GREENE STREET LETTERS: Celebrate Recovery

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Celebrate Recovery - Centre, Alabama

Judges 5:3
"Hear, O kings......O rulers! I---to the LORD, I will sing. I will sing praise to the Lord, the God of Israel!"

To be free and unfettered and loosed into Jesus Himself.
Him in me and I in Him.
That is true recovery.
That is true freedom.
Freedom to fight against the darkness through our praise and prayer.
Our weapons may be mighty......
But our commander, Jesus Christ, is beyond any power that roams this planet or fills the sky above.

That is why I tell my story of what Jesus has done to me....
Not because I have to...
Because I want to.
We are told in Psalm 100 to Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise."
Yes, it is cloudy outside and the weatherman is calling for rain today.
But what does that have to do with what Jesus has done for me? My joy, my praise is not dictated to or controlled by what is happening around me. I will praise Him before the rocks cry out. I will not be silent.

I spoke last night at Celebrate Recovery Centre, Alabama. I watched a people find freedom in Christ.
They came together to collectively offer to God the praise and love and adoration that is due him.
Person after person stood to speak.....
"Hello! I'm ----------- and I have been delivered from Sexual molestation and drug addiction."
"Hello! I'm -----------and I have been delivered from pornography and alcoholism."
"Hello! I'm -----------and I have been delivered from low self esteem and smoking."
Person after person declaring the power of God to deliver, to restore and to heal.

God is still in the saving business.
I rest in that today.
God on you......
mb

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Looking At The World Through Cracked Lens

As ol' Paul wrote in his Corinthian letters.."We see in part and we know in part." Now what piece of this bit of wisdom do we not get? I wish to not run around acting and trying to be some sort of Biblical G00-Ru (I meant to spell it wrong). Or a sage of sages.

I simply want to be able to communicate some of what God has given to me. Why? Do I think what I get is better than what you may have received from Him? Nope. But I do think encouragement comes when we share our daily story of struggle and victory in an effort to encourage each other.

Thanks for letting me share.

Time to soldier on..

mbb

Our Statement of Faith

We believe that God is the eternal king. He is an infinite, unchangeable Spirit, perfect in holiness, wisdom, goodness, justice, power and love. From all eternity He exists as the One Living and True God in three persons of one substance, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit equal in power and glory. we believe that God created mankind in His image, male and female, for relationship with Himself and to govern the earth. Under the temptation of Satan, our original parents fell from grace, bringing sin, sickness and God's judgment of death to the earth. Through the fall, Satan and his demonic hosts gained access to God's good creation. Creation now experiences the consequences and effects of Adam's original sin. Human beings are born into sin, subject to God's judgment of death and captive to Satan's kingdom of darkness. We believe that Jesus, God's Son, was sent to this world, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, Mary, fully God and fully man in one person. He is humanity as God intended us to be. Jesus was anointed as God's Messiah and empowered by the Holy Spirit, ushering in God's kingdom reign on earth, overpowering the reign of Satan by resisting temptation, preaching the good news of salvation, healing the sick, casting out demons and raising the dead. Jesus' atoning death on the cross took God's judgment for sin which we deserved as law-breakers. Jesus' resurrection and ascent back to heaven opened the door for those who received salvation to begin a relationship with God.

Little Nets Into Deep Waters

Fishing nets were designed for one purpose only. To catch fish. Nets are no good if they stay on the boat. Nets serve no purpose if they are never used. I think maybe God sees us this way. We are all created for a purpose (by the way, the creator gets to define what our purpose is). Any other use besides the one we were created for does us no good. But when the creator places His hands upon us, casting us out into those scary, dark places with deep waters, it is then we can see the reality of our purpose. He knew there would be a catch waiting for us. I think I will be the net God has called me to be.

The Twelve Steps

As a community of people in recovery, we affirm that our higher power is Jesus Christ. He did for us what we could not do for ourselves. Just as God told the children of Israel He was going to give them a promised land, He has revealed to us that He desires to give us a "Promised Life." When Israel got to the promised land, God instructed them to go and in a possess it, fight for it and claim it. In recovery, the 12 Steps are the directions given to us on how to fight, possess and claim this promised life.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Celebrate Recovery - Centre, Alabama

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THE REALITY OF THE NAME OF GOD