Have you ever been proposed to or proposed to someone? Remember that feeling of making a commitment to someone else? Maybe it was an oath or a pledge as a young man or woman. Or like me at seventeen years old when I said this “I William Gaspard do solemnly swear that I will defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to the regulations and the uniform code of military justice. So help me God.” When I joined the Marine Corps they shared with me three core values.
Honor
Courage
Commitment
I would love to tell you that I lived those values in my life since the day I took that oath, but we all know better than that. The value I want to challenge you with is engage or commitment. The Marine Corps says, that "Commitment is the spirit of determination and dedication found in motive. It leads to the highest order of discipline for individuals and units. It is the ingredient that enables 24 hour a day dedication to Corps and Country. It inspires the unrelenting dedication to achieve a standard of excellence in every endeavor." That is my prayer for all who are at this step in the journey to recover. If you have a repentant heart then you are ready to engage the Word of God.
In the 1st chapter of Joshua, God speaks to him and says three times be strong and courageous. Why three times? Was he worried? Maybe God just wanted to make sure Joshua got it. God also tells Joshua “Study this book of instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.” Joshua 1:8 -The Word of God is one of the most powerful things in the universe and when you engage it the way God explains to Joshua it will change your life. Do you want results? Do you want to succeed in all that you do? Engage the Word of God and you will. God says so. God spoke light into the world, he spoke the heavens and the earth into being and he breathed a soul into mans nostrils. The Word of God has been called living water and the sword of the spirit among many other things. “The word was with God and the word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through him. The word gave life to everything that was created, and brought light to everyone.” John 1:1-4
By: Bill A. Gaspard, Life Recovery Coach, BCBC
For more information on recovery coaching visit our website
http:/billagaspard.com/
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Christ-Our Cornerstone
Peter and John caused a little trouble for themselves one day speaking to the people, there were 3000 believers at this time during the Acts of the Apostles. Peter had just healed a crippled beggar and some of the high priests and Sadducees wanted an explanation of this healing. We pick it up in Acts 4: When they asked Peter & John, “By what power or what name did you do this?’’ Then Peter filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is the stone you builders rejected, has now become the cornerstone."
This part about the cornerstone that Peter is talking about was an Old Testament prophesy in Psalm 118:22. Isaiah says this, “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed.” Isaiah 28:16 This is foundational work we are talking about here and as your Recovery Coach I want you to get this, I pray you get it. At the core of your being! If Christ is the Cornerstone of our foundation then reconciliation with God is our goal. God doesn’t force us to come home; he just patiently waits for us to get there. This is the hope and faith written about in Hebrews 11:1 “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we can’t see.” There is a solution. In step two of the 12 steps we come to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity and then in step three we made a decision to turn our will and our life over to the care of God. The “Big Book of AA” refers to a man who Tumbled out of bed fell to his knees and felt overwhelmed by a conviction of the presence of God.” He stood in the presence of infinite power and love, “thus, was our friends cornerstone fixed in place. Pg 56 AA. A few pages later it says “This is the how and the why of it. First of all, we had to quit playing God. It didn’t work. Next we decided that hereafter in the drama of life; God was going to be our Director. He is the Principal; we are his agents. He is the Father, and we are his children. Most good ideas are simple, and this concept was the keystone of the new and triumphant arch through which we passed to freedom.” Big Book, AA pg 62. I honestly do not spend much time in the big book or at secular recovery meetings but I respect the 12 steps from a biblical perspective and believe that the values of the 1st three steps (honesty, hope, faith) built by the foundational work by insuring that our Cornerstone (Christ) and our Keystone (God) is properly in place will tell us if our building of recovery will crumble or stand.
The right foundation is the solution: Paul writes, “But now God has shown us a way to be made right with Him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ, and this is true for everyone who believes no matter who we are. For everyone sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God with undeserved kindness declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty of our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin.” Romans 3:21-25 This portion of scripture sets the foundation, gives us a clear solution and explains why Jesus died on the cross. If we have a Repentant Heart, have Engaged the Word of God. Have been honest about what we have done when we were in charge of our life, then we are ready to fix the Cornerstone of our new building in place. We are setting the foundation of recovery. We are the building and we house the Holy Spirit, He lives in us. There is much work to do; we must rebuild the temple of God for God. Working the first three steps of recovery is crucial to your foundation, work with someone who has a solid foundation. A solid sponsor, accountability partner, or life recovery coach can help you get the results you are looking for.
By Bill A. Gaspard, Life Recovery Coach
For mor information on Recovery Coaching visit our website at http://www.christianrecoverycoaching.com/ or email me at billa.gaspard@live.com
This part about the cornerstone that Peter is talking about was an Old Testament prophesy in Psalm 118:22. Isaiah says this, “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed.” Isaiah 28:16 This is foundational work we are talking about here and as your Recovery Coach I want you to get this, I pray you get it. At the core of your being! If Christ is the Cornerstone of our foundation then reconciliation with God is our goal. God doesn’t force us to come home; he just patiently waits for us to get there. This is the hope and faith written about in Hebrews 11:1 “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we can’t see.” There is a solution. In step two of the 12 steps we come to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity and then in step three we made a decision to turn our will and our life over to the care of God. The “Big Book of AA” refers to a man who Tumbled out of bed fell to his knees and felt overwhelmed by a conviction of the presence of God.” He stood in the presence of infinite power and love, “thus, was our friends cornerstone fixed in place. Pg 56 AA. A few pages later it says “This is the how and the why of it. First of all, we had to quit playing God. It didn’t work. Next we decided that hereafter in the drama of life; God was going to be our Director. He is the Principal; we are his agents. He is the Father, and we are his children. Most good ideas are simple, and this concept was the keystone of the new and triumphant arch through which we passed to freedom.” Big Book, AA pg 62. I honestly do not spend much time in the big book or at secular recovery meetings but I respect the 12 steps from a biblical perspective and believe that the values of the 1st three steps (honesty, hope, faith) built by the foundational work by insuring that our Cornerstone (Christ) and our Keystone (God) is properly in place will tell us if our building of recovery will crumble or stand.
The right foundation is the solution: Paul writes, “But now God has shown us a way to be made right with Him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ, and this is true for everyone who believes no matter who we are. For everyone sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God with undeserved kindness declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty of our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin.” Romans 3:21-25 This portion of scripture sets the foundation, gives us a clear solution and explains why Jesus died on the cross. If we have a Repentant Heart, have Engaged the Word of God. Have been honest about what we have done when we were in charge of our life, then we are ready to fix the Cornerstone of our new building in place. We are setting the foundation of recovery. We are the building and we house the Holy Spirit, He lives in us. There is much work to do; we must rebuild the temple of God for God. Working the first three steps of recovery is crucial to your foundation, work with someone who has a solid foundation. A solid sponsor, accountability partner, or life recovery coach can help you get the results you are looking for.
By Bill A. Gaspard, Life Recovery Coach
For mor information on Recovery Coaching visit our website at http://www.christianrecoverycoaching.com/ or email me at billa.gaspard@live.com
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