The Power of Addiction, The Freedom of Recovery

Today I am joined by my good friend, Melissa Weimer. Melissa is a wife, mother, and the ministry leader of Celebrate Recovery at Covenant Fellowship Baptist Church. During this episode, Melissa shares her encouraging redemption story, starting with how she began spiraling into addiction at a young age and how that carried into her early years of marriage and parenting. As you listen, I think you will see that Melissa’s story is Jesus’ story.

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Show Highlights

Our backgrounds can propel us into addiction.

Family addiction can be a potential catalyst for adulthood addiction.
Not having repercussions or consequences can escalate the problem.

What can keep us in our addictions and away from God and His grace?

Fear of God and His displeasure in us can make us walk away from Him.
Denial of our problems prolongs our descent into addiction.
Thinking we have everything under control makes us resist help.

What propels us into action about our addiction?

Hitting rock bottom can make us realize our need to be saved.
Realizing the hurt that we have put others through can fuel our desire for change.
Realizing that we have no control over our lives allows us to ask for help.

What is Celebrate Recovery?

A 12-step program with 8 biblical principles that help us dig into who we are and why we seek out certain addictions continually. The program gives us tools to break the cycle and find our identity and worth in Christ.
The program is about finding our identity in Christ and not in our problem.
The program is about connecting with others and finding healing through support and confession.

We are not our addictions!

We all have issues, but we should not be defined by them.
Christ is continually working in us.
Defining ourselves by our addictions shortchanges Christ’s power in us.

What are the effects of recovery?

For the individual:

There will always be trust issues that you will have to endure. See them as a way to celebrate and show others that you have nothing to hide anymore.
Hold tight to your identity in Christ as you pursue sobriety, grace, peace, and happiness.
Become involved in a church and give back to others.

For the family: