fist in the air and says in a strong voice, "Good Hill" Wow- I can not tell you how those simple words said to to me at that moment in time energized me- My step quickened- I went from barely being able to take another step and giving up to a sense of strength and power in the matter of a split second. Because of this stranger's simple encouragement I was able to finish well. Words have power- The right word said in the right way at the right time can make all the difference to the people I come in contact with every day- from the people I know and love to the people I know and don't like so much to complete strangers. Father in Heaven move in me today- prompt me - inspire me - remind me to speak words of life and Love and encouragement to all the people You bring my way. I pray this in the most powerful name of my Lord and Saviour and yes my Good Friend Jesus. Amen

Upside Down and Backwards

Hey Guys- A quick question- How would you describe your temperament? Are you patient, aggressive, confrontational, easy going, introverted, outgoing, on edge, controlling............you name it! A second question- What are your favorite depictions of Jesus in the scriptures? Is it how He really gets after the Pharisees or his tenderness with the woman at the well? Is it how He washed the disciples feet or the picture of Him in Revelation with Blazing Eyes and a Sword coming out of His mouth? Which flavor of Jesus do you like best? If you are like me at all (human and messed up) you might find that what appeals to you about Jesus matches your temperament. Oswald Chambers says our Faith develops along the line of our temperament. We are- I am- so upside down and backwards! Isn't following Jesus supposed to be life changing? How the heck is He going to change me or my life if I just keep running to what I like about Him- To the ways He affirms me. I gravitate to the stories of Jesus that appeal to me most. It is such idolatry- I might as well go the whole way and create my own god- a god who makes me feel good. As Patrick Morley says, I only seem be committed to the god I want- not the God Who Is. When I was a teen ager I loved the band Jethro Tull. On the back of one album cover (Aqualung) the band turned around the creation account from scripture and wrote- "In the beginning Man created god" Was it sacriligious? Absolutely! Are we guilty of trying to do it? Absolutely! Why else would God give us the command about no graven images? I love the prayer scene in "The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" where the family is torn between wanting to pray to the baby Jesus in the manger or the Jesus on the Cross. The Jesus on the Cross is just so messy. Father forgive me for all the times I pass right over the parts of You that don't appeal to my temperament. Help me to see You as You are. Move in me to to be conformed to the reality of Jesus. Amen

Why doesn't God just fix me?

Do you ever wonder about that?
I mean wouldn't it be great if when we committed our lives to Christ,
He would just ZAP us
Fix us all at once?
You know-
Not just our physical ailments,
But our selfishness, pride, anger, addictions and all the rest of our struggles.
I mean He could do it- right?
So........why not?
 I mean there has to be a point
To our not being made whole and right and pure and complete-
Right now-
Today-
Where we are.......
So why?

 I can only guess...........but you guessed it-
I will throw my guess out there.

I love Hebrews 10:14-
By one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
 Did you get that-
Made perfect forever-
Yet, being made....... holy.

A friend e-mailed me today
One of lines in the e-mail said he and his family were
Blessed by the Lord in all things.
Wow!
Blessed in all things-
Incredible-
 Incredible because I know my buddy doesn't have a perfect life-
Yet he feels-  
Grasps hold of -
The fact that he is blessed by the Lord in all things.

Don't you love James encouragement in chapter 1 when he tells us to count it pure joy when we face trials of many kinds? Testing my faith produces perserverance and perserverance makes me mature and complete- not lacking anything.

Did you get that-
Testing faith leads to maturity and completeness, not lacking anything. 

The process of becoming whole
Might be as important to God as the actual healing itself.
I can not bypass the process.

There is a journey to wholeness that only begins in the moment of salvation.
So there you go-
My take (guess)-
On not being fixed right away.

Lord Jesus,

Help me to take hold of the fact I am blessed in all things. 

Move in me to embrace the struggles and persevere in faithfulness.

Because You are in me, 

Today I will do my best to be Loving, Hopeful, Faithful, Encouraging and Courageous. 

Amen

 Hebrews 2:10-18

 Jesus, the author of salvation made perfect through suffering........

Jesse anda Simple Prayer

Hey Guys-
As I often do on Saturday mornings,
today I met with a good friend for some time of encouragement.
Well today my buddy brought his 10 year old son Jesse.
Jesse is an amazing kid
In fact.....I am constantly amazed at the simple things kids in general can remind me of.
As we were visiting this morning, Jesse had gone to get some chicken nuggets (Did I mention we meet at a Chic- Fila) and like many kids he went about the business of saying his blessing-

God is good,

God is great, 

Let us thank Him for our food. 

By his hands we all are fed, 

Give us Lord our daily bread. 

Amen. 

What an awesome prayer
I must have said it a million times- yet passed right over in it's power!  

God is good.
 I question it sometimes
I wonder at why difficult things seem to be happening-
But it really is true!
God can and does take even the vilest things in this world and somehow open opportunities to redeem them for good. He is never the force behind evil, but is always creating opportunities to redeem all of it for good.  

God is Great.
I can remember thinking this was really just a repetition of God is good,
But on steroids-
Like - oops, what I really meant to say before was not so much God is good,
But I like Him so much I think I will call him great-
You know- like Tony the Tiger and Sugar Frosted Flakes-
He's Greatttttt!
I really like Him.
It's amazing how obtuse I can be.
You guys like that educated man's word- obtuse-
I can be so full of crap sometimes! Sorry.
 Truth- God is Great(All Powerful, Able to accomplish more than I can ask or imagine)
I need to be reminded of this sometimes-
He is Good and He is Great.
What a combination!

Finally (Yes there is an end to this)along with His Goodness and Greatness
It is a beautiful thing to hear that I can come to Him personally
Ask for something as mundane as food for the day.
In all His Greatness- He is interested in my hunger.
Wow!

God cares about me
The Creator of the universe and all that is or was or ever will be.......
Loves me.
Incredible- and even more incredible when I remember He knows me inside out.
Thank You Jesse for the reminder!

Hey- I'm a Blogger!

Hey Guys- I am not real sure what this blog thing is all about, but I thought it might be a kind of interesting way to share some thoughts.....so...... here we go. Hmmmmm- it's really interesting as I sit here wondering what I might have to say that would have any value, I seem to be evaluating all of it in my mind based on what you readers might think of me as you read it- how authentic can I really be here on this kind of forum where the world can see- where a careless keystoke or 2 can really turn my life upside down. How much can a guy put out there in the public domain and feel safe.

I guess we all have to keep up a good front- right?....... Maybe not....... You see I think part our real freedom in Christ might just mean freedom from having to prop ourselves up all the time. Maybe it means I can be free to try something new without worrying so much about looking like an idiot if I fail.

"It is for freedom you have been set free"

Yet we (I) still live in this sort of self imposed bondage of insecurity over what others think- it can be paralyzing. It is not the life we were meant for- we are made for something better.......yet I am still so far away. It's okay though- I am closer today than I was yesterday to the Life God has for me and for that I am thankful. Alright, alright....enough for now- I am not really sure how long this blog thing is supposed to be anyway......oops...... there I go again, worrying about what this is supposed to look like since somewhere deep inside I still crave you readers approval. I guess that isn't really all bad as long as I don't value your approval above Jesus' friendship.

Lord Jesus, help us all to live in the freedom You have won for us. Help us to live as slaves only to You. Amen

Wasn't it Bob Dylan who said, "You gotta serve somebody"? Might as well be the ONE who can bring life and freedom. Don't you just love paradox?