I was lost and undone until I met His Son, when he reached down His hand for me. I will be a Christian in Recovery for 19 years. I don’t tell you this to boast in any way, because I certainly didn’t accomplish this miracle, God did. I’d tired every thing anyone could do and I couldn’t stop drinking. I drank a 40 oz. bottle every day of my life just to survive.
One day a Pastor friend who had listened to my sad tales of woe many times, confronted me in his office with not only what my problem was, but exactly what I hadn’t done about that problem. He forced me to look at myself and admit that I had tried everything else except prayer and that nothing had worked. Then he asked me if I really wanted to get some help? Did I really want to be sober bad enough, to ask God for His help? I was at a point in my life when I was beaten and ready to be finished being sick and tired, of being sick and tired. I answered in the affirmative and we knelt down by a chair in the Pastors office and he prayed for me.
Then I asked God, if there is a God, can I please have some help. I’ve tried to do this on my own and I can’t stay sober. Please come into my life and help me.This was without a doubt, the first time in my life that I had ever prayed in earnestness and honesty. (Oh! I had prayed often when I was in trouble, “God get me out of this mess and I’ll never do it again.” Of course I was lying through my teeth, I was no more out of that mess when I would be back out there trying to create another mess for myself. I don’t suppose any of you could ever relate to that, could you?) There were no great thunder clashes or lightening strikes. There was just a warm fuzzy feeling all around and over me.
I arose from my knees in tears, tears of joy. In that moment, I just knew in my heart of hearts that I didn’t have to drink any more. The compulsion, urges and desire to drink left me and I haven’t had a drink from that day to this. I’m not trying to tell you that my life has been rosy, and peaches and cream all this time. It hasn’t and God didn’t promise me that it would be. But it has gotten better a little each day, “One day at a time”. I have been able to grow in His Grace and enjoy my life with the forgiveness and respect of my family, who I lost through drinking and neglect. I even earned back the respect of friends and my employer.
Life isn’t always easy, but we need to learn to quit beating up on ourselves. If God can forgive us, why can’t we forgive ourselves and get on with working at being a better person, the kind of person God wants us to be. I don’t know about you, but I was a terrible person when I drank, mean and unpredictable. Jesus came into my heart and my life and He changed all that. I’m not the same person that I used to be. My sins are all covered by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ and I am forgiven. He reached away down for me. He took me out of the miry clay and set my feet on a solid rock.
I’m retired now, I’m not rich by any means, but I do have a pension to live on and Grandchildren to watch grow. When you hear a little four year old girl say to you “My love you Poppa”. If that doesn’t make your day, nothing will. I can assure you it lights my fire and so I am a grateful Christian, who will be in recovery until He calls me home. He has given me so much to be grateful for, everything I have is His, without Him I would have and be nothing. I try to live my life as an example to my family and friends. I’m not perfect by any means but I try to be the best person I can be.
I believe that daily prayer is the key to a successful Christian life. I start my day each morning in prayer, thanking Him for His Love and Grace in my life and asking for the presence of His Holy Spirit to be with me during my day. I ask that He use me to be a blessing to someone that day. I read at least three chapters from the word and then I start my daily routine. At night when I lay my head on the pillow, I thank Him for my day and ask for His blessing and His watch care over me during the night. To this point in my life, this is a daily program for living that has been successful for me. It has worked where nothing else did before and so I believe that I will continue to live my life in this manner, which I am sure is far more pleasing to God than the way I lived before.
In closing, my prayer for each Christian in Recovery, is that the God of your understanding, will be pleased to meet each of you at your point of need and grant you another 24 hrs.of Peace, Contentment, Sobriety and above all else, a true sense of Love and Devotion to Him who saved us all by His Grace.
God Bless,
~ Reg Bone