🌿 A Message to Those New to Recovery

 

Dear Reader,

Today I was reading in the Book of Exodus, chapter 34. These words caught my attention:

“Observe thou that which I command thee this day: behold, I drive out before thee the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite.
Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land whither thou goest, lest it be for a snare in the midst of thee.”

This was spoken to the people of Israel after they had already stumbled—after Moses broke the first tablets from Mount Sinai.

It was a warning:
Do not return to the ways that will pull you away again.

It reminds me very much of where we stand in early sobriety.

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My Friend,

Starting recovery is not easy.
In fact, it may be one of the hardest—and most honest—places a person can stand.

There is a part of you that wants a better life—
peace, clarity, maybe even a sense of God again.

But there may also be another part…
that still wants to hold on.

Not fully go back—
but not fully let go either.

That place in between can feel safe.
But it usually isn’t.

In Exodus, there is a warning:

Be careful not to make a covenant… lest it become a snare.

A snare doesn’t grab you all at once.
It tightens slowly.

That’s how it often works in early recovery.

• “Just this once”
• “I’ll handle it differently this time”
• “I don’t need to tell anyone about this”

These don’t feel like big decisions…
but they are quiet agreements.

And those agreements matter.

Because recovery is not just about stopping something—
it’s about choosing a different way of living.

And that way begins with something simple, but not easy:

👉 rigorous honesty

Not perfection.
Not having it all figured out.

Just honesty.

• Being honest about what you feel
• Honest about what you want
• Honest about what still pulls at you

You don’t lose recovery because you struggle.
You lose it when you start hiding.

The good news is—you don’t have to do this perfectly.

You just have to stay willing.

Willing to be honest.
Willing to be guided.
Willing to let go, one layer at a time.

And as you do…

The things that once had power over you
will slowly lose their grip.

You are not being asked to become someone else.

You are being invited to become
who you were always meant to be—free, clear, and at peace.

---

This is a message we can all take wisdom from.

What we make peace with, we make room for.

The Step That Changes Everything

 

Dear Reader,

Many times in life, we find ourselves standing before something that stops us—a wall, a river, or even an ocean.

We hesitate.

The future is uncertain, and the place we stand—though limited—feels safe.
It quietly whispers: “Do not enter.”
Or perhaps even stronger: “You cannot enter.”

What is it that holds us back?
Fear? Doubt? Insecurity?

Whatever we call it, I have found this to be true:
taking the next step changes everything.

Some will turn back. And at times, that may feel like the safest choice.
Others will remain where they are and say, “This is enough. My journey ends here.”

But then there are those—the few, or even the one—who choose to move forward.

I am reminded of the closing lines from The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost:

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”

Recently, I listened to a reflection on the first thirty years of Jesus of Nazareth.
Scripture gives us only a brief glimpse of that time:

“And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.”
— Gospel of Luke 2:40

For thirty years, there is quiet.
No miracles recorded. No crowds. No ministry.

Just growth.

What was happening in those unseen years?
What was being formed within Him before He stepped into His mission?

Perhaps the greater question is this:
What is being formed within us in our own unseen years?

Throughout scripture, God works with ordinary men and women—shaping them through experience, challenge, and time—until they become something more: instruments of purpose, voices of truth, bearers of light.

Even Christ, though divine, walked the path of preparation.
He lived, worked, learned, and grew—just as we do.

There is no “Hollywood ending” without the quiet chapters that come before it.
No strength without testing.
No clarity without walking through uncertainty.

So when we stand before life’s choices—before the wall, the river, or the open sea—we are not standing alone.

We are standing in the same place where growth begins.

And so I leave you with this question:

When faced with life’s choices… how will you choose?

The Ten Plagues of Egypt: A Message of Warning, Choice, and Freedom

Dear Reader,

The story of the Ten Plagues in the Book of Exodus is not just about escalating disasters—it is a deeper story about power, belief, and transformation.

Why did it take ten plagues instead of one?

Because this is not only a story about Egypt…
It is a story about the human heart.

---

1. Pharaoh’s Hardened Heart (Human Resistance)

At the center of the story is Pharaoh’s repeated refusal to let the Israelites go.

In Exodus, his heart is described as “hardened”—sometimes by himself, and sometimes by God.

This reflects a powerful truth:

We often resist change, even when the consequences are clear.

Each plague was not just punishment—it was another opportunity to choose differently.

In many ways, this mirrors recovery:

We rarely change after one warning.
It often takes repeated moments of discomfort before surrender becomes possible.

