power – Reaching Hurting Women Ministries

REACHING HURTING WOMEN MINISTRIES OFFERS FOUR THEMES FOR CONTEMPLATION EVERY MONTH OF THE YEAR.

EACH OF THE POWER-PACKED THEMES ARE A 12-MONTH STUDY SERIES ASSIGNED TO A SPECIFIC FRIDAY OF EVERY MONTH BEGINNING IN JANUARY. IN MONTHS WITH FIVE FRIDAYS I’LL BE REVIEWING TOUCHING INSPIRATIONAL MUSIC. COME ALONG. LET’S LEARN SOME NEW THINGS TOGETHER!

For my addiction recovery work this year I’m going through The Twelve Gifts of Life Recovery by Stephen Arterburn and David Stoop. On the third Friday of each month in 2021 I will be sharing the blessings God brings us to honor our choices and encourage our recovery journey. This is the second column in this series. Today we are learning about the gift of Power.

We admitted we were powerless over our problems and that our lives had become unmanageable. ~ STEP 1

I know that nothing good lives in me… I want to do what is right, but I can’t. ~ Romans 7:18

We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. ~ Step 2

God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. ~ Philippians 2:13

The gift of power comes when we recognize and admit that we truly are powerless over our dependencies. In a sense that admitting brings relief because we realize it’s not our power that will keep us from falling into temptation, strengthen our walk or find our freedom.

“As we cease striving and begin to acknowledge in prayer the gift of God’s power in our lives, we experience growth in our recovery.” THE TWELVE GIFTS OF LIFE RECOVERY

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. ~ 2 Timothy 1:7

Sure we have a responsibility to make wise choices with regards to friends, media input, behaviors and environment to avoid potential trigger points. But ultimately, it is the gift of God’s power that will give us the ability to say no to the temptation triggers.

So beware if you think it could never happen to you, lest your pride becomes your downfall. ~ 1 Corinthians 10:12

The minute we think we’ve got this recovery life all figured out and can withstand temptations, that’s when we have stepped out onto the slippery slope that will most assuredly lead to a relapse. The gift of power must be protected! Our life recovery journey must be guarded at all cost.

By His divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. ~ 2 Peter 1:3

In time God’s gift of power will flow over into other areas as this life recovery journey becomes stronger. Soon we have more confidence to help others in their recovery walk as well. God’s power gift keeps working in and through all we do.

Meditate on the lyrics below and then take a few minutes to soak in the music video by Elevation Worship. Blessings… Tamara

“My weakness is hidden within your glory. Jesus my strength is in you The odds are against me . But you are for me Jesus. My strength is in you.”

If you’re a ‘Baby Boomer’ like me you may remember the old game show called I’ve Got a Secret. The show aired from 1952-1967 and was one of my parent’s favorites. The format was simple: while the secret flashed on the TV screen for the viewing audience, four panelists took turns questioning the person with the secret to determine exactly what the secret was. A nominal financial award was given to a contestant whose secret could not be guessed by the panel. It was always funny to hear the questions the panel would ask trying to guess the secret.

I write today about secrets because as a recovering addict I have a past of many secrets. Not that my past is still a secret today, but when I was walking in sin and addiction, my life was full of secrets. Sometimes too many to keep up with. Secrets stacked upon lies and lies stacked upon secrets. It was a veritable house of cards that when finally collapsed was actually a relief.

If you’re a woman who struggles with addiction you know the burden of secrets. Satan, our enemy, knows the power of those secrets. His job is to keep us from uncovering our secrets. As long as the secret is hidden it has power over us. The enemy will tell us we shouldn’t tell anyone our secret because they will hate us. He’ll try to tell us that even God hates us because of our secret. The longer we keep the secret the worse it gets. In fact, nothing will get better until the secret is out in the open.

The key is to find a trusted friend or counselor with whom we can share our secret; go to her for prayer and support. Confessing our secret starts the healing process and removes the power of darkness over our lives. You’d be surprised how understanding others will be once you begin to share with them your struggle.

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. — James 5:13-16 NIV

The power of hidden behaviors and secrets can work for us as well as against us. David said, “I have hidden your [God’s] word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” If we hide God’s Word in our hearts by meditating on it and memorizing it we will find a new transforming power that will keep our minds and hearts pure. Jesus taught, “But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father secretly. Then your Father, who knows all secrets, will reward you.”

Secrets have a way of being exposed. Let’s use our ability to keep secrets for prayer and meditation. Unlike the game show contestants where the panel is guessing the secret, we will see an unbelievable new power, a power of Light, being exposed in our lives drawing ourselves and others to The Source of our secret.