Childlike wonder...it's a beautiful thing to watch as they notice things we as adults normally rush by...collecting different kinds of leaves, picking up rocks examining each one, digging for worms & squealing with delight when they see one wiggling...& the list goes on.

I was helping one of our grandsons build a snowman recently & watching him make tunnels through the snow, catching snowflakes in his mouth, throwing snow at Mamie (me) & was amazed at how it looked in my hair.  Then he exclaimed, "Let's build a snowman!" Then it came time for the finishing touches.  There weren't any branches around for Frosty's arms except for the new tree they planted in their front yard...the only tree in their front yard. 

I carefully broke off 2 tiny sticks for Frosty's arms.  Solomon was so proud of our creation with his raisin eyes & a pickle for his nose.  Next day our daughter called me & said, "Guess what Solomon did?  He broke off the whole tree to make bigger arms for Frosty! The wonder of a child...you can't help but smile!

And when I think about this childlike wonder & what makes me smile...it's not only the memories of my children & now the experiences with my grandchildren...but also the children God sends us in recovery.  Grown men & women who are experiencing new things for the first time, emotions that have been frozen for years, relationships being restored, being able to laugh for just the simplest of things or for no reason at all...just having fun with others in recovery....childlike wonder!

King David praises God in Psalm 8 for God's awesome creation.  Vs. 2 says, "Nursing infants gurgle choruses about you; toddlers shout the songs that drown out enemy talk, & silence atheist babble." Did you get that? The praise of children drowns out the enemy! So how important is my praise in spiritual warfare to drown out the lies of the evil one?!

Satan's best attack is to have discouragement come knocking at our door to pull us away from time with our God & allow doubt to move in.  We need to slow down & take time to praise God, take a child out in nature & watch how they respond to God's creation, watch a new child in recovery praise God in worship.  I love to journal the wonderful things He has done.  When we continually praise Him for the hope we have...the enemy is defeated!

Childlike wonder...I am reminded of the child that was born for us...the baby that changed everything!  Isa. 9:2,6-7 (MSG),

"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. For those who lived in a land of deep shadows---light! sunbursts of light!  For a child has been born for us!"

Share a story of wonder you have experienced with a child or somebody new in recovery.

What steps do you take when discouragement comes knocking at your door?

Mary~National Encourager Coach

Rick Renner has an interesting article in "Sparkling Gems" on how we should act when we are offended. One scholar translated Luke 17:1, "It is simply unthinkable that you would allow yourself to dream that you could live this life without an opportunity to become offended."

The Greek word for offense is skandalon from which we get the word scandal. This is a powerful picture!  Skandalon originally described the small piece of wood that was used to keep the door of an animal trap propped open.  A piece of food was placed inside the trap to lure the animal inside.  When the animal entered the trap and accidentally bumped the skandalon, or the small piece of wood, the skandalon collapsed, causing the trap door to slam shut & the animal to be caught inside with no way to escape.  We've had raccoons sneak into our henhouse & kill our chickens.  So we know all too well the skandalon!  It works like a charm.

In Luke 17:1, Jesus used the word skandalon to warn us about events that happen in life with the potential to trip us up. Sometimes Satan baits us with something---drawing us into a trap in which he knows we'll be offended.  When we bump into a moment of offense, the trap slams down shut---and like an animal that is trapped in a cage and can't get out, we suddenly find ourselves caught in a miserable situation, trapped in negative emotions!

An offense usually occurs when you see, hear, or experience a behavior that is so different from what you expected that it causes you to be shaken in your soul.  You may be so stunned by this failed expectation that you get distracted and lose your footing emotionally.  Your shock turns into disappointment, then turns into offense.  We've all experienced it, because people come from different backgrounds, wake up in bad moods, have a bad day at work, may not feel physically well and the list goes on.

We must strive to communicate with people in a way they can understand what we are trying to say.  You will be surprised how many times they don't get it, what you are saying or meant to say.  People hear things through the filter of a host of hurts, hang-ups, & habits they've lived & their interpretation of our actions and words may be different from our original intention.

