UNSTAINED INNOCENCE

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

Every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm has already been lavished upon us as a love gift from our wonderful heavenly Father, the Father of our Lord Jesus—all because he sees us wrapped into Christ. This is why we celebrate him with all our hearts!

And he chose us to be his very own, joining us to himself even before he laid the foundation of the universe!

Because of his great love, he ordained us, so that we would be seen as holy in his eyes with an unstained innocence. – Ephesians 1:3-5 (TPT)

I don’t know about you but there are some days I feel downright unlovable.  Maybe my temper got the best of me.  Maybe I neglected to serve when the opportunity presented itself. Whatever it may be, there are times when I wonder “could GOD really love me”.

Been there?

Most of the folks I work with in recovery feel the same way.  Just yesterday as I sat in the living room of a 75-year-old fella and some of his family. The shame of his chronic drinking was causing anger in the family and shame in him. 

He didn’t “feel” very lovable.

And yet as we talked and as we searched for treatment alternatives, I was reminded that this man, who has been saved for years, needed to remember to separate his ‘son-ship’ from his current condition.

Yes, his drinking was problematic, but it hadn’t created division between He and GOD in the same way it had created division in his family. (Romans 8:35-39)

We needed to work on the condition while affirming his identity as one loved by GOD and seen by Him through the lens of Christ.

For when we take that approach we are always assured of at least one in our corner fighting with us on the challenge. (Isaiah 41:10)

Today is an important day for my friend.  GOD will open doors of opportunity for him.  GOD loves him.  The question is WILL he walk through those doors, embrace the love, see the possible SPIRITUAL blessing.

It is up to him.

What about us?

How often to you pause to reflect on GOD’s love for you?

A love that allows you to be seen HOLY.

A love that allows you the verdict of innocence because of what JESUS did on the cross.

Yancey once remarked:

Love was compressed for all history in that lonely figure on the cross, who said that he could call down angels at any moment on a rescue mission, but chose not to – because of us. At Calvary, God accepted his own unbreakable terms of justice.

Jesus took the justice and in turn opened the portal to every spiritual blessing for us.

Not a fair trade by any means. 

And yet it is that sacrifice that infuses hope into bleak situations like that of my friend.  BECAUSE Jesus took the cross, we can have HOPE that change is possible.  We can have HOPE that restoration is just a choice or two away.  We can have HOPE that our FATHER never leaves the porch, always ready to welcome us home.

Let that sink in today.

Because of His great love, Jesus’ sacrifice you have HOPE, you have an unblemished relationship with GOD Himself.

YOU ARE LOVED!

Have a blessed day…

I love you all.

OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE

MAKE IT MANAGEABLE

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

I was sharing in a workshop at the Statewide Recovery Conference yesterday.  The topic was “BODY, MIND and SPIRIT – a Holistic Path to Healing.

And in my little presentation deck I referenced this quote from Mr. Rogers.

“Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can be more manageable. When we can talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting, and less scary. The people we trust with that important talk can help us know that we are not alone.”

The context of the quote was under the “need for connection in recovery” section of my talk.

And it was kind of funny the number of head nods and phones that popped out to snap a photo of the slide.  I didn’t think something from Mr. Rogers would spark such a reaction.  But if you take a second and parse that little quote from him it carries a lot of wisdom.

It packs an important punch!

When we are struggling with life-controlling things be it addiction, depression, anxiety, and the like, the enemy does his best to try and ISOLATE us; to make us think we are alone in the fight against whatever it may be.  And yet Fred reminds us that we ALL are human and as a result, there is nothing that we should be fearful at sharing with a trusted friend.

Being able to talk about what troubles us is part of the pathway to healing.

Tell your sins to each other. And pray for each other so you may be healed. - James 5:16-18 (NLV)

When I am traveling and sharing with faith leaders or as in the case yesterday folks in recovery, that reminder that COMMUNITY is available is such a reassurance.  To know we are not alone in our struggles brings such comfort.

At least it does for me.

