Ministry Leader Archive

"Havin' More Fun Than I Deserve" at Celebrate Recovery

2009-06-22T19:02:00Z

One of the State Reps copied me on a great fellowship opportunity through an area-wide networking of Celebrate Recovery ministries in his state. It seems a group of Ministry Leaders and participants from different CR groups are planning to gather for a Major League Baseball game on an upcoming June evening. Plans include announcing the ministry of Celebrate Recovery on the scoreboard at some point during the game, and listing the churches in attendance.

The leader sending out the notice has, as part of his e-mail signature, "Always havin' more fun than I deserve". It is my sincere hope that statement applies to you as a Celebrate Recovery Ministry Leader too! My hope and prayer is you are having fun as you serve others in recovery.

I believe my friend has successfully applied 1 Thessalonians 5:16 - 18 to his life, where we are encouraged to "Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances for this is God's will for you".

This year has been a year of "we get to" in Celebrate Recovery! It began when Johnny Baker taught a series of lessons at Saddleback Church CR where the focus was how we "get to" love God, we "get to" worship God, and we "get to" love and serve others through the ministry of Celebrate Recovery. We don't have to, we get to!

Through the years I've at times been questioned by well-meaning folks in my home church "...isn't it frustrating to work in recovery?". Sure, at times we may be disappointed with the fact someone fails to grasp all of God's promises for a healthy successful life, and the assurance of a brighter eternity.

The joy for me as a recovery leader has been to be engaged on the front line of what God is able to do in a willing heart. I get to rejoice when I hear the story of another life transformed. Aren't you glad we "get to" take part in this life-changing ministry of recovery?

I am certain you will be "havin' more fun than you deserve", if you join us for the 2009 Summit at Saddleback Church on August 12 - 14. Drop by and share your smile as you get to serve in the ministry of Celebrate Recovery!

Hurry up - we are filling up fast.

*note - added at 10:30 pm CST - Life's Healing Choices Fall Campaign went live about 45 minutes ago. Check it out - then help get the word out. A lot of churches are waiting on the latest information about the coming Recovery Experience!

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Celebrate Recovery in Nampa, Idaho

2009-06-16T23:43:00Z

Many thanks to Pastor Kent Conrad and his Ministry Leaders Barry and Eunice Lucas. They had a great group of volunteers working to make sure the last Celebrate Recovery Seminar of the Spring / Summer season was a success.

Many new and potential new ministries were represented when Pastor John and Cheryl asked "how many are here for the first time?" Hands were raised all across the worship center, indicating potential growth across Idaho and the North West region of the United States.

The leadership of Celebrate Recovery is now preparing for the upcoming Summit at Saddleback Church, August 12 - 14, 2009. The registration for this event was over 2300 at the end of last week.

If you are planning to join us, make plans now to register at Celebrate Recovery. Hurry up - for the Saddleback worship center fills up fast!

Now is a great time to connect with your Celebrate Recovery State Representative to let them know you will be attending. Building relationships with other leaders from your area is a large part of what the Summit is about. Start making connections now. See you soon!

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Planning to Divide and Share at the Saddleback CR Summit

2009-06-06T21:33:00Z

WOW! Registration for the 2009 Celebrate Recovery Summit is 2147 at the close of last week. It appears that we are heading toward another full and exciting Summit experience for all who are able to attend.

Ministry Leader - you will soon have an opportunity to preview the schedule for the 3 days of events that make up the Summit. In years past, and I'm sure this year too, Tina Davis will post a blog concerning the daily agenda for the Summit.

By planning ahead, you will be able to let others traveling with you have an opportunity to decide which workshops they should attend. It has been fun in the past, when I have attended with members of my CR, to plan to take in a variety of workshops and then share notes on the return home. Advance planning provides a way for the entire team to benefit from the experiences of all .

My hope is that you will make new friends in recovery while at the Summit. My prayer is that you have opportunities to also connect with "old friends" you've made along this road to recovery. The power of friendship and fellowship is evident as you see folks call or wave to one another across the Saddleback plaza during the three days of the Celebrate Recovery Summit.

