August 10th 2011 marks 4 years of sobriety for me. All I can say is WOW! It’s been a rollercoaster ride of emotional and spiritual revolution. My eyes have been opened to a myriad of new thoughts, opinions and feelings.  I realize now that I had clouded my judgement for so many years in a haze of anger and denial. The fog that I kept around me was actually my hiding place. I could sink down deep into whatever my drug of choice at the time was or into sex or pornography or even masturbation and then it was all about me. No one or nothing else mattered. And I hid this way for many years. And when I say many years, I mean close to thirty years.

So my physical being was well fed through addiction but my spiritual person was starving. God created each and every one of us as an individual but more importantly He fashioned us as  more than just a life form. He gave all of us a living being inside that is our spiritual person. Since God is a spirit (John 4:24) He had to creature us as spiritual beings also or else there would be no way for us to communicate with Him.

When my time came, this spiritual man cried out to God for help. And I am here to tell you that God almighty, creator of all heaven and earth, was right there waiting, arms wide open with forgiveness and grace, and ready for me to join in the Family of Christ!

Now my problem was why would God take me? Why would He love me after all I have done?

The answer is plain and clear. LOVE! God loves me. God loves you. He loves all his creation. And He wants to be a part of His creation’s life. It’s up to us to let Him. And He paved the way for us to do just that. Christ Jesus.

So, what do I have to offer God? What can I possibly give to Him?

First off there is all my sin. God has to wash all that away first so that we can come to Him. Christ came and shed His blood so that you and I could be forgiven our many short comings. Secondly there was all my junk. I was an addict in so many ways. But God wants to take all that too. There is nothing that you can give to God that He won’t take from you, clean it up, make it all shiny and new and then give it back to you 10 times, 100 times or even 1,000 times better than it was! I gave Him alcohol, he gave me back sanity. I gave Him drug addiction, he gave me back the love of my children. I reluctantly gave Him my rebellion, He gave me back a good job. I presented to Him pornography, He gave me back self-worth. I offered to Him the sin of masturbation and in return He gave me spiritual fulfilment. I gave anger, He gave joy and peace. I offered my unforgiveness, in return I was forgiven. I gave Him my life, He gave me back everlasting life.

For every vile thing I could give to God, He had a perfect gift to give back.  Won’t you do the same? Even the things you think that no body could possibly want, give them to God. Christ will receive you just the way you are and give back to you more than you can ever imagine!

A simple prayer can do it. If God has spoken to you through this message and you are ready to make a decision to follow Jesus, pray a simple prayer like this. In your own words tell God,

I know I have done wrong by you God, and I want to make it right. I know that you love me. I know that you sent your only son Jesus Christ to die for me so that I can live. Please forgive me of all my short comings and the sins of my past. Please clean me up and give me a new start. Right now I receive you into my heart as Lord and Savior. Help me to love and serve you with all my being. In Jesus name I pray, amen.

If you just prayed that prayer for the first time or just renewed your vow to God, you are “born again”. (John 3:3) That means you have a brand new life with God. Please seek out a Bible preaching church, a Christian counselor and /or a pastor that can lead you and guide you in the right direction. Becoming a Christian is only the beginning of an exciting journey that will take you through this lifetime and into the next.

If you don’t know where to turn, please leave me a comment and I will be more than happy to give you some Christian guidance. God’s blessings to you all and my prayer is for freedom for all who suffer from addiction!