Carried By His Wings© -- Sexual Purity Recovery

Wings Devotional Recovery ... June 30, 2010

The Month of June brings us to Step Six ... Almost half a year has gone by  

KINDNESS

JUST FOR TODAY! – Step Seven – Be Kind to Others and Self

STEP SEVEN Involves the transformation or purification of our character.

We humbly ask GOD to remove our shortcomings.

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." -- I John 1:9

TO: YOU

FROM: GOD

Effective immediately, please be aware that there are changes you need to make in your life.  These changes need to be completed in order that I may fulfill my promises to you to grant you peace, joy and happiness in this life.  I apologize for any inconvenience, but after all that I am doing, this seems very little to ask of you.  I know, I already gave you the Ten Commandments.  Keep them ... but follow these modern Ten Commandments also.

QUIT WORRYING

Life has dealt you a blow and all you do is sit and worry.  Have you forgotten that I am here to take all your burdens and carry them for you?  Or do you just enjoy fretting over every little thing that comes your way?

PUT IT ON THE LIST

Something needs to be done or taken care of. Put it on the list.  No, not on YOUR list.  Put it on MY to-do-list.  Let ME be the one to take care of the problem.  I can't help you until you turn it over to me.  And although my to-do-list is long, I am, after all, God.  I can take care of anything you put into my hands. In fact, if the truth were ever really known, I take care of a lot of things for you that you never even realize.

TRUST ME

Once you've given your burdens to me, quit trying to take them back.  Trust in me.  Have the faith that I will take care of all your needs, your problems and your trials.  Problems with the kids?  Put them on my list.  Problem with finances?  Put it on my list.  Problems with your emotional roller coaster?  For my sake, put it on my list.  I want to help you.  All you have to do is ask.

LEAVE IT ALONE

Don't wake up one morning and say, "Well, I'm feeling much stronger now, I think I can handle it from here."  Why do you think you are feeling stronger now?  It's simple.  You gave me your burdens and I'm taking care of them.  I also renew your strength and cover you in my peace.  Don't you know that if I give you these problems back, you will be right back where you started?  Leave them with me and forget about them.  Just let me do my job.

TALK TO ME

I want you to forget a lot of things.  Forget what was making you crazy.  Forget the worry and the fretting because you know I'm in control.  But there's one thing I pray you never forget.  Please don't forget to talk to me - OFTEN!  I love you.  I want to hear your voice.  I want you to include me in on the things going on in your life.  I want to hear you talk about your friends and family.  Prayer is simply you having a conversation with me.  I want to be your dearest friend.

HAVE FAITH

I see a lot of things from up here that you can't see from where you are.  Have faith in me that I know what I'm doing.  Trust me ... you wouldn't want the view from my eyes.  I will continue to care for you, watch over you, and meet your needs.  You only have to trust me.  Although I have a much bigger task than you, it seems as if you have so much trouble just doing your simple part.  How hard can trust be?

SHARE

You were taught to share when you were only two years old.  When did you forget?  That rule still applies.  Share with those who are less fortunate than you.  Share your joy with those who need encouragement.  Share your laughter with those who haven't heard any in such a long time.  Share your tears with those who have forgotten how to cry.  Share your faith with those who have none.

BE PATIENT

I managed to fix it so in just one lifetime you could have so many diverse experiences.  You grow from a child to an adult, have children, change jobs many times, learn many trades, travel to so many places, meet thousands of people, and experience so much.  How can you be so impatient then when it takes me a little longer than you expect to handle something on my to-do-list?  Trust in my timing, for my timing is perfect.  Just because I created the entire universe in only six days, everyone thinks I should always rush, rush, rush.

BE KIND

Be kind to others, for I love them just as much as I love you.  They may not dress like you, or talk like you, or live the same way you do, but I still love you all.  Please try to get along, for my sake.  I created each of you different in some way.  It would be too boring if you were all identical.  Please know I love each of your differences.

LOVE YOURSELF

As much as I love you, how can you not love yourself?  You were created by me for one reason only - to be loved, and to love in return.  I am a God of Love.  Love me.  Love your neighbors ... but also love yourself.  It makes my heart ache when I see you so angry with yourself when things go wrong.  You are very precious to me. Don't ever forget that!  With all my heart ... I love you.

GOD

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STEP SEVEN: Involves the transformation or purification of our character.

I humbly ask GOD to remove my shortcomings.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” -- I John 1:9

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” -- Matthew 7:7-8

Seven Step Prayer

My Creator,

I am now willing that you should have all of me, good and bad.

