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TEN
STEPS TO RECOVERY.
Amplified and Scripture Reading
STEP
1
WE ADMITTED OUR POWERLESSNESS OVER CRISIS; THAT IT IS BEYOND OUR HUMAN
EFFORTS TO PROPERLY MANAGE OUR OWN LIVES.
A) Admitting our powerlessness.
Sometimes we think we can handle ourselves in our own strength. God’s power then
breaks through the denial and illuminates our powerlessness. This terrible,
painful recognition is where recovery begins. Seeing and admitting one's
powerlessness together has proved to be a way of strength.
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to
death "
Proverbs 14:12, Philipians 3:3, 4:13.
B) Admitting our lives are unmanageable
We eventually see how life becomes completely unmanageable as money disappears,
and our health and relationships deteriorate. We see that in spite of all our efforts to
manage, our lives have become unmanageable and the basic truth returns; we are
powerless over our present state. This is part of the first step towards
healing and recovery.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,"
Isaiah 55:8, Proverbs 3:5-8,
John 8:34-36.
STEP 2.
ACCEPTED JESUS AS OUR SAVIOUR, KNOWING HIS POWER IS AVAILABLE TO RECONCILE US
TO GOD.
Once we have recognised the unmanageability of our lives, we can begin to let
go of our impossible expectations of ourselves and to let God be God.
One must recognise that God's power is "for us" rather than
"against us" as many people with addictions believe. Negative ideas
about God need to be adjusted as God longs to use His power to lift us from the
hell of addictions into the serenity of His presence.
"While we were yet in weakness, powerless to help ourselves, Christ died
for the ungodly "
Romans 5:6.
"Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
will be saved"
Romans 10:13, John 6:40, John 14:6.
STEP 3.
TOTALLY SURRENDERED OUR WILL AND OUR LIVES TO THE CARE OF JESUS, BECOMING
COMPLETELY WILLING TO ALLOW GOD TO CHANGE US.
A) Turning our will over to God.
Without knowing God's will for our lives, we
automatically apply our own wills - that is self will ,- not in God's plan.
Selfishness and self-centredness have been at the centre of our motivation up
until now. However, the freedom from selfishness through Christ allows one to
reach out to others.
B) Turning our lives over to God.
We need to surrender our whole life over to God.
Being honest with God about everything shows a total surrender. It is a step
that we need to come back to every day. As we surrender to God's care our trust
will grow.
" Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest
“
Matthew 11:28, Psalm 32:8-9, Psalm l43.9-11.
MAKE A FEARLESS AND THOROUGH MORAL INVENTORY OF
OURSELVES.
What exactly in the past influenced the outcome
of my life? A list of all items lets us decide what to keep and what to
discard. Resentments and fears have been built up over the years and these are
the major causes of emotional illness. We need to pray that these roots will be
removed by asking and trusting Jesus to fill us with His love and strength
often.
“Have nothing to do with the
fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them "
Ephesians 5:1l, Psalm 39:23-24, John 8:36.
STEP 5.
ADMIT TO ANOTHER PERSON IN CONFIDENCE, AND IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD, THE EXACT
NATURE OF OUR FAULTS.
With God's help and direction we select someone
who under- stands our need, such as a Pastor. A total openness to this person
allows God to give us understanding and a choice to change with His help.
The thought of being totally honest about the
exact nature of our wrongs causes us to hesitate for fear of rejection. How
many times have we thought to ourselves, "If anyone ever knew the real me
they wouldn't love me ; they would probably leave me”.
" God knows about everyone, everywhere.
Everything about us is bare and wide open to the all-seeing eyes of our living
God; nothing can be hidden from Him to whom we must explain all that we have
done" Hebrews 4:13.
Since He already knows every detail of our
thoughts and actions and hasn't rejected us, we don't have to fear His
rejection.
Confessing our faults opens up our lives to God.s
healing power. God wants to forgive; it has always been a part of His loving
nature.
