Hey Partners & Friends,
Celebrate Recovery Principle 5 says, “Voluntarily submit to every change God wants to make in my life and humbly ask Him to remove my character defects.”
“Happy are those whose greatest desire is to do what God requires.” Mt 5:6 GNT
There is a lot packed into that seemingly simple statement. Let’s break it down.
Voluntarily– I choose to submit, God doesn’t force me, he gives me the opportunity to choose Him, and it is His passionate desire that I do so. He lets me make choices right or wrong. I must voluntarily make that choice.
Submit-This word submit can’t be over emphasized. Because that is the last thing we want to do, submit to anybody or anything. We want to control our lives, and that’s exactly how we got into the mess we are in. Surrender to the Lord, ironically it seems, leads to victory. Victory that we have been unable to attain no matter how hard we try. This idea is contrary to our thinking, submit to win, and surrender to have victory? How does that work?
“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.
“And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.’ Isa 55:8-9 NLT
Every change– not just the changes that we want to make but the changes God wants to make in our lives. We must not try to pick and choose which character defects we want to keep and which ones we are willing to let go.
Then we must humbly ask- sincerely, earnestly ask for God’s help, understanding that we can’t do this on our own. If we could we would have already done so. We need our higher power Jesus Christ to enable us to get past the destructive behaviors and allow Him to remove our character defects. We’ve got to come to God honestly, wholly, and earnestly asking for his help to remove our character defects. We are looking for change, deep change in our lives, more than just changing behaviors (which we must change to get different outcomes) but change in our character which causes us to become more like Christ. “And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.” 2 Pet 1:4NLT
Who does not want victory in their life? At Celebrate Recovery we learn how to volunteer for it! God doesn’t force us to turn to him, He loves us with a passion and He wants us to choose to love him back. Many times we turn to God as a last ditch effort, we are at the end of our rope, nowhere else to go. Basically we give up trying to do it our way and say God, HELP!
Thanks for volunteering with us in this ministry!
Jim & Pam
Please designate gifts to Believers Church “Recovery Missions” Thank You.