Not Your Typical 'Recovery' Program

If I were asked to rename the Celebrate Recovery Program, the one word that I would leave out of its title would be 'Recovery'. Although the Lord does, indeed, use the program for recovery, people have a tendency to limit the scope of the 'recovery' and thus unknowingly limit the possibilities that the Lord is willing to bring about through this program. Let me explain . . .

My life's story is not one of substance abuse, it is one of being controlled by hurts in my life. Often I think of the analogy of the bride who walks through a coal bin. Merely by walking through the area she kicks up black coal dust so that by the time she gets to the far side of the bin she no longer looks the part of the beautiful bride.

As I walked through my life, I allowed many hurts to rub off on to me and without realizing it they defined who I became. People could see the coal dust on me – the self-sufficiency, the anger, the resentment and fears.

Then several years ago the Lord lead me to a Celebrate Recovery Group. There I worked through the eight biblical principles which are based on the Beatitudes of Christ. Eventually, as the principles were discussed, the Lord graciously brought me a clear understanding of two very important things . . .
1. who I was and 2. who He intended for me to be.

I knew then that I had a choice to make because I didn’t like the person that I had become. I also realized that on my own, apart from Christ, I had no power to change. But I’m living proof that with God, all things ARE possible . . . and thankfully the Lord allowed the Celebrate Recovery Program to be my pathway to healing and growth.

I’m still not perfect but I am on my way to becoming the beautiful bride who will one day stand before Christ - absent the coal dust - and it is then that I will thank Him face to face for the love He provided through this incredible program.

So . . . my vote for the name change is cast . . . Celebrate Christ! Celebrate the freedom from hurts, hang-ups AND habits as the Lord allows healing and growth no matter what challenge tries to take control of your life!

ps-please help others to be aware of the far reaching possibilities that exist when the Lord is allowed to work in and through this program. Truly, it's NOT limited to a typical Alcohol/Drug recovery program - for with God . . . ALL things are possible!

THANK YOU, JESUS!
Amen and Amen.
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