As leaders in CR, we are held to a higher standard to bring healing and restoration whenever misunderstanding and offense occurs.  If you learn that you have offended someone else, go to them immediately and take the mature path and ask for forgiveness.  Don't get defensive, just apologize and move forward.  The devil doesn't like anything better than to cause strife between people. It's a great scheme of his to stifle service in CR by distracting us with offenses. 

It is more important to be a peacemaker than to prove who is right or wrong.  Let's be leaders working towards healing and restoration in our lives and the people God places in our paths!

Because of Him,

Mary  

To have a wave though, there has to be a wind behind it.  And CR's wave's wind is the Holy Spirit!  There is a revival going on in America & it is a huge wave of people who are ministers of reconciliation!  People who are passionate about sharing the hope that is only found in Jesus Christ.  And that is you, Encourager Coaches, along with the rest of our CR Forever Family!

We may be from different cities all over the U.S. and the world. But you know what?  We, as believers in Jesus Christ, will live in the same hometown, God's hometown, Zion! But we are on a journey right now.  We are missionaries for Jesus Christ spreading the word of hope to bring another hurting soul into God's family until Jesus returns!

Ps. 87 says, "The word's getting out on Zion:  Men & women right and left born again through Jesus Christ!  God registers your name in His book:  This one, this one, and this one---born again, right here!"  We are a people belonging to God. We are brothers and sisters in a huge Forever  Family headed to Zion!

At times there will be discouragement along the way…they are Wind Blockers.  People who are negative, grumblers, living in denial, don't get the big picture.  They don't see what we see!  

Here's who we you are...we are Wind Walkers!  We are sold out to the Lord & serve with all our hearts, souls, minds, & with all our strength.

So with arms strong, minds open, & hearts soft we ride the WAVE in anticipation of what God is going to do through us in this 20th year Anniversary of Celebrate Recovery!

Mary ~ National E Coach

The story of Mary anointing Jesus' feet at the supper at Mary & Martha's house will be forever etched in the Lamb's Book of Life! (John 12)  Mary must have been crushed by the disciples' cutting words saying she wasted the costly perfume.  But love is NEVER wasted in the kingdom of God.  No price is ever too high.  Love does not count the cost of the gift but rather the value of the recipient!

It took only a few moments for Mary to anoint Jesus and wipe His feet with her hair, but the aroma of that precious act still lingers and inspires us today.  Love was the basis of both gifts:  her gift of love and Jesus' gift of life.  Mary's gift touched the heart of the Son of God.  His gift would touch the hearts of sinners.

Amazing, isn't it?  Mary, who only saw Jesus sporadically, had better insight into His mission than the disciples who had been with Him day and night for three years.  What was the difference? Their posture!  Mary could always be found sitting at the feet of Jesus.  The ambitious disciples were too busy eating at the banquet tables, jostling over positions, criticizing others, and nurturing visions of glory as cabinet members in the kingdom.

When one surveys history, one event stands on the highest peak. There the holy seeds of eternity fell upon earth's sod, watered with the blood of our precious Savior. There upon the candelabra of the cross, God's gift of love to the world hung before the eyes of the universe anointing us with the aroma of forgiveness and healing.  And yes, Mary, your precious gift of love inspires us to open our "jars of love" and anoint the hurting and fallen for which our Savior gave His life.

Today, let's speak a word of love and make a gift of love to a struggling soul.  Jesus said even a cup of cold water in His name would not go unnoticed but bring a blessing. (Matt. 10:42)

Open your jars of love today through Celebrate Recovery!

Written by my dad, Alton Howard, who joined that great cloud of witnesses cheering us on until Jesus returns.

mary ~ National Encourager Coach for women

 aka Daughter of the King

There was a woman named Florence Chadwick, who in 1952, decided she was going to swim the Pacific Ocean from Catalina Island, CA to the mainland.  She was already the first woman to swim the English Channel both ways, so surely she could do this. 

The weather was foggy and chilly and Florence could barely see the boats alongside her cheering her on.  After 15 hours of swimming, she pleaded to be taken out of the water.  But her mother, in a boat alongside her, told her she was close and could do it.  Finally though, Florence was emotionally and physically exhausted.  She stopped swimming and was pulled out.  As she looked out from the boat she noticed the shore was less than half a mile away.  News reporters were interviewing her the next day and she said, “All I could see was the fog…I think if I could’ve seen the shore, I would’ve made it.”

