Shadow of Turning

Change is not easy.  Staying the same requires little effort for the individual.  Is there a change in your life that you feel yourself being drawn to, but have not yet taken that leap of faith?

Every good and perfect gift

The power to make lasting change is a divine gift that you can begin to receive from your Higher Power.  Taking that first step forward allows the process of change to begin in your life.  Whether you are reaching for recovery for the very first time, in need of forgiveness or to forgive others, or looking for the next best path, choosing change will move you in the direction you need to go.

I would like to end today with a Scripture from James 1:17.  (Pardon the King’s English:)

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

Contentment for content

The spiritual concept of contentment is not a popular one.  The idea of being okay with what you have and then grateful for it as a blessing from above is not the norm.

In everything give thanks

I have not attained to this concept, but I do believe in its important in understanding gratitude and in living the recovered life.  I do not know how to give thanks in every situation, but if you can ask for grace to try, it may lead you in ways you never imagined.

With a grateful heart

Our ability to reach beyond our current place to new heights is the content needed to move toward contentment. What ways can you reach beyond in your current situation?

I am reminded of the author Richard Foster and his works on simplicity.  If you have not been introduced to the concept of simple living, I would encourage you to take a look into the idea.  Even if you decide it is not for you, it can challenge you to think about living in a different way than you had ever thought of before.  I would like to end today with a quote from him:

Stop trying to impress people with your clothes and impress them with your life.

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

It works if you work it

A twofold phrase that ends most recovery meetings

Keep coming back

Along with

It works if you work it

The it is what I would like to explore with you.  I strongly recommend a spiritual path to recovery grounded in a firm belief in a Higher Power.  Many will chose to work a different program, but I hope we will all agree on what is written below.

Consistency

The first quote listed in this blog keep coming back addresses this issue of having a consistent program.  Regular contact with supportive people is key: meetings, sponsors, counselors, case managers, clergy, family, and anyone  else you can get to help move you forward.  The more people supporting you the better.

Persistency

The second phrase it works if you work it speaks to several areas, but for this blog, it means it is not enough to simply go through the motions.  You can meet with everyone listed above and look as though you are playing the part.  Working it means that with every ounce of your heart and soul you are going to do move toward recovery today and tomorrow when you wake up; do that again. 

You really need to want this for yourself, not your parents, grandparents, your significant other, or your children.  Work it for you.

The next time a meeting ends and hear that important phrase.  I hope it means more to you.  I pray that you will be challenged to be more consistent and persistent in your path of recovery.

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

Harry Potter VS Higher Power

Can the current culture recognize the difference between the fictional writings of the Harry Potter book series of over the concept of Higher Power?

Purpose

My purpose in putting forth this question is not to degrade Harry Potter.  Each person must decide what they chose to read and what they choose is not for them. 

J.K. Rowling has stated that there is hidden Christian allegory in her books if you look for them.

Inquiry

This question first began to go through my thought process when I was helping my son study for a Biblical history test that he was preparing for at school.  While you do the best you can as a parent, I noticed some of his answers to my quizzing had nothing to do with history at all.  After getting over my feelings of have I failed as a parent, I began to notice a pattern of fictional replies to questions.  This is what lead me to wonder if my child’s generation, (that has always had media at their fingertips), know the difference in fiction and history.

Recovery focus

For those who read this blog that are in recovery, it is important that you know that the concept of Higher Power is not fiction.  You and I may disagree on who that Higher Power is, but meaningful recovery is aided by a healthy belief in a Power greater than ourselves.  If we reduce this to something as small as a piece of fiction, we lose an important part of our path on the road to recovery.

If you have been challenged by the concept of Higher Power in the past, I will encourage you not to give up on it too quickly.  Ask other people in recovery how they came to terms with the concept.  Don’t be afraid to ask for help.  We are all in this together.

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

Road Block

The sign that makes every driver cringe.  How long will this affect my arrival to my destination?  While road blocks are familiar to us on the tangible roads that we drive, sometimes they are not as noticeable on the unseen paths our life may take.

Do not pass GO

If you think back 5, 10, or even 20 years, your life may be very different than what you may have planned.  Part of that is how we handle the road blocks.  When you had setbacks, and everyone will, what did you do with them?  You can allow yourself to get your tires stuck in a rut or you can muster the bravery to take a detour.  Your detour may be very different than what you had planned for yourself, but it could be what your Higher Power had in mind for you the whole time.

Do not collect $200

Detours can be costly.  When that job does come immediately or the money you were hoping for takes wings away, we must be ready to turn these difficulties over.  Changes are never easy but always worth it.

Road Block ahead.  Turn around? Or face the detour?

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

The blessing and the curse

It seems unlikely for both a blessing and a curse to occur simultaneously.  In the life of the recovering alcoholic or addict this happens on a daily basis.  The dichotomy I am speaking of is the reality of cravings.