---

2. A Gradual Awakening

The plagues unfold in increasing intensity:

Water to blood → Frogs → Gnats → Flies → Livestock disease → Boils → Hail → Locusts → Darkness → Death of the firstborn

To the natural mind, this progression may seem extreme.

But to one caught in addiction, it is not hard to understand.

What will a person endure… before they finally let go?

Before they surrender?
Before they accept a Power greater than themselves?

---

3. A Personal Reflection

So we might ask ourselves:

“What are the plagues in my life?”

Are they:

• Depression
• Loss of family or friends
• Isolation
• Homelessness
• Trips to the emergency room
• Moments where someone is trying to keep us breathing

These are not random.

They can become warning signs—moments where a Higher Power is calling us to change direction.

---

4. False Powers Fall

Egypt worshiped many gods—of the Nile, the sun, and animals.

Each plague systematically undermined those beliefs.

By the end, the message was clear:

The God of Israel is not just another god—He is sovereign over all.

In our lives, we may not worship idols of stone…

But addiction can become a false power.

And like Egypt, it will eventually be confronted.

Not as arbitrary punishment—but as reality.

---

5. Hope and Deliverance

Even when the path seems to be leading downward, there is still a choice.

There is hope.

There is a solution—one that has been lived and proven through the testimony of those in recovery.

As written:

“So that you may tell your children… that you may know that I am the Lord.”
— Exodus 10:2

This message was not only for Egypt—it was for Israel.

And it is for us.

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6. A Living Testimony

As we renew our commitment to sobriety and clean living each day, we can say:

“We were slaves—and we were delivered.”

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Final Thought

It did not take ten plagues because God was slow—
it took ten because Pharaoh was unwilling.

And perhaps the deeper message is this:

Freedom often comes not at the first invitation…
but after repeated chances to let go of what we refuse to release.

---

Amen.

The Feeling That Fades.... and The Light Remained

Dear Reader,

There was a time in my life when I believed I had found something beautiful.

Not in truth… but in feeling.

In my addiction, there were moments—brief, almost sacred—where life felt full, alive, and even peaceful.

For a moment, I thought: “This is it. This is the life I’ve been looking for.”

But it was not real.

Because what followed was always the same:

The come down.

The shaking.

The cold.

The return of hopelessness.

And with it came the truth:

What I thought I had found… I could not hold.

So I chased it again.

Another drink. Another escape. Another attempt to hold onto something that was never meant to last.

The cycle continued:

Hope → Illusion → Collapse → Despair → Repeat

Until one day…

A power greater than anything I knew met me in that darkness.

Not as a feeling.

Not as an illusion.

But as Light.

And I was faced with a choice:

Continue on a path of destruction, insanity, and death…

Or turn toward that Light.

That Light had a name: Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

“I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” — John 8:12

Good Friday thought

                              

 

There is a question that echoes through history… 

 

From Martin Luther King Jr.: 

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’” 

 

From the lips of Christ: 

“Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” 

— Mark 12:31, Bible 

 

And then—on a deeper level still—comes the invitation: 

“Sell all that thou hast… and come, follow me.” 

— Matthew 19:21 

 

 

Good Friday: The Answer Given 

 

Good Friday is not only a day to remember what Christ said… 

It is the day we witness what He did. 

 

He did not give a portion. 

He did not give when it was convenient. 

He did not give what cost Him little. 

 

He gave everything. 

 

The cross is not just a symbol of suffering— 

It is the clearest answer ever given to the question: 

 

“What are you doing for others?” 

 

The Deeper Meaning of “Sell All You Have” 

 

When Jesus said, 

“Sell all that thou hast…” 

 

He was not only speaking of possessions— 

He was pointing to the attachments of the heart: 

 

• Pride 

• Fear 

• Control 

• Self-will 

 

Good Friday shows us what it looks like to "Go All In!". 

 

Christ held nothing back— 

Not even His life. 

 

Dear Reader, 

 

Good Friday invites a quiet and personal question: 

 

What am I still holding on to 

that keeps me from loving fully? 

 

Is it something I own… 

Or something that owns me? 

 

To follow Christ may not always mean losing everything outwardly— 

But it will always mean surrendering something inwardly. 

 

And yet, here is the paradox: 

 

What we surrender… 

Is small compared to what we receive. 

 

Because on the other side of the cross 

is not loss— 

but life. 

 

 

 

 

Final Thought: 

The call of Christ is simple, but not easy: 

• Love others. 

• Give freely. 

• Follow fully. 

 

Good Friday reminds us— 

He has already walked that path. 

 

And because He did… 

We can too.