Her mom had told her she could do it.  But Florence’s vision was foggy and she gave up.  There are going to be times when your leaders are discouraged, tired, or encounter uncertain circumstances that will leave them foggy in their thinking.

We, as Encourager Coaches, can help them see the vision.  And that clear vision is of Jesus Christ, the, Anchor of our souls, the Rock of our salvation! The only One we can put our hope in that is preparing a home for us on the shores of a perfect homeland for eternity.

If we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus through the foggy waters of life and picture our eternal home, we will be comforted and become energized giving us a clear look at the finish line.

Paul said in Philip. 3:13-14, “One thing I do:  Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Thank you, Jesus, for the amazing sacrifice You gave for us so we can be with You forever where You will wipe all our tears away!

Now, I am energized for the day and going to look for an opportunity to encourage another Celebrate Recovery leader to see the clear vision of the prize awaiting them!

 Mary Owen

 National Encourager Coach for women

1.  Resource table: Literature should either be all one color or one color for men & one for women.  We don't want the Newcomer to be hesitant to pick up a brochure because they feel they are being singled out by a different color.  

2.  Instead of saying to a person you aren't sure if they are a Newcomer or not, "Is this your first time?" (because they may have been coming for awhile)  You could say, "How long have you been coming?"

3.  Don't say upon first meeting a Newcomer:  “What's your addiction?” Most of the time, they aren't ready to share their secrets upon the first handshake.  It's always safe to say, "Glad you are here!"

4.  In the Newcomers class, when you break into small groups gender specific, you could ask this question to the group, "What brought you to CR tonight?" By that time they have already experienced Large Group, seen “The Words” video or your church's CR video, & heard explained the components of CR. Still give them the opportunity to pass in small group.  We don't want to put a shy person on the spot.  We want them to feel safe to share when they are ready.

5.  If you see someone sitting by themselves in Large Group, at the meal, or standing alone at Solid Rock, go sit by them.  If you've already talked with them, find another leader and discreetly ask them to go meet them.  We don't want to bombard them all at once.  At the same time, we don't want them to be all alone.

 6.  What if a Newcomer starts talking about their no good spouse & goes on continually berating them how they need to change?  I validate their feelings, because I know their feelings are raw just coming into recovery.  We’ve all been there!  Then I share how it all started with me.  When Mac saw a change in me, he eventually began looking at himself.  Change in us causes change in others.

7.  Walk with the Newcomer to Open Share group.  That is the time when I've seen people leave.  They aren't quite sure where the small group is even though it's in the bulletin or announced during Large Group.  It's just easier to walk out the door if no one is looking while thinking, “I'll try it next time.” Satan loves that, because he has the opportunity to distract them from not returning the next week.

8.  It's vital that Newcomer’s kids have a pleasant experience.  This will make or break them from coming back.  Make sure your childcare leaders have enthusiasm, energy, & the child is treated with love and extra care.  Many times it's the first time a child has set foot in a church building.  The goal is for them to leave saying they want to come back!  I can't tell you how many times because of Celebration Station & The Landing curriculum, along with positive childcare leaders, that parents have told us they can't miss Celebrate Recovery because their children beg to come back!

9.  Never say on Facebook, “Hey Susie, it was great to see you at CR last Friday night!”

10.  Always leave them with saying, “Glad you were here.  Keep coming back.  It works if you keep coming back.”

From your National Encourager Coach for women, I want to thank you for your diligence in making Celebrate Recovery a safe place

~ Mary

I encourage you to start your own Fall cleaning by sweeping out the things that can choke the joy out of your life...

1.  Keep the secret buried

2.  Try to please everyone

3.  Listen to satan's lie, "You're no good, you're no good, you're no good, baby you're no good."  Oops, sorry I couldn't help myself.  That old song came to my mind as I remember singing it about Mac 20+ years ago. 