I do not need to speak much on the curse of cravings.  If you have suffered any type of addiction, you know the psychological and physiological cravings that come when the abstinence from a mood altering drug occurs. 

How you may ask could cravings be a blessing?

My answer is in many ways.

When you have cravings you feel something, which is better than an inability to feel anything at all.  This may seem small, but over the years I have met many with the lack of any feeling.

Cravings give you the opportunity to help others who have cravings.  This is an opportunity to help those who are earlier in their journey as a way to give back. 

Lastly, cravings remind us that there is One that greater that we must turn all of this over to if we hope to have any chance of victory in this life.

Blessing or curse, which one would you like have over to visit?

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

Plans I Have

There are days when words pass by and others when it seems like the words were written just for you in that very moment.  Scripture has a way of doing that for us.  The passage in question today is a familiar one, Jeremiah 29:11.

For I know the plans I have for you

This part of the verse has always jumped out to me when I read it.  So much so, that I kept this verse taped to my computer monitor at a previous employer (which shall remain nameless).  Let the person in recovery remember: God always has a plan.  It may not mesh with the plan you are considering, but their is always a plan.

Prosper you, Give you a hope and a future

I want that!  Not only does God give us hope for the future, but a plan that will prosper you. 

I need to be careful here because prosperity looks different from varying perspectives and each person’s timetable can be different.  Your door opening to go to college may require some sacrifice on the way to prosperity.  Maybe your prosperity will be spiritual, like a legacy of children or grandchildren who call you blessed.  I cannot tell you what this verse holds for you, but I can tell that God makes good on His promises to His people. 

Hold on to these promises and see what He has in store for you.

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

My Grandpa’s Prayers

As a child, we gathered every Saturday evening as a family.  We ate a wonderfully southern cooked meal that my late Grandma had cooked, but before the meal, my Grandpa prayed.

This was not the only time that he prayed.  He prayed in public when called on by church leaders.  He prayed in silent when he read his Bible along with “Our Daily Bread” in the morning.  I’m sure they were many other times that he prayed, but as a child, I knew not to progress with a meal until Grandpa prayed.

Bless the food

As a young person, blessing food seemed kind of an odd thing to do.  You knew it was going to taste good.  Looking back, I  can see that praying to bless is an act of gratitude.  Giving God the glory for the meal, not what we have done by our earthly means to achieve.

Give us the strength

This line in prayer also seemed foreign.  None of us were sick.  Context is important for this prayer.  Grandpa Roy had lived through the Great Depression and served our country in the Navy in the second World War.  He was a part of the greatest generation, but sadly, a generation of much death and loss.  Noting that this blessing of food would strengthen our bodies in context seems absolutely accurate.

Both of my Grandparents are gone now and Saturday dinner is a thing of the past, but I am forever grateful for the lessons I learned at that table.  Two people who chose to invest their heart and soul into mine with no desire for anything in return. I can still hear the voice of my Grandma say,

I love all of my Grandchildren…

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses . Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

Choose your own adventure

Long before Edward Packard wrote the popular paperback series that allowed you to choose the outcome of your story, our Higher Power had cross roads set up in our life were we would need to choose the next step.  This is our study on Day 45.

Left or Right?

Whatever decisions are before you, take the time you need to make the right choice.  Quick decisions may not be the best ones.

The Great Adventure

You may not feel like the life you are living right now is of great significance; take heart.  You are part of a grand design so big that neither myself or even the greatest scientist could fully explain the plan and purpose of the events to come before you.

There is a great adventure of life ahead that you would not believe if I could see into the future and tell you.

Have faith and you will not be disappointed!

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253

The Color of Envy

Perhaps you have heard of being green with envy.  It may describe how you feel at this moment.  We will discuss this on Day 44.

Origins

While Shakespeare gets credit for using the term, Greek poets before the time of Christ were using the phrase as well.  Regardless of its beginning, consider what envy can do to the soul.

Who’s Driving?

If we allow envy to take the driver’s seat, there is no place for gratitude and serenity to sit.  This will take us places that we normally would not go in a healthy, recovering state of mind.  We will act, say, and do things that we will regret and could lead to future needs for amends.

Do not let envy sow seeds of bitterness in your heart.  Take some time to turn envy over to your Higher Power when you first feel it taking a place in your thoughts.  Reach out to supportive people who will help you through these moments.

If we’re honest, we have all had envious times.  It is what you do with that green monster that matters.

Dan Davis is a licensed professional counselor in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is available for speaking and training of groups, schools, and businesses. Follow him on Twitter at @dand78

The devotional 45 days of Recovery in the Old Testament is available at:
http://www.amazon.com/45-days-Recovery-Old-Testament/dp/1470046253