If you have the opportunity to stay over for Saturday or Sunday services - all the better. It is fun to see the fellowship carry over to the weekend services - with new and existing leaders recognizing each other by new CR shirts or hats.

Be prepared to look for fellow conference attenders at the airport on the way home too! The celebration continues -right up to departure from Orange County or other area airports.

Get ready and start your planning to get the most out of your Summit experience. We'll see you soon in Orange County and Saddleback Church. Don't wait any longer. Sign up now at Celebrate Recovery . You'll be glad you did!

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Celebrate Recovery State Reps Are Here to Serve

2009-06-01T14:53:00Z

Many thanks to Pastor Gary and his ministry leader (and MN State Rep) Wade, for an outstanding job of hosting the One Day Seminar and Advanced Leadership Training at Autumn Ridge Church in Rochester, MN last weekend. Everyone had a great time, and the church and recovery community provided wonderful volunters to host the event.

One question surfaced in conversation that lead me to believe many local Ministry Leaders somehow missed the help and support available through the CR Regional Director and State Representative system that has long been part of our structure. On occasion in other parts of the country I've heard similar remarks, and thought I better address it here.

I talked with several folks attending their first training event who mentioned "I did not know I had a state rep!".

As a ministry leader in your local church and community, help get the word out to new and potential new ministries. Let them know Celebrate Recovery provides training through One Day Seminars and the Summit, and a support system through recognized leaders, to help start and grow a successful CR ministry. While it is great a nearby church may visit your group to understand the "how to, or why" of running a successful model of recovery, it is vitally important you help connect others to the system of support and connection that our representatives provide.

Our Regional Directors and State Reps are here to serve YOU. Don't hesitate to call or e-mail any of us with questions about growing this ministry in your church.

Speaking of networking - in 72 days, there will be awesome networking opportunities with people from across the country and around the world. Recovery leaders and potential recovery leaders will soon be gathering on the campus of Saddleback Church for the Eleventh Annual Celebrate Recovery Summit.

The Network Connection Tents will be set up and we will have representatives from the six regions of the United States, Celebrate Recovery Inside, and Celebrate Recovery International available to answer any questions you have concerning the growth of this Christ-centered ministry in your part of the world.

Come now and make plans now to join us for the WORLD -WIDE CELEBRATION of recovery that is found in Celebrate Recovery. Drop by and say "Hi!". Pastor John, Cheryl and the rest of the team are looking forward to seeing you there.

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Making Your Group Safe for All - Celebrate Recovery Ministry Leader's Chief Commission

2009-05-27T16:48:00Z

Last week we were in Pennsylvania for a One Day Seminar, including the Seven Keys of Recovery and the Advanced Leadership Training. Many thanks to Ron and his team of great volunteers. I also made a new friend on Face Book!

I enjoy Face Book and the opportunities it brings to "stay in touch" with family and friends on a social level. I also have fun with the creative use of YouTube for promotions about Celebrate Recovery world-wide. There are many other creative ways technology connects us and raises awareness of CR in the public eye - and techchnology is great - most of the time!

One area of concern regarding our advanced means of technology is that of anonymity and confidentiality. I've seen and heard examples of someone filming or photographing all or part of a Celebrate Recovery meeting, and then displaying it somewhere on the web.

As a Ministry Leader, your first obligation is to make Celebrate Recovery a safe place for all participants. Letting a camera, camera equipped cell phone , or other video recording device into your meeting can be a violation of the sacred trust of confidentiality or anonymity.

A leader may point out that "I got a signed waver from all concerned". My concern is for that individual who walks in without giving their consent, or the person who later changes their mind and later says, "I didn't really want to sign, but everyone else did".

Two points regarding technology use in a Celebrate Recovery meeting - then I'll let you evaluate where your group stands.

1.) Recording the lessons of Celebrate Recovery is something you should not be doing. The body of the lesson, including the acrostic, is copyrighted material and should not be duplicated for public consumption.