" But if we confess our sins to Him, He can
be depended on to forgive us and to cleanse us" 1 John 1:9.
" I, even I, am He who blots out your
transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins. Put Me in
remembrance; let us contend together; state your case, that you may be
acquitted "
Isaiah 43:25-26, James 5:16a, Psalm 32:1-5.
MAKE A LIST OF PERSONS HARMED BY OUR BEHAVIOUR,
AND BECOME WILLING TO MAKE AMENDS TO ALL.
Listing all the people we've harmed will
probably trigger a natural defensiveness. With each name we put on our list,
another mental list may begin to form - a list of the wrongs that have been
done to us.
When we look at all that God has forgiven us, it
makes sense to choose to forgive others. This also frees us from the torture of
festering resentment, that mindset that slowly and surely returns us to the pit
of destruction we are needing to leave well and truly behind. We can't change
what others did to us, but we can write off their debt and become WILLING to
make amends.
Making amends builds relationships, releasing
the power of human companionship.The important key in this step is that we come
to a place of willingness where we allow Cod to arrange the time and place for
the action He may prompt. As with all the steps, we allow Him to guide us all
the way.
"Let no debt remain outstanding, except the
continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has
fulfilled the law," Romans
13:7-8,1 Peter 3:13, Ezek 33:14-15.
Jesus taught us to pray : "Forgive us our
sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us”.
(Matt 6:12).
He went
on to explain, "Your heavenly Father will forgive you if you forgive those
who sin against you; but if you refuse to forgive them, He will not forgive
you."
(Matt 6:14-15).
MADE DIRECT AMENDS TO ALL, EXCEPT THEY OR OTHERS
BE INJURED.
"If anyone says ' I love God' but keeps on hating his brother, he is a
liar.... God himself has said that one must not only love God, but his brother
too "1 John 4:20-21.
Much of recovery involves repairing the
brokenness in our lives. This requires that we make peace with God, within
ourselves, and with others whom we have alienated. Unresolved issues in
relationships can disable us from being at peace with God and ourselves. Once
we go through the process of making amends, we must keep our hearts and minds
open to anyone we may have overlooked. God will often remind us of
relationships that need attention; when these come to mind we should stop
everything and go to those we have offended, seeking to repair the damage.
Making direct amends brings peace - with
ourselves, others and God. It is the first step to becoming a giver. We become
open to God's life-changing power. Making amends releases us from the bondages
to our past, giving us a vital key for our future walk with God.
Though this step can be difficult as we face the
painful consequences of past actions, remember we are walking with and trusting
God, who will always go on ahead and prepare the way for us as we ask.
About this time many of us discover too that the
best cure for selfishness is God's call to serve others.
SEEK THE PRESENCE OF GOD THROUGH DAILY PRAYER,
AND ACKNOWLEDGE THE LORDSHIP OF JESUS, WORD OF GOD IN OUR LIVES FOR PERSONAL
GROWTH AND CONDUCT.
"They that wait upon the Lord shall renew
their strength. They shall mount tip with wings like eagles; they shall run and
not be weary; they shall walk and not faint " Isa 40:31.
It is essential for our recovery that we draw
close to God.
As we work the Ten Steps we spend a lot of time
looking back. We often think about the wrong things we've done in the past. As
we proceed in our recovery, we will need strength to move along the path God
wants us to follow. Part of this strength will come as we seek the presence of
God through daily prayer.
The better we know God the more we will find
ourselves showing love. The more contact we have with God the more we're aware
of His love for us. It's overwhelming when we begin to realise how much God
really loves us.
We need to make a decision to pray, to read the
Word, to do his will, and it takes action to build these new activities into
our new lives. The Word of God helps us to grow into maturity and
responsibility.
We may have started out going to God for the
sake of what He could do for us, namely, freeing us from the power and effects
of our crisis. Now we may be surprised to find that we're going to God out of a
desire to be near someone who is wonderful, and who loves us completely.
