Luke 6:41-42 “It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this I-know-better-than-you mentality again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your own part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.
Luke 6:41 “You look at the bit of sawdust in your friend’s eye. But you pay no attention to the piece of wood in your own eye.”
No one is perfect. We are all sinners and we all fail when it comes to meeting God’s standards. So why are we all more interested in what is going on in other people’s lives than we are on our own?
It helps us to take the focus from ourselves, 2 Corinthians 11:3 says “Eve was tricked by the snake’s clever lies. And I’m afraid that in the same way your minds will somehow be led down the wrong path. They will be led away from your true and pure love for Christ.”
That’s what will happen to us if we focus more on others character than our own.
Prayer: Lord help me today to focus on my own character and You will for my life.
Don’t lose a minute in building on what you’ve been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus. 2 Peter 1:5-8
STEP THREE
I am making a decision to let God help me change and commit
to working with Him to do so.
1.
STANDING by a purpose true,
Heeding God’s command,
Honor them, the faithful few;
All hail to Daniel’s band!
Dare to be a Daniel,
Dare to stand alone,
Dare to have a purpose firm,
And dare to make it known.
2.
Many mighty men are lost,
Daring not to stand,
Who for God had been a host
By joining Daniel’s band.
3.
Many giants, great and tall,
Stalking through the land,
Headlong to the earth would fall
If met by Daniel’s band.
4.
Hold the gospel banner high;
On to victory grand;
Satan and his host defy
And shout for Daniel’s band.
Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute! Philippians 4:4-5
Mark 14:37-38 He came back and found them sound asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, you went to sleep on me? Can’t you stick it out with me a single hour? Stay alert, be in prayer, so you don’t enter the danger zone without even knowing it. Don’t be naive. Part of you is eager, ready for anything in God; but another part is as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire.”
The Bible talks about in Galatians 5 about living God’s way, the gifts He gives us and developing the willingness to persevere no matter what comes our way.
What happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard–things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely. Legalism is helpless in bringing this about; it only gets in the way. Among those who belong to Christ, everything connected with getting our own way and mindlessly responding to what everyone else calls necessities is killed off for good–crucified. Galatians 5:22-24
In the passage above Jesus chastises the disciples for not just falling asleep but for losing their focus on the task at hand. We are in a process. It is called RECOVERY and if we are to succeed in it we too need to STAY ALERT, BE IN PRAYER and stay focused on the task
STEP TWELVE
Having gone through these steps and discovering the importance of an individual relationship with God through Jesus, I will try to live according to His principles and to lead others to a personal relationship with Him.
are you R.F.A?
We can lose focus without being aware of it. The process of recovery requires the continued practice of God’s principles if Spiritual growth.
Mark 14:38 Watch and pray. Then you won’t fall into sin when you are tempted. The spirit is willing. But the body is weak.”
We need to be aware in the process of recovery of our strengths and our weaknesses. We all have weaknesses in some areas of our lives and we are strong in others. In areas where we are weak, we need to make sure we avoid putting ourselves in vulnerable situations.
One of the reasons I live in Victoria instead of Western Australia is because in W.A. I have too many contacts from my past. After all my years of recovery, I do not believe I would ever be tempted to relapse. But, in early recovery when I was susceptible and vulnerable I am not sure I would still be where I am today had I continued to live in Western Australia.
Prayer: God today I commit to going to any length to maintain my new life and spiritual growth.
Matthew 7:15 “Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off some way or other. Don’t be impressed with charisma; look for character.”
Matthew 7:15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you pretending to be sheep. But on the inside, they are hungry wolves.”
In the process of recovery, we are going to come across people who seem like they are in recovery. They will make all the right noises and present in all the right ways. It is important when we engage others in recovery that we include them in our prayers. That we talk to God about them and listen to what He has to say about them.
In this passage of scripture Matthew 7:15-20 the Bible talks about the fruit produced by good trees. Some of the people we are going to engage within recovery are not producing good fruit and we need to learn to discern between those who are committed to the recovery process and those who are not.
Prayer: God draws me to the right support people in my recovery.
1John 1:8-9 If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins–make a clean breast of them–he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing.
Living Life Recovery is a safe place where people can come, share and investigate the realities of God’s promises for themselves.
We believe that as we investigate God’s promises for our lives and practice the ‘Spiritual Principles of Recovery’ as outlined in ‘God’s Word’ we will find the strength and freedom we need to live productive and peaceful lives.
We welcome anyone who has a sincere desire to change their lives. To rise above the pain and turmoil caused by dependencies and compulsive behaviors their own lives or the lives of a loved one or friend.
Many of us wallow in our pasts and sink easily into the harbour of such memories. Ask forgiveness for allowing these feelings to overcome what you know is your new reality. This episode is also available as a blog post: https://livingliferecovery.com/2022/04/27/thougtfortoday/
