How Do I Know If Christian Recovery Is For
Me?
If, when you honestly
want to, you find you cannot quit drinking or using entirely, or if you
have little control over the amount you consume, you are probably an
alcoholic and/or an addict. If that is the case, you may be suffering from
a problem which only a spiritual solution will conquer.
If you are as seriously
alcoholic or addicted as we were, we believe there is no
middle-of-the-road solution. We were in a position where life was becoming
impossible, and we had passed into the region from which there is no
return through human resources, we had but two alternatives: One was to go
on to the bitter end, blotting out the consciousness of our intolerable
situation as best as we could; and the other was to accept Jesus Christ as
our Higher Power.
Romans 7:15-25 points
out…
“I
don't understand myself at all, for I really want to do what is
right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do the very thing I hate. I
know perfectly well that what I am doing is wrong, and my bad
conscience shows that I agree that the law is good. But I can't help
myself, because it is sin inside me that makes me do these evil
things.
I know I am rotten through and through so far as my old sinful
nature is concerned. No matter which way I turn, I can't make myself
do right. I want to, but I can't. When I want to do good, I don't.
And when I try not to do wrong, I do it anyway. But if I am doing
what I don't want to do, I am not really the one doing it; the sin
within me is doing it.
It seems to be a fact of life that when I want to do what is right,
I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God's law with all my heart.
But there is another law at work within me that is at war with my
mind. This law wins the fight and makes me a slave to the sin that
is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free
me from this life that is dominated by sin? Thank God! The answer is
in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really
want to obey God's law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave
to sin.” (NLT) |
There is a
Solution.
By working through the
Eight Recovery Principles found in the Beatitudes with Jesus Christ as
your Higher Power, you can and will change! You will begin to experience
the true peace and serenity you have been seeking, and you will no longer
have to rely on your dysfunctional, compulsive, and addictive behaviors as
a temporary "fix" for your pain.
By applying the biblical
principles of conviction, conversion, surrender, confession, restitution,
prayer, quiet time, witnessing, and helping one another, which are found
within the Eight Principles and the Christ-centered 12 Steps, you will
restore and develop stronger relationships with others and with God.
Chemical
Dependency Checklist
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Have you ever decided to
stop drinking and/or using for a week or so, but only lasted for a
couple of days? |
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Do you wish people would
mind their own business about your drinking and/or using – stop telling
you what to do? |
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Have you ever switched
from one kind of drink or drug to another in the hope that this would
keep you from losing control? |
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Have you had to have an
"eye-opener" upon awakening during the past year? Do you need a drink or
drug to get started, or stop shaking? |
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Do you envy people who can
drink or use drugs without getting into trouble?
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Have you had problems
connected with drinking or using during the past year?
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Has your drinking or using
caused trouble at home? |
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Do you ever try to get
"extra" drinks or drugs at a party because you did not get enough?
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Do you tell yourself you
can stop drinking or using any time you want to, even though you keep
getting inebriated when you don’t mean to? |
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Have you missed days of
work or school because of drinking or using? |
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Do you have "blackouts"?
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Have you ever felt that
your life would be better if you did not drink or use? |
What is
your score?
Did you answer YES two
(2) or more times? If so, you are probably in trouble with alcohol or
drugs.
But again, only you can
decide whether you think Christian Recovery is for you. Try to keep an
open mind on the subject. If the answer is YES, we will be glad to show
you how we stopped drinking and using drugs ourselves.
Christian Recovery does
not promise to solve your life's problems. But we can show you how we are
learning to live without drinking or using one day at a time with the help
of our Higher Power, Jesus Christ. We stay away from that first drink. If
there is no first one, there cannot be a tenth one. And when we are free
of alcohol and drugs, we found that life became much more manageable, with
Christ’s power. |
