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Month: October 2022

Freedom from Perfection

Author’s Note: Today is a first. Today, I’ve got a guest writer – My wonderful wife Barb. Thanks for writing Barb!   The house was clean, the kids were playing quietly, I had a beautiful table set and dinner smelled delicious. We were just waiting for the guest to arrive. The doorbell rang, and as…
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Mullets and Addiction

But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.  James 1:14-15 Back in my teenage years I had a mullet. My mom wanted me to cut it for my…
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Do I Still Have Cravings?

But each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. James 1:14 After eight years of sobriety, I’m occasionally asked if I still struggle with cravings for my old pills. Particularly when I speak of the power that drugs once had over me, others want to know if some…
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This is God’s Fault

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. James 1:13 In my addiction, I prayed for God to take away my self-destructive appetite for pills. My idea of faith and recovery was that I would ask…
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Five Dollars at a Dime Store

The sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits. James 1:11 When I was four or five years old, my older siblings and I went to stay with my grandparents on their…
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Debate Team or Wrestling Team?

But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. James 1:6-8…
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Croutons of Wisdom

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. James 1:5 Recently, I found myself at our small-town grocery store searching for croutons. I’ve been in the store a hundred times, but I’ve never bought croutons before, so I had no…
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Muscle Growth Comes Only Through Stress

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. James 1:2-3 As I’ve mentioned previously, I truly enjoy going to the gym. I love competing with my buddies, but I also enjoy the process of personal growth. At the gym, I’m…
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Never Meet Your Heroes

Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Hebrews 13:7 I recently met someone who’d heard of me before we met. When I introduced myself, he asked If I was that one doctor who’d recovered from an addiction and…
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There Are Worse Things than Treatment or Jail

For he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5-6 In the throes of my addiction, I knew I needed treatment. I didn’t want to go though. Treatment seemed like a…
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