What do you find pleasurable? The smell of rain, the taste of fresh strawberries on ice cream, the many breath–taking colors of a sunset, the majestic sound of the ocean waves crashing onto the rocks, or maybe the soft smooth feeling of a furry kitten. These things engage our five senses in a pleasurable way. …
A sermon I recently heard at church was titled, "An Invitation To Christian Discipleship." It caught my attention and encouraged me to reflect on my own discipleship in Jesus Christ. Pastor asked these questions: Are you a disciple of Jesus Christ? Are you willing to drop everything and follow Jesus? I reflected back on my …
As a young adult, I continued to lack confidence in myself and was shy. I would not speak up for myself or when there was opportunity to share about Jesus and His love for all. In my first job as a Medical Technologist, I began to gain confidence in myself at work, realizing as I …
I knew early on in life that God was calling me to share Jesus and His Word with others. The problem was that I was a very shy little girl who lacked confidence in herself and trust in Him. I faithfully attended Sunday School, church services and activities, Vacation Bible School, and lived my life …
This week I had the privilege and honor of being interviewed by Shannon Ethridge, best-selling author and speaker (www.shannonethridge.com) about my participation in her online course, B.L.A.S.T. Mentoring (blastmentoring.com). I was able to share my vision of writing a book concerning my journey in recovery from my addictions and speaking on a national level about …
Early on in my recovery God encouraged me to give my testimony for the very first time to a group of people being trained to facilitate small group discussions in a recovery ministry. The idea of doing so petrified me. God had his work cut out for him as I was very resistant and full …
Where does our power come from? What or who is the source of power? Step 1 of Celebrate Recovery states we are powerless over our addictions and compulsions and our lives are unmanageable. So if I do not have the power to manage my own life then who or what does? It's kind of like …
I have always marveled at works of art such as the famous painting of Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci and the sculpture of David by Michelangelo. Each is valued at millions of dollars all because the original artist was very skilled at what they created and because they are no longer living so these …
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV Imagine yourself carrying around a backpack full of river rocks with each rock representing a specific sin in your life. Some of my rocks include pride, selfishness, lying, …
In December 2004, I decided to attend a five-day intensive workshop for women who struggled with sexual addictions. One of the group activities I was a part of involved figuring out how to get out of a maze while blindfolded. Well, I am all about solving puzzles and was up to the challenge, or so …
Carol's Thoughts 