4.  The belief that my relationship will never be restored with my loved one

5.  Believe the lie that I don't have a special gift to serve God

6.  Procrastinate writing my testimony

7.  Fear of failure

8.  Grudges

9.  People who only remember my bad times and not the good times

10.  I'm always right

11.  I hope I can do enough works to get into Heaven

12.  Gossip

13.  Hang on to past hurts

14.  Wasted energy comparing myself to others

15.  One drink for old time's sake won't hurt anybody

16.  Stinkin' thinkin'

17.  Worry, worry, worry

18.  Take, take, take  

19.  Work, work, work (for stuff I don't need to impress people I don't like)

20.  I'm all alone

21.  Listen greedily to what people say about me

22.  Expect to be appreciated

23.  Be sensitive to slights

24.  Never forgive a criticism

25.  Trust no one but myself

26.  Do as little as possible to get by

27.  Sulk when people aren't grateful for favors I've shown to them

28.  Judge another's motive

29.  Never forget the injustice done to me

30.  I'm too busy to help others 

So that's just a few that may be spinning a cobweb around your heart.   Let's clean house and shine like stars in the universe! 

"Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe."  Philip. 2:14-15 (NIV)

~mary

Make it a special night.  We transformed our fellowship center into a nice restaurant with candles, linen tablecloths and nice background music.  CR members dressed in white shirts and black pants.  It was more than just throwing a meal together.  We wanted our church leadership to feel how appreciative we were for CR.

We bought two whole rib-eyes, smoked them for three hours, cut them into thick steaks, fired up a hot grill and seared them on both sides.  We served them up sizzling hot along with great sides and topped it off with the best homemade Italian Cream Cake and coffee. We have some good cooks!

While they were enjoying dessert, all our CR leaders gathered around them in a circle and each leader shared why they were thankful for CR giving one minute testimonies that were prepared ahead of time.  Our church leaders left there totally thankful realizing what's been going on in the midst of our church…changed lives one at a time through CR. 

Our church leadership talked about it for months to come.  So this has turned into an annual event. This year our appreciation dinner was for our CR Worship Team & Praise Band.  Now our Youth Minister has asked us to cook for a group he is wanting to give an appreciation dinner for.

We have so much to be thankful for.  My list is huge but I will just name a few here in closing that are dear to my heart.

I'm thankful to be able to serve in Celebrate Recovery.

I'm thankful our church allows us to give the hope found only in Jesus Christ to others through Celebrate Recovery.

I'm thankful my Father, who is King of the Universe,  counts me worthy to be called His daughter.

Put your gratitude into action!

~ mary

National Encourager Coach

Pray for you

Encourage you

Challenge you

Know you more

Add to that our #1 goal for the year is to:

KNOW God more

GROW in God more

SERVE God more

SHARE God more

LOVE God more

TELL others more about God in 2011 

No one is alone in CR leadership.  We are here to serve you.  We are going to hang tight together & serve the Lord with all our hearts, souls, minds & strength!

"Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds." Heb. 10:24 (NIV)

Mary ~ your National E Coach for women 

As you keep growing and taking your own daily inventory, promptly admitting when you are wrong, and celebrating your victories, you will find yourself staying in the center of God's love while experiencing joy in all circumstances.

At the same time, you are keeping your arms open and outstretched.  You have your eyes wide open looking for ways to encourage others and build up the members of your CR group.  You are ready, willing, and able to make the most of every opportunity.

You have compassion for the Newcomer.  You know…the one that walks through the door for the first time to your CR meeting beaten down looking scared to death.  The one everybody else has given up on and has said is worthless and hopeless.  The Message says in verses 22-23, "Go easy on those who hesitate in the faith. Go after those who take the wrong way.  Be tender with sinners, but not soft on sin.  The sin itself stinks to high heaven."  

You ARE making a difference in people's lives!  I am grateful to serve in advancing the Kingdom with you!   

"Now to Him who can keep you on your feet, standing tall in His bright presence, fresh and celebrating-- to our one God, our only Savior, through Jesus Christ, our Master, be glory, majesty, strength, and rule before all time, and now, and to the end of time."  

Yes… this is real living!

Mary