I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you and my fellows.

Grant me the strength, as I go out from here, to do your bidding.

Amen.

Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 76

Early Version of the Seventh Step Prayer

Dear God,

I am coming to You on my knees in all humility to humbly ask You to forgive all my past wrongs and to remove all my defects of character.

I want to start a new life today, and

I ask You to help me do so and to keep helping if I keep asking.

In Step Three, I turned my will and my life over to Your care.

Thank You for taking complete control of my life, and thank You for this opportunity to wipe my slate clean and start my life anew.

In Steps Four, Five and Six I have completed my moral inventory and admitted to myself and another person the exact nature of my wrongs.

I now admit these wrongs to You, God.

I am entirely ready to ask and pray now that You please remove from me every single defect of character.

Specifically, I ask You to remove the following shortcomings listed in my Fourth Step moral inventory:

(Read aloud here those defects from your list.)

Thank You, God, for this opportunity for a new beginning in my life and a chance to be a part of the solutions in life instead of the problems. Please grant me wisdom, knowledge and strength as I go out from here to do Your work and live the Victorious Life You designed for me.

Thank You, God, for the steps which will make Your plan for my life clear to me.

Thank You and praise Your name.

Amen.

STEP SEVEN

Go back to the bible and begin reading

Isaiah 57:12-19

Jeremiah 18:1-6

Luke 11:5-12

Luke 18:1-14

Romans 3:23-28

Philippines 2:5-9

I John 5:11-15

Now we must humbly ask that our defects be removed, those that we admitted to in Step Five. 

Both on Knees:

Lord, here is your child, _Name__, (s/he) is coming to you in all humility to humbly ask your forgiveness, believing that anything (s/he) asks in prayer, (s/he) humbly shall receive. 

Repeat After Me:

I __Name__, humbly ask you oh Lord, to remove my shortcomings and forgive me of my sins and ask in all humility that you will remove my defects because I am one of your children and I truly believe.  My Defects are: (Read the List Admitted To)

Thank you Jesus, Thank You Jesus, Thank you Jesus, Amen, Amen, Amen. 

My creator, I am now willing that you should have all of me, good and bad. 

I pray that you now remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you and my fellows.  Grant me strength, as I go out from here to do your bidding.  Praise God, thank you Jesus, Praise God, thank you Jesus, Praise God, thank you Jesus!

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The Man in the Glass

Author Unknown

When you get what you want in your struggles for self

And the world makes you king for a day,

Just go to a mirror and look at yourself

And see what that man has to say.

For it isn't your father or mother or wife

Whose judgment upon you must pass,

The fellow whose verdict counts most in your life

Is the one staring back from the glass.

Some people might think you're a straight-shooting chum

And call you a wonderful guy.

But the man in the glass says you're only a bum

If you can't look him straight in the eye.

He's the fellow to please, never mind all the rest

For he's with you clear to the end

And you've passed your most dangerous test

If the guy in the glass is your friend.

You may fool the whole world down the pathway of years

And get pats on the back as you pass

But your final reward will be heartache and tears

If you've cheated the man in the glass.

The Story goes that this poem was scrawled on the walls of death row in an American prison.  With these type of affirmations firmly in our minds, we can assure ourselves that it doesn’t matter how many mistakes we make along the way – we will never really fail.  For a of us, “People Pleasing” and “Peer Group Pressure” were a couple of reasons that began our Journey On the Highway To Hell in the first place. 

If we outwardly appear to be “wonderful”, yet our hearts become full of resentment, bitterness and hatred;

Hatred will act as a cancer and destroy whatever we have built.

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TO "LET GO"

To "let go" does not mean to stop caring,
it means I can't do it for someone else.

To "let go" is not to cut myself off,
it's the realization I can't control another.

To "let go" is not to enable,
but to allow learning from natural consequences.

To "let go" is to admit powerlessness,
which means the outcome is not in my hands.

To "let go" is not to try to change or blame another,
it’s to make the most of myself.

To "let go" is not to care for, but care about.

To "let go" is not to fix, but to be supportive.

To "let go" is not to judge, but to allow another to be a human being.

To "let go" is not to be in the middle arranging all the outcomes,
but to allow others to affect their own destinies.

To "let go" is not to be protective,
it's to permit another to face reality.

To "let go" is not to deny, but to accept.

To "let go" is not to adjust everything to my desires
but to take each day as it comes, and cherish myself in it.

