What's Holding You Back
A Process of Re-Connecting With God

HOLDING ON TO THE PAST It's a very interesting thing about this holding mentality. Holding information within a computer is quite acceptable. But within the human computer, known as the brain, it can chain one to the past. There are important things for you to remember from the past? not your past so much as the past explained in the Bible. The important thing is that you not rely on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5. Relying on what personally happened to you as bases for making meaningful decisions or to establish meaningful relationships is often disastrous. I am reminded of the saying "if you do the things that you've always done, you will get the things that you've always got." IS THERE A WAY OUT? I needed to be somewhere that I could talk out loud to God without the possibility of being overheard. I needed to work though my thoughts by writing down words and drawing pictures without anyone looking over my shoulder. I needed to be able to embrace whatever emotion I was feeling at the moment without anyone trying to console me. There is an abundance of "I need's" in the above statement. Those who are actively involved with recovery will quickly recognize the need to rely on the Word of God. SPIRITUAL STABILITY Gracious God, it seems that what most holds my attention are those things that produce feelings of pleasure, and people that I can see, touch, hear, and feel. Yet, in the moments of my day when my mind is still, my soul is quiet, and my breath is slow and even, I can detect a whiff of your presence. These precious times are all too infrequent; they slip away as my mind wonders here and there. The phone rings, my child cries, a colleague needs my assistance, or my mind just simply gets distracted. O God help me know that you are still present with me, even with all my distractions and interruptions. Help me appreciate those moments so much that I will make room in my life for more of them. When my mind goes astray grant me patience because I can't see, touch, hear, or feel you, let your love seep into me until my heart melts. Amen. 70 TIMES 7 Imagine a loved one. Now imagine an issue in which you felt betrayed by that person. Whether you really were betrayed doesn't matter. The important thing is that you felt betrayed. We often, don't see the full picture or have all the facts before we form a destructive mental picture. You could very easily have erred by thinking the worse. Never rely on your own understanding, or trust your perceptions by themselves. Forgiveness is a very important part of any relationship. Despite our best efforts, we will do things that hurt someone else, including ourselves. Luke writes about the second great command to love our neighbor as ourselves. Luke 10:27. There are three key points to remember: 1. Noting in the past can be undone 2. The future cannot be controlled 3. Today is all that matters Noting in the past can be undone. Oh yes, restitution can be made for past events, such as replacing property stolen or fixing items that were broken, but you can not undo the fact that the situation has occurred. However, you can learn from the past, but you can't live there anymore because at some point you must forget your understanding of these behaviors and how you viewed them, or you will always view and treat them as alive and ready to take over. Remember, all past mistakes have been forgiven. If you let go of the past and take care of your present need to forgive your self then the future is secure in the light of Christ. The future cannot be controlled. Promises are another way of swearing a resolution to do this or that, but how shallow and how pointless are these promises when we realize that there is no way we can guarantee what the future may hold for us. Yes, make goals; have dreams; have expectations, but don't cast blame when things don't unfold as planned. There should be nothing to forgive except that you allowed yourself to meander down the "prim-rose path" without a lamp to light your way. Plan for the future, but never cast blame if your expectations don't materialize. Today is all that matters. Failure to control the happenings of the past, generates hatred for what has happened and the fact that you have absolutely no control. This said, you should not allow yourself to be stressed or affected by events that may or may not happen in the future. This is mentally destructive. Today is the most wonderful day of your life because it gives you the opportunity to think, feel and appreciate what is right at your fingertips. The peace of living here and now will return to you. You will not create additional stress in life once you've let go of the past and stopped looking for answers in the illusion of tomorrow. Yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never happen. Living in the moment is the only place you'll ever be and it's all that matters. God Grant Me The Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know know the difference. Living one day at, enjoying one moment at a time, accepting hardships as the pathway to peace. Taking as He did, this sinful world, as it is, not as I would have it, trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His will; that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him forever in the next. Copyright 2008 by James Aquila, N.D., CAd. All rights reserved. Used by permission. Dr. Aquila, author/teacher is a gifted communicator. He has authored five books and several pamphlets on addictions and their effect on relationships. James is also writes the Celebrate Recovery, Exeter, Newsletter and writes articles for his web site http://www.alt-4-health.com