2.) Perhaps the best use of still or video photography is in the promotion of your CR ministry. Think of the "WORDS" video, or the DVD included in the Basic Leadership Kit. A local promotional video is usually shot once, then used for specific purposes in the local church.

In addition, regular or weekly photography or video taping should not be a part of your Celebrate Recovery ministry. The use of camera or cell phone photography should be STRONGLY discouraged in your Celebrate Recovery ministry. If you are recording Celebrate Recovery lessons for inclusion on the web - you're going to have to stop.

Serving as a Ministry Leader, you've likely thrown personal anonymity and confidentiality out the door a long time ago. I wish to encourage you to make CR a safe place for all - and keep the cameras out of the meeting unless there for specific purposes of promoting your ministry.

On another note - this Friday is the last day to take advantage of early registration for the 2009 Summit at Saddleback Church. You may register by visiting us online at Celebrate Recovery .

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Celebrate Recovery Ministry Leader Connection to the Church

2009-05-19T13:06:00Z

When the Ministry Leaders in my home town gather, they often bring up a point that is of concern in Celebrate Recovery ministries across the country. Senior Pastor Support!

As the Ministry Leader of the recovery ministry in your church, I challenge you to keep a regular on-going dialog with your Senior Pastor. In some churches this may include the Pastoral Care Director, or Staff Pastor given the opportunity oversee the ministry of Celebrate Recovery.
It is important to keep communication open for a many reasons, and here are just a few:

1.) Ongoing reports alert the Pastor and staff to the WAVE, the momentum, that is building in this recovery ministry. This includes the coming "recovery experience" that is going to be promoted in the Fall edition of the Purpose Driven Connection magazine. Pastor John has mentioned the excitement building for the fall edition of this new ministry magazine. If you haven't see this new publication, check it out now - get ready for the recovery focus this Fall!

2.) Share with the Pastor how Celebrate Recovery functions as another "door" into the church. You can do so by providing general information about participants now calling your church "home". I've always encouraged brothers and sisters in recovery to let the Pastor know that CR was the means by which they discovered Christ and the church. Many have been bold to say "Pastor, I am here because of Celebrate Recovery!".

3.) As Christ and recovery is first the avenue of change for people IN THE CHURCH, the focus then changes to OUTREACH in the community. Let the Pastor know of community impact or prison outreach that comes from the health and growth of Celebrate Recovery in your church.

At the One Day Seminar in South Carolina, Pastor Rick Warren recorded a message specifically for those attending the Seven Keys and Advanced Leadership Training. In the message, he noted national concerns about the economy and fears over job loss - concerns that are real and felt world-wide. One comment Pastor Rick shared, that really registered with the audience, is his belief that "national recovery begins with personal recovery".

As the Ministry Leader of Celebrate Recovery in your church, prepare your leadership to make a difference in the lives of men and women who are coming through the doors each week. As you help participants encounter personal recovery, their stories will encourage family and friends to find the hope that is available in Christ alone. We are making a difference!!!

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Comfortable, Familiar, at Home in Celebrate Recovery

2009-05-10T21:09:00Z

It has been a couple of weeks in a row since I've been able to fellowship at my home church in Austin, Texas. While traveling home from the recent CR seminars in Tulsa and Greenville, I've been on the road or in the air on Sunday, and have missed my church. This morning as Paula and I arrived to take our position as greeters during the first service, we were walking down a hall, I felt a sense of peace and satisfaction and commented "It sure feels good to be here today!".

The sense of "being at home" is something I so desire for your Celebrate Recovery participants when they happen to visit another group.

The Trademark and DNA of Celebrate Recovery are discussed in all of our training events for the purpose of making sure that visitors from other CR ministries from across the country or from the other side of the globe always feel "at home" when they walk through your door. It is always a concern to hear that someone visited another CR, and left confused because it did not match the structure and best practices adopted from the model we find at Saddleback Church.

