"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Mattherw 5:10
My husband Daniel was an alcoholic. He's not anymore. He's not even a "recovereing alcoholic." Rather, he's a forgiven alcoholic, and he's been sober for some 16 years. But it wasn't like God waved a magic wand and suddenly things were wonderful. Daniel and I were met with a succession of trails, but the Lord saw us through.
One Sunday night a special speaker came to our church and delivered an imprompty message on the sin of alcoholism. This speaker had planned to talk about something else that night;l however, our local newspaper had run a story in its Sunday edition about how Wisconsin is in the top ranks for being home o the most alcoholics in the United States. After all, we are basically the beer capital of the world.
The speaker's message really touched my husbad; he realized he didn't have to rehash all the ugliness of his past of go through years of counseling in order to quit drinking. He just had to repent and trun from it, embrace God's goodness, and accept God's healing.
That's the first step. Next came telling our friends and family members that we had both quit drinking.
Now you'd think people would be happy when an alcoholic says, "I'm done drinking and hurting my family. I'm starting a whole new life." But, incredibl, the opposite is often true. Some of our family members actually tried to sabotage Daniel's resolution. Our close friends stopped inviting us to their homes and to parties. It broke my heart to realize that my friends weren't true friends; they'd merely been drinking buddies. However, we found support at our local church. We made new friends - good friends. We still had fun. In fact, we've had more fun because we're not sick and hungover the next day! We might have lost a lot at first, but God replaced everything we lost and added more.
Stepping out into the Light takes a lot of courage. Be prepared for the backlash. Steady yourself with God's Word - and then enjoy the insurmountable blessings that follow!
Today's prayer
Lord God, You alone are able to remove any addictions from our lives. Just say the words and we will be healed. It's as simple as that...and yet what follows might prove to be the hardest days of our lives. Help us to let go of dysfunctional relationships and accept new and healthy ones. Help us stay in Your Light so we never experience the darkness again! In Christ's name we ask, amen.
Something to think about
What addiction or vice do you want to turn over to God and let go of?
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