We should run to God every day, even on the best
of days!
Ask and it will be given to you ; seek and you
will find knock and the door will be opened to you ".
Luke
11:9, Psalm 1:2, 1 Thess. 5:16-18.
WITHOUT THOUGHT OF PERSONAL REWARD OR GAIN, WE TRY TO CARRY THIS MESSAGE
TO OTHERS, AND TO SEE THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT MANIFESTED IN RENEWED LIVES.
" The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the suffering and
afflicted " Isaiah 61:1.
Jesus left us with this vital task.
" You are to go into all the world and preach the Good News ( of salvation from the bondage and penalty of sin) to everyone, everywhere " Mark 16:15.
Within each of our personal stories of the
journey from bondage to freedom is a microcosm of the gospel. When people hear
our story, even if it seems trivial, we are offering them the chance to loosen
their chains and begin a recovery story of their own.
All of our recovery stories are custom designed
for another person’s encouragement.
There is nothing on the earth guaranteed to get
someone's attention more quickly than a demonstration of God's super natural
power. We can talk for hours, but just pray for a sick one and see them healed
and watch the change which comes over the spectators.
As we share our stories we too are strengthened
and encouraged
" Above all, love each other deeply,
because love covers over a multitude of sins."
1Peter 4:4-8, Galations 6:1, Isaiah 52:7.
PRAYING ALWAYS FOR KNOWLEDGE OF HIS WILL FOR US, WE ALSO SEEK TO DEVELOP
AND EXERCISE OUR OWN GIVEN GIFTS, AS PART OF AN ACTIVE SPIRIT FILLED FELLOWSHIP
IN THE BODY OF CHRIST.
"If you want to know what God wants you to
do, ask Him, and He will gladly tell you, for He is ready to give a bountiful supply of wisdom to all who ask Him. However, when you ask, be sure that
you really expect Him to tell you because a doubtful mind will be as unsettled
as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed be the wind."
James
1:5-6.
When we are born-again, a great change takes place in our
lives, so much so, we are not the same again. We enter a new life so different
from the past. With this new life we need a new set of rules, and these new
rules come from the Bible, We can read the Bible for strength and guidance and
learn the ways that God wants us to live, God wants only the best for us
because we are His children. He directs and illuminates our paths. Perhaps it
is only one step at a time. but there is enough light shed to move onward. In
many instances we need to look no further than God's written word to find out
His will. Richard RHB P 71.
Let's wait on the Lord.
Let's be still. Let's be
quiet. Let's listen.
Let's ask for guidance.
Let's listen for answers.
- maybe a word, an intuitive
hunch
- an inner feeling, a
scripture
Let's exercise His guidance
Let's listen as we go.
Let's therefore avoid
presumptious errors,
Be still and know that I am
God. RHB P 44
The Holy Spirit brings gifts and fruits.
- Gifts to build up the body of Christ
-Fruits from the changing human spirit, as a
result of newlife We need both and in balance.... RHB P 32
God has given various gifts to every believer.
Every gift and ability from baking a cake to evangelizing the world like Billy
Graham, and everything in between.
As a little child grows up, he 'discovers'
things about him self which through practice and encouragement from others he
excels and enjoys He is a 'natural' if you like; he is producing fruit from his
own tree, and it is good.
So it is with every Holy Spirit born-again child
of God. It is exactly the same principle, as you discover what God himself,
the source and giver of all gifts has given YOU. No one misses out. No, no one
at all!
Look for the many there are - cultivate them,
use them to bless others - enjoy them. And God never revokes or takes them back
either - they are yours for keeps.
Many of us have felt like
losers before, and perhaps we were. However this time it's all GO, GO, GO,
because it is God Himself on the inside who has placed ' the full works' within
each one of us.
'LORD, this time around let me be part of your
answer for your children. Show me and develop my gifts and talents I have
received. Let me with you be a blessing to others please. Thank you and AMEN.
