Celebrate Recovery continues to make good progress.  We have just completed Lesson 13 which is available under the “Podcast” page on this site.  The Lord has been doing a marvelous work in our midst.

It has been a real blessing to see people continuing to come out and participate in Celebrate Recovery at Abundant Life Church.  We meet on Thursday Evenings beginning at 6pm.  We have fellowship with at least pastries and coffee.  Very often someone will even fix dinner.  We have a large group meeting from 7-8pm, where there is Praise and Worship with a teaching of one of the lessons.  From 8-9pm we break up into small groups divided by gender and moving toward a recovery specific topic.  You may share or you may just listen.  Anonymity and confidentiality are strictly held. Celebrate Recovery is open to all and all are welcome.  Celebrate Recovery is for all who “hurts, habits or hang ups” that they need to work through.  We believe that with the help of the Lord and the support of others, all things are possible.  For nothing is too difficult for God.  Please come and join us.  We believe that you will find that you are among friends.

Celebrate Recovery at Abundant Life Church is modeled after the program developed by John Baker at Saddleback Church of which Rick Warren is the Senior Pastor.  For more information about Celebrate Recovery world wide, please follow the links.

I am really looking forward to this discussion.  Step 3 in recovery is a big and pivotal step.

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October 18, 2008

Last Thursday was the 5th meeting of Celebrate Recovery (CR) at Abundant Life Church.  It was my first time serving as the Training Coach.  It was lesson 3 and the Topic for the night was “HOPE.”  I was told it went well.   For me, it will take me a little time to get use to the format and the experience of doing the presentations.  There is a rhythm to everything.  I find that as one does things more often, the rhythm gets better. There were more things I wanted to say and more points I wanted to cover.  But the time went by so fast.  I was really excited about CR. I believe it is going to be a really good thing.

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ABOUT CR –

October 16, 2008

This past session of CR went very well.  It was my first time teaching a lesson.  But it was the small group experience that was most exciting.  I wondered about the results and about whether the intent of CR was really coming across.  It seemed my prayers were answered. There was a gentleman there who had been coming for a while.  He is in the midst of a separation and concerned about a possible divorce. He spoke about how he had an encounter with the Lord over the past week.  He got delivered from some things.  He reported a tremendous sense of peace that came over him.  He was able to sleep at night.  He said that he was able to better and more deeply express himself to his wife and family.  He really sensed that God had made a dramatic change in his life.  His time of sharing was really great. There were other great testimonies as well that night.  Everyone left with a sense of refreshing and renewal. I am excited about CR in that it really seems to get at the heart of the Gospel and of God.  It is the good news that God sent his son to help us and to deliver us from our hurts, hang-ups and habits. Many people come to church and even to Jesus Christ without a real reason. In CR it is like the experience of the woman with the issue of blood.  She came to Christ with a particular issue and received help.  It is when we are able to bring our issues to God with the hope and openness, believing in the power and with a definite sense of expectancy that some miraculous things happen. I will be glad when the average church attendee finds him/herself coming to CR because there is this deeper thing happening in the midst of God’s people. The miraculous thing about it is that it took somebody who himself was hurting and asking, should there be something at church where hurting people can go, that CR was born at Abundant Life Church.  And because it came to Abundant Life there is now another church that is planning to start another program in their church. And, what timing.  If what many people are saying is true concerning the developing economic crisis, many people will need help with various issues.