Whether your ministry is hosting dozens or hundreds of individuals, you can and should follow the model that is taught in all of our training events. We expect that, as a church offers
Celebrate Recovery, it will be an authentic representation of the original - home to participants familiar with the training we provide.

If you need assistance in understanding any part of the Leader's Guide or Seminar workbooks, we have a great group of volunteers in the US, and a growing number of recognized ministry leaders internationally, who are more than willing to answer questions you have about starting and growing a healthy Celebrate Recovery ministry.

There are three more One Day Seminars featuring the Seven Keys and the Advanced Leadership Training between now and June. I'd also like to get in a reminder that we are ahead of registration numbers posted this time last year for the soon coming Celebrate Recovery Summit. You can find registration information for any of our events by visiting Celebrate Recovery . Bless you on this Road to Recovery!

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Celebrate Recovery One Day Seminar in Greenville, SC

2009-05-04T13:33:00Z

Just back from a CR One Day Seminar featuring the Seven Keys of Celebrate Recovery and the Advanced Leadership Training. We really appreciated the support of Ministry Leader Gerald Jarrett of Brookwood Church and his great group of volunteers! Thanks so much for your help in running a great event serving South Carolina and surrounding states.

I would also like to thank Brookwood Church for the great hospitality as the Southeast Regional team had an opportunity to meet together prior to the One Day Seminar. This was the last of the Regional Team meetings this season, and all have proven to be a great time of fellowship and planning for the Regional Directors and the State Reps serving six regions of the United States.

One thing that seemed a little out of place were the Hannah Montana "birthday wish" balloons on Gerald's Harley motorcycle on the parking lot of the church. I understand the black balloons on a Harley, but the other birthday balloons were way too cute! It looked like someone had great fun at Gerald's expense - but we all wish this will be a great year in the Lord! Happy Birthday Gerald! Thanks for serving others on your special day.

How do you handle stress? Travel can produce a certain amount of stress, and yesterday's flight from South Carolina to Dallas provided plenty of stress for us. We had a close connection on a flight out of Dallas, which had been closed and delayed due to weather and flash floods just the day before.

Landing at our home airport, we waited and waited, for bags that never showed up! We patiently took our turn and processed a claim for baggage, lost somewhere in the system with delays that continued to ripple through the system. With the assurance our bags would be delivered to our home in the next twenty-four hours, we left the airport, grateful to know that our important "stuff" would soon arrive. Somehow, many of us expect all things to be perfect when we travel, and have difficulty adjusting when things don't go our way.

This episode brought to mind a comment Pastor John made during his time with the Advanced Leadership track this past weekend. Soon after talking about a "commitment to excellence" in running the local ministry, John noted that "some of you heard me say perfection just then". Sometimes we place unrealistic expectations on ourselves in CR, church, family, or work. A phrase frequently heard in Celebrate Recovery says that we are "seeking progress, not perfection ". I can't think of a better place to watch "progress" than on this road to recovery. I sincerely hope you are enjoying your journey as a Ministry Leader in CR!

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Sustainability - Celebrate Recovery - Sustaining Your Ministry Leaders

2009-04-22T12:52:00Z

Rick Warren has often posed a question, "How do you know recovery works?" His answer is "...you know recovery works when you begin to think less about yourself, and more about serving others". Loving and serving others in a healthy way is surely a sign that God is doing something new in our lives.

On a recent flight to one of the regional team meetings, I was reading a book of modern day proverbs developed through ministry experience Bill Hybels gained over years of service in his Chicago area church. A section titled "Sustainability" reminded me that the local ministry of CR is sustained through a process of developing others through leading them from newcomer to participant, then participant to leader. Looking for developing leadership traits as God transforms individuals is one of the keys to sustaining a healthy and growing Celebrate Recovery ministry.

One old recovery saying you often hear is "you keep it (recovery) by giving it away". For years many recovery movements have recognized that serving others and helping them understand keys to their recovery is one way individuals reinforce principles of sobriety and growth in their own life.

