[00:00:00] Welcome to the Recovery Bible, Deciding to Surrender. Read Joshua 23, 6-16. Be ye therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the Law of Moses, that ye turn not aside there from from to the right hand or to the left, that ye come not among these nations,
[00:00:25] these that remain among you, neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow yourselves unto them. But cleave unto the Lord your God, as ye have done unto this day. For the Lord hath driven out from before you great nations and strong. But as for you,
[00:00:50] no man hath been able to stand before you unto this day. One man of you shall chase a thousand. For the Lord your God, he it is that fights for you, as he has promised you. Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the Lord your God. Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the
[00:01:14] remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and shall make marriages with them, and go in unto them, and they to you. Know for a certainty that the Lord your God will no more drive out any of these nations from before you. But they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which the Lord your God has
[00:01:43] given you. And behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth. And you know in all your hearts, and in all your souls, that not one thing has failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spake concerning you. All are come to pass unto you, and not one thing has failed thereof. Therefore it shall
[00:02:09] come to pass, that as all good things are come upon you, which the Lord your God promised you. So shall the Lord bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the Lord your God has given you. 16. When ye have transgressed the covenant of the Lord your God,
[00:02:33] which he commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed yourselves to them, then shall the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land which he has given unto you. Step 3. God, I offer myself to thee, to build with me, and to do with me as thou wilt.
[00:03:00] Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do thy will. Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help of thy power, thy love, and thy way of life. May I do thy will always. Prayer. Lord, I am sick of trying to run my own messed-up life.
[00:03:25] Please take over or make me into a healthy and loving person who can serve you. Step 3 is an affirmative step. It is time to make a decision. In the first two steps we became avar of our condition, and accepted the idea of a power greater than ourselves. Although we began to know and trust this power, we may find it difficult to think of allowing God to be totally in charge of our lives.
[00:03:52] However, if the alternative is facing the loss of something critical to our existence, such as family, job, health, or sanity, God's guidance might be easier to accept. Right now our lives may have many beautiful and rewarding relationships which are being ruined by our addictive or compulsive behaviour.
[00:04:16] We must not be discouraged by these discoveries. Our healing work continues in step 4, where we identify our dysfunctions. Remember, it takes relentless courage to search out our weaknesses and turn everything over to God for healing. As we surrender our lives and stop carrying the burdens of our past, we will begin to feel better about ourselves. The more we learn to trust in the Lord,
[00:04:44] the more we will trust ourselves and extend that trust to others. Our decision to choose God's way will restore us to fullness of life. As we free ourselves from our negative behaviours, we will deal more effectively with the daily routine of our lives. Our impatience and irritability disappear as we come to know His love and yearn to share it with others. Our lives transform into a
[00:05:13] lived-out relationship with God and we will become the persons He meant for us to be, workers in His kingdom. Friends in recovery. Friends in recovery.