Attraction Versus Promotion

Devotional guides to help strengthen your walk in Christ

Attraction Versus Promotion

Postby Okami_Kunoichi » Tue Apr 13, 2010 9:51 am

I am a recovering alcoholic/addict as well as other things. One of the traditions of the program I have is that we are always to maintain a level of "Attraction versus Promotion". The concept is that to remember that we cannot force another addict or alcoholic to recover.

It also goes true for non-believers who have another type of disease. We are unable to have them make the choice to recover either.

Any alcoholic and addict in recovery can tell you its not just "not drinking or using" that heals you. The drugs and bottles are only a symbol of what we are trying to avoid and run from. Just like for believers...one time praying to Jesus to enter our lives is not our walk. The walk is daily, so is the reliance and strengthening in our faith.

I often find myself with non-believers and others not in recovery and i truly find myself at times pushing my recovery onto them. I say recovery because well, its all recovery in a way.

I find that when they see the way of life that I have, the serenity or peace that I have as a result of my recovery/walk, they sometimes ask me, how they can have it too. It then allows a door to be open to share with them MY experiences and how I have gotten where I am today. I am very careful to not shove onto them what i feel THEY should do. Regardless if I know my way is far more healthier.

Scripture to contemplate: Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come. All are yours, and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's. (1 Cor. 3:21-23)
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Postby acgifford » Tue Apr 13, 2010 11:25 am

Yes. Recovering from a sin can be hard. Through Jesus is the only way that we can get away from these things.
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Postby Okami_Kunoichi » Tue Apr 13, 2010 11:58 am

Yep. The thing is though and my point to this devotional...is that like an alcoholic uses beer to run from his/her problems, we often use things to run as well.

Its also a point to remember we are ALL in recovery both from sin and whatever else we deal with. To try and force others to join in our recovery is usually going to be met with resistance, if instead we let them come to us, then they are in a place to hear.
Some of us have taken very hard knocks to realize - Job or no job, relationships or no relationships - we simply do not stop drinking/using/(insert here), so long as we place dependence upon other people ahead of our dependence on God.
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Postby acgifford » Tue Apr 13, 2010 12:10 pm

^^ Yup!
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Postby Etoh*the*Greato » Tue Apr 13, 2010 2:52 pm

Very awesome sentiment, Okami. We can find inspiration and analogue to our walk in many places, and I think where you've found yours is perhaps one of the most important places.
"I do not feel obliged to believe that that same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forego their use." - Galileo Galilei
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Postby Okami_Kunoichi » Tue Apr 13, 2010 6:09 pm

Etoh,

thank you very much for honoring me by reading this. I actually wrote this in a moment of inspiration as I was reading over a book for my recovery. As weird as this may sound, I did not find my relationship with God in church...in fact I was spiritually abused within a church and outside church. I found my relationship with God through the doors of the programs I am in and in recovery. I hope someone on this site can relate to what I am speaking about hopefully.

Thank you for reading :)
Some of us have taken very hard knocks to realize - Job or no job, relationships or no relationships - we simply do not stop drinking/using/(insert here), so long as we place dependence upon other people ahead of our dependence on God.
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