The Greatest Recovery Program of All
As you know the ROC Recovery Center is a Christ-centered recovery program that offers men, women, and youth everything they need to succeed on a journey to freedom and long-term sustainable sobriety.
In making Christ at the center of our recovery, we see that all things come from His teachings. The freedom from bondage of addiction is just another one of His many gifts. But that doesn’t mean the road isn’t going to be met with an occasional obstacle or two.
ROC Recovery Center offers an approach in cleaning up the wreckage of our past that is free from shame and judgement so we can be free from addiction.
Step #1: We Admitted That We Were Powerless Over Alcohol—That Our Lives Had Become Unmanageable
The bible says:
“I know, O LORD, that the way of human beings is not in their control, that mortals as they walk cannot direct their steps”
Jeremiah 10:23
David faced this dilemma many times in his life as well. In Psalms 38:4 David admitted that he, too, was overwhelmed by sin when he writes:
“For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.”
Even the Apostle Paul described his own struggle with sin and his need for God’s deliverance when he wrote in Romans 7:24-25:
“What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
Step #2: We Came to Believe That a Power Greater Than Ourselves Could Restore Us to Sanity
Hebrews 11:6 tells us, “He who comes to God must believe that He exists and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”
So, in Step 2 we are urged to acknowledge that recovery depends on “a power greater than ourselves.” To fully understand our dependence on God, we must examine our human sinful condition. We read in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
We have all sinned. We have all done things that are displeasing to God. There is no one who is innocent, therefore, since all have sinned, God designed a plan for man’s redemption. In Romans 6:23, we read:
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
There is a way out! The Lord reveals this as we continue to read verse 23: “But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Furthermore, in Romans 5:8, we see just how much God loves us:
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
But wait, there’s more!
Step #3: We Made a Decision to Turn Our Will and Our Lives Over to the Care of God As We Understood Him
How do I apply this step? In Romans 10:9, we read that this gift is free to anyone who seeks it.
“If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Romans 10:13 says it again, “for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins and rescue us from eternal death. Salvation, the forgiveness of sins, is available to anyone who will trust in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Addiction doesn’t often have a direct cause-and-effect relationship to the person struggling with addiction. Not only will we have to expose our own shortcomings (sins), but we also have to examine and address the damage caused personally to us by the behaviors of others.
In other words, sometimes bad things do happen to us because we live in a world where man has free will to choose. This is when we offer to God our will, so that hopefully we will get to that moment to walk and live in complete forgiveness. One of Christ’s greatest teachings is forgiveness. This applies to us forgiving ourselves for our past mistakes, as well as forgiving others. This is why we celebrate the Life of Christ from death to resurrection. We live today because He lives.
We all can grow, change, and become what God has called us to be; however, we are not going to be able to do this unless we can let go of the past.
Christ’s forgiveness extends to people struggling with addiction as well. And when you make the decision to leave that life behind, the judgement that you might expect won’t be found in a Christ centered recovery program.
