If You Don't Want Fleas...Don't Lay With The Dogs!

Romans 1:7
To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints.

It is a struggle that has been around since there were communities, towns, cities and villages. It has been the excuse for countless millions as to the "why" of their behavior. Scientist have even suggested that we are a by product of our environment, which leads to repeated behavior.
What is that struggle?
To blame our choices on where we live and the society we live in.
While I don't want to say that such has no influence, I also do not want to give an excuse for all bad behavior or, in this case, sinful behavior.

The apostle Paul is writing to a group of believers that he has never met. He did not birth the church in Rome directly, but I do believe that some of his converts may have been instrumental in its creation. Paul wants to help establish this community of believers in the faith so that they may be able to exist in Roman culture. You have to remember that this was Rome. Home to a pantheon of gods and beliefs. The influence of society was extremely dark to the people who called Rome home. Paul was encouraging them and exhorting them to become grounded in their faith and know what they believe, more importantly, why they believe it.

The one statement I hear over and over again from people who are in recovery is..."Man! It's hard out there...drugs...women looking for a hook up....old friends...etc...etc. Of course it's hard out there. Society has cast God away like some old trash. Without moral guidance and the Holy Spirit in your life, you'll gravitate toward the darkness. I say it over and over again...."You are who you surround yourself with." If you want to live right and do good..then surround yourself with good people." You know what? That's to simple. Well, yes it is. But we have a tendency to complicate the obvious and trivialize the momentous.

In this recovery path, we have to be connected to a community of like minded people. People who are living and working with the same goal as we have. To live life according to our Higher Power (Jesus) daily walking it out. The 12 Steps are stepping stones to help us cross the waters of turmoil and old ways. Much of what I see in relapse happens for one of two reasons. The person who relapses didn't really want to change at all...or the person who relapses did nothing for their recovery.

If a group of believers can live in one of the most decadent cities and receive instruction and encouragement on how to not fall away back into old lifestyles and ways, then maybe there is something I need to find for myself.

We are going to take a look at the book of Romans this Saturday night at Vineyard Recovery Fellowship. You might be surprised how well it translate into recovery language. Service starts at 7 p.m. Love to see you there.

God on you...
mb