Lesson 21 - Relapse

 Relapse

Principle 7: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and to gain the power to follow His will.

Step 11: Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and power to carry that out.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.” (Colossians 3:16)

Introduction

We are going to look specifically at how to maintain the momentum of your recovery. Therefore, tonight we are going to talk about how you can prevent RELAPSE.

Jas 1:13-15 When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; (14) but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. (15) Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

1. Tempted when we are “dragged away by our own evil desire and enticed”. (No sin yet).

2. “After desire is conceived, it gives birth to sin.”

3. “Sin, full grown, gives birth to death.”

1Co 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

When are we presented with the way out?

Gal 5:24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

How do we “crucify the flesh with its passions and desires?

2Co 10:4-5 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. (5) We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

When we take the way out, we are producing perseverance.

Jas 1:2-4 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, (3) because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. (4) Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

A Temptation is either an enticement, or a test. And testing of our faith is an opportunity to show our godly character to the world around us.

Preventing Relapse

Tonight’s acrostic is RELAPSE:

Reserve a daily quiet time

Evaluate

Listen to Jesus

Alone and quiet time

Plug in to God’s power

Slow down

Enjoy your growth

R – (Principle 7) Reserve a Daily Quiet Time With God for Self-Examination, Bible Reading, and Prayer in Order to Know God and His Will for my Life and Gain the Power to Follow His Will.

Mark 14:38 tells us: “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”

Perseverance (gaining the power to follow His will) when experiencing temptation comes through spending time with God ahead of time.

Remember, being tempted isn’t a sin. It’s falling into the action of the temptation that gets us into trouble.

Eph 4:26-27 "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, (27) and do not give the devil a foothold.

E – Step 10: Evaluate

Romans 12:3–17: “Be honest in your estimate of yourselves.… Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Love each other.… Be patient in trouble.… Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honest clear through.”

Evaluate your stance. Are you will prepared to withstand the temptations that we all know are coming our way. What are your chances. This list will give you a good indication.

L – Listen to Your Higher Power, Jesus Christ.

“Test everything that is said to be sure it is true, and if it is, then accept it” (1 Thessalonians 5:21, TLB).

How do you know that what you are hearing is true? How do you know that what I am telling you about recovery is true. There is only one bar to measure our words against, and that is the Word of God.

But still, knowing that is not enough. You have to know it yourselves in order to test it.

Psalm 1:1–3 (GNB) tells us: “Happy are those who … find joy in obeying the Law of the Lord, … they study it day and night. They are like trees that grow beside a stream, that bear fruit at the right time.”

A – Alone and Quiet Time

This acrostic goes along with L – Listen. We can hear Him best when we set aside time to be with Him, and opportunity to hear.

Psalm 46:10 God tells us to “be still, and know that I am God.”

P – Plug in to God's Power Through Prayer

Philippians 4:6, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs and don’t forget to thank him for his answers.”

Heb 4:14-16 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. (15) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet he did not sin. (16) Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

How do you approach God's throne of grace? Through prayer.

S – Slow Down Long Enough to Hear God's Answer

“Listen to me. Keep silence and I will teach you wisdom!” (33:33, TLB).

The S goes right along with the L – Listen and A – Quiet Time.

E – Enjoy Your Growth

You need to enjoy your victories. Rejoice in and celebrate the small successes along your road to recovery!

First Thessalonians 5:16 (GNB) tells us to “be joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus.”

One of the ways we do that at CR is through Chips, that measure milestones. Everyone get's a chance to celebrate with you.

Share your victories, no matter how small, with others in your group. Your growth will give others hope!

Wrap-up

Here are some things to do to prevent relapse:

1. Pray and read your Bible daily. Establish a specific time of day to have your “quiet time.”

2. Make attending your recovery meeting a priority. Stay close to your support team. If you find yourself saying, “I’m too busy to go to Celebrate Recovery tonight,” make time. Flee from whatever you are doing and come share your recovery.

3. Spend time with your family if they are safe. If they are not, spend time with your church family. We are going to have Celebrate Recovery every Friday night throughout the holidays. You do not have to be alone this holiday season.

4. Get involved in service. Volunteer! You don’t have to wait until you get to Principle 8 to start serving.