What is Celebrate Recovery?
I am often asked the question, “What is this Celebrate Recovery all about?”. People assume automatically that it is all about Drugs and Alcohol. That is a HUGE misconception. Actually only about 30% of the people in the CR program struggle with drugs and alcohol. The majority of issues are in many different areas. Some come to Celebrate Recovery for help with struggles in life from anger, overeating, low self esteem to just finding ways to remove the obstacles that keep them from getting closer to God. We all have something in our lives that we need to deal with. Sorry, but it’s true, and to deny that is the other thing we come to CR for. I have learned so much in the past two (2) years about how closely Celebrate Recovery is related to our basic pursuit of a Christian lifestyle. Before we can ever have a true relationship with Christ, we must deal with the things that we still try to control, the areas of our lives that we are not willing to let God control. I truly believe that Celeb
Celebrate Recovery is a nationwide recovery program based on God’s Word, the Bible. Christ began His sermon on the mount by stating eight ways to be happy, commonly referred to as “The Beatitudes.” These eight principles are God’s road to recovery, wholeness, growth and spiritual maturity. Celebrate Recovery holds weekly “Open Meetings” on Wednesday nights. We have a lesson and a period of open sharing focusing on the 12-step recovery process.
Celebrate Recovery is a program adopted from a church in California called Saddleback Valley Church. John Baker, a believer who struggles with alcoholism, found help through Alcoholics Anonymous and began healing. He found emptiness at AA because he could not refer to his personal Higher Power, Jesus Christ. He presented a plan to start a Christian 12 Step Recovery program to his pastor, Rick Warren. Pastor Rick said, “Do it!” John did and Celebrate Recovery was born. Celebrate Recovery is based on God’s Word, the Bible. When Jesus taught the Sermon on the Mount, He began by stating eight ways to be happy. Today we call them the “Beatitudes”. From a secular standpoint, these statements don’t make sense but when you realize what Jesus is saying, you’ll realize that these eight principles are God’s road to recovery, wholeness, growth and spiritual maturity.
