Unmanageable

I’m surrounded. My sins and temptations are closing in on me. I’m stuck. My efforts to celebrate are swallowed by guttural groans. Still God upholds me: over wilderness and water, He overcomes my fleshy failings and fills my emptiness with love. 2 Ne. 4: 18-21

Gratitude

Today's talks about gratitude were beautiful. Receiving all of life's experiences with thanksgiving: believing that by His grace, everything will "give thee experience, and shall be for thy good."

Inspiring Addict

One inspiring addict in timeseries: 1 2

Introduction

Hi, my name is Scott and I am a sinner/addict.

The nice and the terrifying part of my introductory line is that it strips away my self-justification and whatever part of my self-confidence is tied to it. “Step 1: Admit that you, of yourself, are powerless to overcome your addictions and that your life has become unmanageable.” Accomplished in one sentence.

Background

I admire the moral courage that I have seen in recovering addicts: I have been jealous of their willingness to admit that they are wrong or need help: that their lives have become unmanageable.

I attended a Church-sponsored addiction group as an assignment for a class. It was an impressive spiritual outpouring with everyone focusing on repentance and changing and dropping their pretenses.

I decided to try to look at my life from this powerful perspective. "You have heard it said that the Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried." (JEF)

Anything that I continue to do despite repeated negative consequences? Seems like any sin could fall into this category. Especially under the definition that sin is doing something other than what your heart tells you you should (see Bonds That Make Us Free).

So there it is. I'm a daily user who is just starting to admit that I have a problem. And I intend to work through "A Guide to Addiction Recovery and Healing", trying to change.

Don't Just Talk: Teach

Although it is a good start, it is not enough to do what I know: I also have to teach what I know. It is psychologically comfortable (read: pride) to consider myself the lone righteous in a crumbling world, but Christ is not interested in the selfish ‘sanctity’ that hopes to be saved alone. Teaching and learning build exalting sociality: lone-righteousness is full of sorrow.

Willing heart

Elijah asks the twelve tribes them to bring their buckets of slimy, disgusting sins forward and pour them on the Altar.
Dripping sins overflow the altar and fill the trench.
But “the fire of the Lord … licked up the water that was in the trench” and Jesus accepted their sacrifice. (1 Kgs. 18: 33-35, 38)