To "let go" is not to regret the past,
but to grow and live for the future.

To "let go" is to fear less and love more..."

            author unknown

GOALS FOR STEP FOUR

· Describe a moral inventory.

· Write an inventory of dishonesty and resentment.

· Write and inventory of self-pity and false pride.

· Write and inventory of criticism and destructive anger.

· Write and inventory of fear and impatience.

·  When writing your, inventory give specific examples for each behavior and attitude.

· Search the Bible for how God views each behavior and how we are to counteract the behavior through the examples in the Bible.

· Record insights and Scripture references. Remember be honest. God created you as you are and loves you unconditionally.

· Remember that prayer before I begin invites the LORD into this process with me and will help me to see what areas GOD needs to cleanse in me.  Use my sponsor's support, s/he is praying for me as I go through this process.

· Not to be discouraged, when it gets tough. Even when I feel like walking away from the process, persevere, in the end, you are healed.

Remember you are loved!

STEP FOUR: Involves Self-Examination.

STEP FOUR: I Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of myself.

"Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord". -- Lamentations 3:40

Fourth Step Prayer:

Dear God,

It is I who has made my life a mess.
I have done it, but I cannot undo it.

My mistakes are mine & I will begin a
searching & fearless moral inventory.

I will write down my wrongs,
but I will also include that which is good.

I pray for the strength to complete the task.

Amen

RECOVERY MEDITATIONS

To help you understand what the Scriptures say about the personal inventorying of our lives,

·  Numbers 23:18-24

·  Deuteronomy 30:15-20

·  Psalm 61:1-8

·  Proverbs 5:3-6

·  Proverbs 16:2,3

·  Isaiah 54:4-8

·  Matthew 11:27-30

·  Matthew 23:23-28

·  Luke 12:1-6

·  Romans 13:11-14

·  Acts 17:23-28

·  I Corinthians 4:19, 20

·  Galatians 6:3-5

·   James 4:7-10

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When Things Are Tough

These times are hard but challenge and adversity can push people toward their own greatness.  It can launch you on a deeper personal journey toward happiness, fulfillment, and a life of meaning.  As you look at ways to gather strength and improve self-esteem, remember it is not so much about what you have, but who you are:

Broke Is Not Broken

Being broke is not the same thing as being broken, losing money is not the same as being lost, and finding your balance is not something you can do on a balance sheet.

Having Less Doesn’t Mean You Are Less

Don’t confuse having less with being less, having more with being more, or what you have with who you are.

Savor Life and Slow Down

          When you are in a hurry, go slowly.  The faster you go in life the sooner it is a blur.

Prayer Creates a New Path

          Prayer creates a path where there is none and turns your stumbling blocks into building blocks.

Courage Is Not Absence of Fear

Put your faith, and not your fears, in charge.  Courage isn’t the absence of fears but how you wrestle with them.

Embrace the Future

If you are busy hugging the past, you can’t embrace the future.  Don’t let the past kidnap your future.

Change Is the Only Constant

This too shall pass.  Change is the only constant.  In order to take a breath, you must release your breath.

Make a Difference

Do what you can, but never forget that letting go is very different from giving up.  Of all the things you can make in life, remember that you make all the difference in your life.

Embrace Happiness

Tough times do not require you to be tough on yourself.  Find the courage to embrace happiness.

You Are Great

          Things don’t have to be good for you to be great.

Prayer of commitment to GOD:

Dear Jesus,

Thank YOU for making me and loving me,

even when I ignored you and gone my own way. 

I realize I need You in my life

and I’m sorry for my past behavior. 

I ask You to forgive me. 

As much as I know how, I want to follow You from now on.

Please come into my life and

make me a new person inside. 

I accept Your gift of salvation. 

Please help me to grow now as a Christian.

Amen.

* As you make your requests known to the Lord, include:

·        greater personal discipline,

·        worldwide persecuted Christians,

·        Hedge of protection to our children

·        Blessings to our spouses

·        Godly men in Government

·        Rest and Peace to our pastors

·        Your activities for the day.

Love One Another

Stand Together

Fight this war, no matter the cost

Pray for our children

Turn our hearts toward heaven

Seek to be one nation under God.

God Bless and Guide You in your Christian Walk Today

“The Lord bless you and keep you,
the Lord make his face shine upon you
and be gracious to you;
the Lord turn his face toward you
and give you peace.”
-- Numbers 6:24-27

You can help when no one else can."
  -- c. 2001, Alcoholics Anonymous, page 89
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