As a child, I was brought up in church and taught Christian values. These valuable lessons would prove useful later in my life as I looked for a way out of a bad situation I was in due to bad decisions that I had made. Questioning my self-worth as a child, I turned away from the church trying to find a place to fit in. Not realizing the extent of how much I did not know at the age of twelve, I started to get lost in the world of drugs and alcohol. My addictions became stronger as I got older and experienced a life where not all things worked the way I hoped they would. While my addictions went from drinking beer and smoking marijuana to smoking crack and drinking anything available, a place to fit in became more of a place of isolation for me as I no longer felt comfortable being around most family members if I had something stronger than just a few beers. This was in most cases when I would get high with other addicts or alone because for me a drink was always better with crack. At least that was the lie I would tell myself, along with the lie that my problem wasn't that bad. Finally, after thirty years of addiction, on June 6, 2006, I hit my rock bottom, but I remembered what I had learned as a child about a power above all other powers. I prayed to the highest power, and God, my Father in heaven, made a way for me to get into a drug-and-alcohol treatment program. I went through the program and took what I needed from it with the understanding that words also have power. Because of my faith and what I had learned in church as a child, I refuse to put the words of man. Addicts suffer from a disease for which there's no cure above the word of God. You are more than a conqueror (Romans 8:37) and By his stripes you are healed (1 Peter 2:24). I do not believe that Jesus died for me and rose from the dead with power over all things except an addiction. I believe He came to conquer ALL sin so that all lost sinners who believed in Him and worked on building a personal relationship with Him could be recovered when He returned.

Born to church-going parents of worldly morals, Anthony Love grew up in Camden N.J during the 1960s. One of five siblings, he was introduced to the evils that life has to offer-living outside of the grace of God. Mr. Love spent sixteen years in the addiction of crack cocaine among other drugs and twenty-seven years locked in the vice of alcohol abuse. Read the destruction of what these substances have to offer and the power of God that lifted him out. This book will inspire anyone bound by alcohol or substance abuse or just separated from the life that God intended us to live.

Cynthia Almaraz is an ordained minister, anointed Bible teacher, author, wife, mother and grandmother. Her years of practical experience as a public educator, creating drug outreaches for several churches and even for a maximum security prison in Oklahoma have contributed insight into the addictive mindset.She relates in sharing her...

Recovery and faith. This book is a guide to understanding how God's word can comfort and transform Christians who struggle with addiction--their own or someone else's. We take a strongly Lutheran law and gospel approach. The law points out our sin and our contribution to the problem. The gospel liberates us and provides us with undeserved comfort and rest. We urge you to be ruthless about rooting out sin from your heart. Dig with vigor. You may do so with confidence because God has already covered your sin through Christ Jesus. Thus, there is nothing to fear regardless of the depth of the decay and ugliness found in our hearts. In the safety of a small group of similarly emboldened Christian, you can confess what you find buried in your heart. We have found great relief in this kind of radical transparency. But more importantly, we have found rest in Jesus and his care. After confessing our sins, he is kind and removes our sin without a hint of anger or disgust.

A road to freedom for those struggling with addiction. You can be free! RICH: Recovery in Christ Heals is a biblical manual for those struggling with addiction(s) to set them free through the word of God and train them to show others how to be free. This manual does not compete with the clinical or secular programs, but my objective in writing this is to work alongside these programs toward reaching a common goal. What is addiction? Dictionary.com defines addiction as aEURoethe state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.aEUR This book has eight levels so that the person battling, will have a mindset of progression instead of regression. We believe in what John 8:36 says that who the Son (Jesus) sets free is free indeed. In these teachings, different Bible versions are referred for clearer understanding such as New International Version (NIV), King James Version (KJV), New King James Bible (NKJV), New American Standard Bible (NASB), Amplified Bible (AMP), and the Message Bible (MSG).

We face a profound problem in this country and around the world, the plague of drug addiction. Lives are being lost and destroyed. Many people are affected by this issue in some way, via family members, friends, or co-workers. The question is, "How can people find true healing of the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs involved in their addiction?" The author proposes leading addicted people to faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus and the Addict: 12 Bible Studies for People Getting Free from Drugs is designed to help leaders in Christian faith-based recovery to guide those who come to their communities toward continuous freedom from drugs. The book contains twelve studies with biblical guidance on varying issues with which people in recovery struggle such as overcoming fear, learning to have hope, overcoming resentment, and dealing with forgiveness. Jesus Christ is the answer in all these things. Deepened relationship with Him and the transforming effect of His power and love bring redemption and new life. The book is intended for pastors, mentors, sponsors, and teachers - anyone working in jail, prison, transitional communities, or in churches to help recovering addicts. The studies are designed to be shared in large group settings, a speaker providing the teaching talk. Following that teaching time, the large group can then break out into small groups for discussion of the teaching. However, this material is workable within a single small group as well as a large one - the small group hearing the talk less formally and then discussing it. Each of the twelve lessons contains a verse or key verses from the Bible about a particular topic. Those Bible verses form the basis of the lesson. There is then a section with discussion about the background and state of mind of people seeking recovery for the speaker to consider about those who will be in the listening audience. The author's experience has largely been with people who are lower income or poor, but addiction affects all classes of society, and both urban and rural populations. The concepts discussed in the background and state of mind section are adaptable to varying recovery audiences. A prayer for the speaker is included next. Following the prayer, there is a sample talk section where some key points are given. This talk can be modified to fit the speaker's own experiences and their audience. And each chapter concludes with sample questions that can be used to stimulate conversation within your recovery group. The book also contains teaching and theology about the nature of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. An explanation of the cross event, resurrection, and the meaning of the Holy Spirit in the life of believers is explained such that people in recovery can understand God as being full of grace and as a source of great empowerment. The presentation of the present-day healing ministry of Christ gives hope to the addict that they can permanently be freed from drugs and feel the lifting of guilt and shame. They can also take their place as a useful and contributing part of the kingdom of God and in society. Dr. Pam Morrison, the author, is an ordained pastor from the Free Methodist Church. She has led or helped to lead six churches. She has volunteered with Prison Fellowship and has ministered with addicts in several settings. Her belief is that medical and secular means have been and are used to help addicts, but the greatest help anyone can receive to achieve permanent freedom is to find faith in Jesus Christ. So much more help is needed for addicts and families of addicts. We are short on places and those who will walk steadfastly with people seeking recovery. This is a ministry urgently needed in this hour.