Another part of sustaining your ministry is to plan for ongoing leadership training and the process of equipping your team to excel as leaders. Many of the ways to continue to train your team include use of the Basic and Advanced Leadership Kits, participating in One Day Seminars in either the Seven Keys or Advanced Leadership Training, and planning to join leaders from around the world for the annual Celebrate Recovery Summit at Saddleback Church.

A highlight for many Celebrate Recovery leaders from across the United States and across the globe has been the annual world-wide celebration of CR known as the Celebrate Recovery Summit. This is our 11th Celebrate Recovery Summit, and each year I attend, I always hear many leaders talk about the encouragement found to sustain them in the coming year. Excitement of connecting people to Christ and recovery is contagious!!!

Several weeks ago I heard from a ministry leader in Brazil as he shared what this Christ-centered ministry is doing in his country, and the sense of excitement among leaders from his church as they are looking forward to the Summit on August 12 -14.

Registration for the Summit recently opened and numbers are starting to grow. I want to encourage you to check out the registration at Celebrate Recovery and sign your leaders up for a great opportunity - whether their first or eleventh time!!! With new workshops each year, we can truly say "there is something for everyone!". Register early - secure your place!!!

In the meanwhile, the remaining One day Seminar schedule includes: Tulsa, Greenville, Pittsburg, Rochester, and Boise. All are found on our website and you may register for any event online until the week before the event.

So ministry leader - train to sustain, and be sure all leaders continue to work on their spiritual walk and their road to recovery. We'll see you soon at a One Day Seminar or the Summit!

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim

Be Ready for the Newcomer - Provide help and encouragement in recovery from Hurts, Habits, and Hang-ups!

2009-04-05T03:10:00Z

Today I learned a lesson in being prepared, and it happened on a tennis court! Bear in mind today marks the first time I've been on a court in about six months - a long time since I've even hit a ball.

Three others from church and I met at the home court of one of the men in our group. The guy that made today's match a possibility said " this is Jerry's (name changed - of course this is anonymous!!!) court, and one of his 'home court rules' is you get four opportunities your first time to serve". In other words - I had to be ready because any one of the first four balls served by another player, or myself, could be the opening shot of a game the FIRST TIME each player got to serve. No unlimited warm up serves - in other words. How about a little pressure the first time back on a court in months???

I've learned in many areas of life and ministry, it always pays to be alert.

God's word has many exhortations to preparedness in our spiritual journey and the opportunities that come our way. One is found in 2 Timothy 4:2 , where were are encouraged to Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.

Ministry leader - I've found in life and in recovery, we have to be open and sensitive to the opportunities the Holy Spirit sends our way. With the awesome responsibity we have to lead this life-transforming ministry, we undoubtedly have a unique advantage to speak His word of healing into the lives of newcomers showing up at THEIR appointed time. We have to be sensitive in what to share, and how to share as we point individuals to the help, strength, and hope they will soon discover in Celebrate Recovery.

One thing I've learned over the years is that someone showing up for their first recovery meeting may not be ready "to be preached at". The first thing a newcomer needs from you and your team is unconditional love and acceptance, to find their place in recovery, and an opportunity to experience Christ's love through us (CR leaders and volunteers).

My greatest joy has been to see a newcomer, perhaps a little uncertain of coming to church in the first place, feel welcomed and accepted by the Celebrate Recovery family. Through establishing growing relationships in recovery, I've seen many participants later enter church through the door of recovery. Many churches across the country see this happening, and frequently discovery CR can become one of the most effective outreach ministries of the church.

Back to that part regarding "being ready". I had the opportunity to share "my two minute testimony" with the other players between sets on a tennis court today, and it led to an appointment. The appointment to share Christ and recovery to one of my partner's family members.

Hope to see you at an upcoming One Day Seminar, or the Eleventh Annual Celebrate Recovery Summit on August 12 - 14. You can sign up for either by visiting Celebrate Recovery , where you will find registration for the Summit is open. REGISTER EARLY - we often fill up FAST!

Celebrating Recovery - each day in Christ! - Jim