Lesson 21 – Relapse

Luke 24:13-32 …The road of relapse

Principle 7: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and to gain the power to follow His will.

Step 11: Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and power to carry that out.

This week's acrostic is RELAPSE:

The first letter in relapse stands for Principle 7 itself:

RESERVE a daily quiet time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and gain the power to follow His will.

The first step in preventing a relapse is to admit that you will be tempted, that you are not above temptation. Jesus wasn't, why should you be?

We find the account of Jesus' temptation in Matthew 4:1–11

The next word in our acrostic reminds us of Step 10:

EVALUATE

Going back to what we have heard about in the last couple of lessons. Your evaluation needs to include your physical, emotional, relational, and spiritual health.

Knowing how we love acrostic here is one of Rick warrens famous acrostic

"H-E-A-R-T"

Perform this self-check. Ask yourself daily if you are:

Hurting

Exhausted

Angry

Resentful

Tense

If you answer yes to any of the above, use the tools you have learned in recovery to help get you back on track. If you have trouble remembering ask for help from your accountability group. Another acrostic that is a good checkup tool is HALT (hungry, angry, lonely, tired)

We also can find specific instructions for this step in Romans 12:3–17: "Be honest in your estimate of yourselves.… Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Love each other.… Be patient in trouble.… Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honest clear through."

The practice of daily personal inventory "Step 10" maintains your honesty and humility.

LISTEN to your Higher Power, Jesus Christ.

I need to take a time-out from the "rat race" that I find myself in long enough to listen to my body, my mind, and my soul. I need to and perhaps you also need to slow down enough to hear the Lord's directions. Like the Living Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 "Test everything that is said to be sure it is true, and if it is, then accept it".

ALONE and quiet time.

The first part of Step 11 says: "We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God."

In Psalm 46:10 God tells us to "be still, and know that I am God."

Step 11 uses the word "meditation." The definition of meditation is simply "slowing down long enough to hear God." With practice, can all begin to realize the value of spending time alone with God. He is faithful to what he says and will meet us in our alone time.

PLUG in to God's power through prayer.

You see, if we don't daily seek His will for our lives, how can we blame Him when things go wrong?

In Philippians 4:6, Paul tells us to pray about everything asking for God's perfect will in all our decisions: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs and don't forget to thank him for his answers."

SLOW down long enough to hear God's answer.

After I spend time praying to God, I need to slow down long enough to hear His answers and direction, but I have often become inpatient. I want God's answer now!

"Listen to me. Keep silence and I will teach you wisdom!" (33:33, TLB).

ENJOY your growth.

You need to enjoy your victories. Rejoice in and celebrate the small successes along your road to recovery! First Thessalonians 5:16 (GNB) tells us to "Be joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus."

With daily practice of these principles and with Christ's loving presence in our lives, we will be able to maintain and continue to grow in recovery!

Some practical tools to avoid relapse:

1. Pray and read our Bible daily. Establish a specific time of day to have our "quiet time."

2. Make attending our recovery meeting a priority. Stay close to our support team. If we find our self saying, "I'm too busy to go to Celebrate Recovery tonight," make time. Make all efforts necessary to flee from whatever we are doing and come share our recovery.

3. Spend time with our families if they are safe. If you find that yours are not, spend time with our church family. Celebrate Recovery meeting

4. Get involved in service. Volunteer! Don't wait until you get to Principle 8 to start serving.

Luke 24:13-32

In the past I heard a sermon series on Luke 24. In verse 13 the account known as the road to Emmaus begins. In brief it is the story of two of Jesus' disciples. The lesser known variety but none the less devout followers who were basically in shock from the recent crucifixion. As they were walking along they were discussing the recent events when Jesus strolled up beside them and joined in their conversation.

[13] Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem.

[14] And they talked together of all these things which had happened.

The Road to Relapse leads away from the "things which had happened" that were the benefit of your Recovery. When we do not get our expectations of how Jesus should operate in our recovery, then we get disillusioned and slowly move back to where we came. When I get disappointed, then I go my way.

[15] So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them.

[16] But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him.

How many times is it that Jesus is walking with us (in the Spirit) and we don't recognize it?

[17] And He said to them, "What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?"

Jesus knew both what they already knew, that they were sad, and what they did not yet know, that they had no reason to be sad.

We get sad when we focus on the loss.

[18] Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, "Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?"

After this when they are returning to Jerusalem do you think Cleopas says, "I can't believe I said to Jesus, 'don't you know what things have happened these days.'"

[19a] And He said to them, "What things?"

Divine humor. Jesus skillfully playing along to set them up for the Bible study.

[19b] So they said to Him, "The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth,

He listened to them so graciously, because He already knew all these things.

Jesus is still present and listening when you are in a bad space.

[19c] who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,

[20] "and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him.

[21] "But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened.

[22] "Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us.

[23] "When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive.

[24] "And certain of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but Him they did not see."

The men explained what they did know about Jesus.

· They knew His name and where He was from.

· They knew He was a Prophet.

· They knew He was mighty in deed and word.

· They knew He was crucified.

· They knew He promised to redeem Israel.

· They knew others had said He rose from the dead.

They knew all this and yet they were still walking away from it all.

You can know all about Recovery and still turn and walk down the Road of Relapse.

[25] Then He said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!

We often think the main obstacles to belief are in the head, but they are actually in the heart.

[26] "Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?"

· They were common, simple men.

· They had lost hope.

· They had lost joy – a sense of spiritual desertion.

· They had not lost desire – they still loved to talk about Jesus.

· They had not yet seen the necessity of the cross.

Talk about dreams being shattered. They related to Jesus how after his crucifixion that he had been laid in a tomb only to come up missing a few days later. They were so disillusioned and confused. Even though they were taught the Old Testament prophesies they still were lost and unaware of what the future was all about. So they were headed back to Emmaus to pick up where they left off, virtual prisoners in an enemy occupied country. Not in any way good but familiar. Not too challenging, but it was what they had grown use to accepting.

Sound at all familiar?

That's relapse. It starts gradually, subtly. It starts by going back to what is old and familiar.

[27] And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.

Principle 7: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and to gain the power to follow His will.

It is a sign to us that He is still the same, though He has passed into the resurrection glory, that He still goes back to the old familiar Scripture which He had learned beside His mother's knee.

[28] Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther.

[29] But they constrained Him, saying, "Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent." And He went in to stay with them.

[30] Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them, that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.

[31] Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight.

[32] And they said to one another, "Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?"

There are several ways that they might have recognized Jesus in the breaking of bread:

· The way He took the place of host with "the quiet air of majesty"

· The way He gave the blessing over the meal they would eat

· The pierced hands that gave them the bread

However it was, whether by word or hand, they felt irresistibly that this was He. Some little action, some dear familiar trait, told them in a flash this was the Christ.

Even when they didn't know it was Jesus, even when they didn't believe He was risen from the dead, their heart still burned because of the ministry of God's Word and of Jesus, the Living Word of God.