We all need each other! Life is hard! Sometimes we just need a helping hand to lift us up and encourage us when we’re down, when we’ve lost sight of our goals and simply want to quit.

These friends can help us to stay on the right track. It’s been said that we’re “as sick as our secrets.” The secrets you keep, can keep you stuck, and that thing has already mastered you, whatever it is. It could be fear, pain, grief, depression, gossip, denial, over-eating, dieting, debt/compulsive spending, rage, anger, worry, verbal or physical abuse, adultery, abandonment, blame shifting, cigarettes, etc. 2

Peter 2:19 says, “a man is slave to whatever has mastered him.” Telling someone these secrets breaks the power they have over us! The need for community is biblical. James 5:16 says “Therefore confess your sins one to another and pray for each other, so that you may be healed.”

Maybe we’re afraid our friends and family will judge us, we’re ashamed or embarrassed by our choices. Maybe admitting we have a problem is where healing can begin. It’s hard to trust people with our secret issues. This is why attending Celebrate Recovery is life changing! We get a chance to learn to trust, with others who’ve been where we are, or may be exactly in the same place we’re at right now. We find others share a common bond with us, that we’re all similar people going through similar struggles. Then we discover that our life does change! When we invite someone alongside of us, it begins an important step in our healing process!

By showing up to Celebrate Recovery, we can share openly, honestly and hear other people share what they’re going through. It’s here that we gain love, encouragement and trust. We meet people who are willing to listen and pray. If you haven’t checked out a Celebrate Recovery in your area, please do so. What’s holding you back from attending? Are you ready to be free from the secrets that are holding you down? Are you ready to find healing that’s found in James 5:16? Please don’t wait any longer, make the choice to attend today! Celebrate Recovery meets on Thursday evenings at 7 p.m. at First Baptist Church, 408 College St. Clinton. For more information call 910-379-4033.