1. Plan Each and Every Day of Your Holiday - Plan to spend the majority of your time with friends and family who are supportive of your recovery. If you are required to be present for a social gathering that could jeopardize your sobriety, bring a fellow CR member with you. Plan fun events and outings to replace your old drinking rituals.
2. Use downtime for quiet time praying, reading the Bible, and meditating on God's word
3. Ask for Support from Your Family and Friends - Those who are truly supportive of your recovery will be happy to help you throughout the holidays. Be up front and tell them your concerns.
4. Have a List of at Least Ten People you can call - Make a list and check it twice. Carry your cell phone and your list of names at all times.
5. Don’t Forget about Regular Exercise - Regular exercise is an essential component of any balanced recovery program. If you have extra time on your hands, it is a great idea to get out and exercise.
6. Stay Away from Slippery Places - There is absolutely no reason to ever check out your former favorite establishments. It is very likely that your old "friends" are still there and are still telling the same old stories.
7. Create New Traditions to replace your Old Drinking Patterns - Try something totally different during the holidays. Buy a new board game or take the family on a day trip. Use you imagination, be creative and have fun.
8. Write out a Daily Gratitude List - The quickest cure to get you out of the holiday blues is by counting your blessings. Be grateful for what you have by writing out a gratitude list every morning. Don’t stop writing until you have at least 10 items on your list.
9. Volunteer your Services to a Charitable Organization - There are many people in your community who are homeless and hungry. Why not volunteer to work at a soup kitchen or at a special Christmas dinner for those less fortunate than you? You will be helping not only the needy but yourself!
10. Write a Letter to yourself. How I Stayed Sober over Christmas. The act of writing your ideas on paper is very powerful. Write down all the activities and events that will help you have healthy happy Christmas. Now take action on them and make this letter come true!
11. Avoid H.A.L.T. - H.A.L.T. stands for Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired. There are very simple solutions for all of the above items. If you are hungry, get something to eat. If you are angry, talk to somebody about it. If you are lonely, go to a meeting or call a friend. If you are tired, get a good night’s sleep.
12. Live One Day at a time and Enjoy your Sobriety! - Stay in the moment. Have present time consciousness. Be in the now. These are all different ways of telling you to live 1 day at a time. Never mind about what happened or what could happen. Enjoy today. Live today. Celebrate your sobriety!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
The 12 Steps and Their Biblical Comparisons
Step 1: We admitted we were powerless over our addictions and compulsive behavior; that our lives had become unmanageable.
I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. - Romans 7:18
Step 2: We came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
For it is God who is at work in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. - Philippians 2:13
Step 3: We made a decision to turn our life and our will over to the care of God.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. - Romans 12:1
Step 4: We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD. - Lamentations 3:40
Step 5: We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being, the exact nature of our wrongs.
Therefore, confess your sins to each other, and pray for each other, so that you may be healed. - James 5:16a
Step 6: We were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. - James 4:10
Step 7: We humbly asked Him to remove all our shortcomings.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. - 1 John 1:9
Step 8: We made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.
“Do to others as you would have them do to you.” - Luke 6:31
Step 9: We made direct amends to such people whenever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; and then come and offer your gift.” - Matthew 5:23–24
Step 10: We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! - 1 Corinthians 10:12
Step 11: We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. - Colossians 3:16a
Step 12: Having had a spiritual experience as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and practice these principles in all our affairs.
Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. - Galatians 6:1
I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. - Romans 7:18
Step 2: We came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
For it is God who is at work in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. - Philippians 2:13
Step 3: We made a decision to turn our life and our will over to the care of God.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. - Romans 12:1
Step 4: We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD. - Lamentations 3:40
Step 5: We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being, the exact nature of our wrongs.
Therefore, confess your sins to each other, and pray for each other, so that you may be healed. - James 5:16a
Step 6: We were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. - James 4:10
Step 7: We humbly asked Him to remove all our shortcomings.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. - 1 John 1:9
Step 8: We made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.
“Do to others as you would have them do to you.” - Luke 6:31
Step 9: We made direct amends to such people whenever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; and then come and offer your gift.” - Matthew 5:23–24
Step 10: We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! - 1 Corinthians 10:12
Step 11: We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. - Colossians 3:16a
Step 12: Having had a spiritual experience as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and practice these principles in all our affairs.
Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. - Galatians 6:1
The Road to Recovery
The 8 Principles Based on the Beatitudes
Principle 1: Realize I’m not God; I admit that I am powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing and that my life is unmanageable. (Step 1)
Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor. - Matthew 5:3a
Principle 2: Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him, and that He has the power to help me recover. (Step 2)
Happy are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. - Matthew 5:4
Principle 3: Consciously choose to commit all my life and will to Christ’s care and control. (Step 3)
Happy are the meek. - Matthew 5:5a
Principle 4: Openly examine and confess my faults to myself, to God, and to someone I trust. (Steps 4 and 5)
Happy are the pure in heart. - Matthew 5:8a
Principle 5: Voluntarily submit to every change God wants to make in my life and humbly ask Him to remove my character defects. (Steps 6 and 7)
Happy are those whose greatest desire is to do what God requires. - Matthew 5:6a
Principle 6: Evaluate all my relationships. Offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me and make amends for harm I’ve done to others, except when to do so would harm them or others. (Steps 8 and 9)
Happy are the merciful. - Matthew 5:7a
Happy are the peacemakers. - Matthew 5:9
Principle 7: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life, and to gain the power to follow His will. (Steps 10 and 11)
Principle 8: Yield myself to God to be used to bring this Good News to others, both by my example and by my words. (Step 12)
Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires! - Matthew 5:10
Principle 1: Realize I’m not God; I admit that I am powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing and that my life is unmanageable. (Step 1)
Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor. - Matthew 5:3a
Principle 2: Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him, and that He has the power to help me recover. (Step 2)
Happy are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. - Matthew 5:4
Principle 3: Consciously choose to commit all my life and will to Christ’s care and control. (Step 3)
Happy are the meek. - Matthew 5:5a
Principle 4: Openly examine and confess my faults to myself, to God, and to someone I trust. (Steps 4 and 5)
Happy are the pure in heart. - Matthew 5:8a
Principle 5: Voluntarily submit to every change God wants to make in my life and humbly ask Him to remove my character defects. (Steps 6 and 7)
Happy are those whose greatest desire is to do what God requires. - Matthew 5:6a
Principle 6: Evaluate all my relationships. Offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me and make amends for harm I’ve done to others, except when to do so would harm them or others. (Steps 8 and 9)
Happy are the merciful. - Matthew 5:7a
Happy are the peacemakers. - Matthew 5:9
Principle 7: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life, and to gain the power to follow His will. (Steps 10 and 11)
Principle 8: Yield myself to God to be used to bring this Good News to others, both by my example and by my words. (Step 12)
Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires! - Matthew 5:10
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