For the longest time in my struggle with alcohol I felt so alone.  I didn’t think I could talk about what was going on.  I also thought that no one would understand and all they would do is judge me and tell me to stop doing what was nearly impossible to stop doing.

But the more time I have spent in recovery, the more time that I have been working with others in recovery, the more this little truth from James and Fred resonates.

And I like how Fred frames it.

If it is MENTIONABLE it is MANAGEABLE and if it is MANAGEABLE it is not overwhelming.

Is there something that is hamstringing you, isolating you?  Maybe a challenge that has you feeling all alone.  You are not alone.  Find a “trusted friend”. 

Share the challenge. Make it more manageable. And then trust GOD for the healing that will ensue.

Remember:

“We all make mistakes, have struggles, and even regret things in our past. But you are not your mistakes, you are not your struggles, and you are here NOW with the power to shape your day and your future.” ― Steve Maraboli

And maybe it all starts with a trusted friend.

Have a blessed day…

I love you all.

OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE

PROCESS OF OBEDIENCE

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

Sorry I have missed you the last couple of days...

Early travel has kept me from the keyboard...

===

But since I am at the ANNUAL RECOVERY CONFERENCE in Columbus, today’s OFH is a little “recovery flavored.” But you non-recovery folks, stick with it.

There is a little something for you as well at the end.

I have been back and forth on recently with several folks who “say they want” some help; that they want delivered from their opiate choking lifestyle.  And I fully believe they do, but as much as they say they “want” it, when presented with the “PROCESS” to achieve that freedom, they balk.  

They want a quick fix. They sure don't want a "process". 

And as a result, they constantly counter my “process" questions.

“What is your TRUE motivation when it comes to recovery?

Have you decided to change because you know you ‘can’t’ continue to live the way you have been living without getting into trouble?”

Or worse yet,

“Is there a consequence looming and you know you HAVE TO change now?”

I then typically really press in and say something they often really don't like, I ask if they were ready to embrace obedience over convenience.

Pause on that a second.

This recovery walk, this OBEDIENCE walk will often seem inconvenient.

Discipline is never “easy”.

Change is never “easy”.

I then usually ask another question, “Are you wanting change and recover out of fear of the looming consequences or do you want to begin to experience the blessings that come with obedience and not addiction and leave the consequences to GOD to sort out?”

Why?

Because obedience is the BEST way to recovery. 

Period.

Fear-based, consequence-based recoveries are rickety at best, but daily embraced obedience starts recovery on solid footing and only gets more solid over time! 

By embracing a recovery founded on Jesus and inspired by truth, we begin to learn that trusting and OBEYING GOD is the WINNING ticket!

In fact, when we recover with OBEDIENCE as our motivator we discover that we are often kept safe from the harsh repercussions we deeply fear. And by continuing in a GOD-focused recovery, our fear is replaced by recognition of God’s blessings, His love for us and His passion to see us through the challenge! 

It is the reason STEP 3 tells us to SUBMIT to GOD’S WILL for our lives as the key to recovery. 

Why? 

Because by following God’s will our focus shifts from

“disobedience’s consequences to obedience’s blessings!”

Romans 6:21-23 (MSG)

...now that you've found you don't have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God's gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master.

You see friends, once we taste the best GOD has to offer, we will want to keep good flowing into our lives. 

Obedience and God’s best are natural partners — good derives from following divine commands...

And as we become more aware of how blessing follows obedience, we realize that embracing the LORD’S WILL is a very wise choice. It is then we move from “I can’t do that because” RECOVERERS to “I choose NOT to do that because” RECOVERERS.

Now for my “non-recovery friends” this message is for you as well. 

Is there a sin in your life that know you “can’t do” for fear of consequence?  Come on be honest.  You secretly wish you could “keep doing it” if you knew there were no repercussions. 

Step away from that sort of FORCED COMPLIANCE. 

It is bondage friends! 

Instead, follow GOD’s best for your life. Don't "listen to sin tell you what to do". 

Instead experience the blessings of obedience and break free from that consequential conformity!

Remember: 

Obedience always brings blessing (Life Principle #21) – Charles Stanley.

I love you all…

OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE