Sanity Starts With Strength

Here’s a bit of Scripture that’ll be guiding our discussion this morning…

1God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 2Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah
Psalm 46:1-3 ESV

Over the next few days, 6 to be exact, I’m going to discuss the topic of SANITY and I’d LOVE for you to join the conversation, either here in the comments section or leaving comments on Facebook or even tweeting @nrscott. We’ve ALL got a story and it’s a story that NEEDS to be told, NEEDS to be heard. So, without further adieu…SANITY

Following Lesson 4 of the Celebrate Recovery curriculum the S in SANITY stands for STRENGTH. What is STRENTH…and for that matter, what is SANITY?

INSANITY is doing the same thing again and again and again expecting different results.
SANITY is making healthy, rational decisions based on truth.
STRENGTH is physical power or energy.

Let’s talk for a moment how they’re all related: insanity, sanity, and strength.

I don’t know about you, but I have a story that, at one point in my life, I wasn’t willing to share due to an insurmountable degree of guilt and shame. As a child I experienced physical, sexual, and emotional abuse. As a teenager I experienced abandonment. As an adult I struggled with drugs, alcohol, and pornography. My life has been less than pretty. Let’s call it for what it is…a MESS. Thanks to Celebrate Recovery I know I’m not alone, I'm not the only one, and chances are YOUR life has been just as messy!

As a result of the crap I went through as a kid I grew up angry and resentful and bitter and didn’t know where to turn, where to go, who to talk to, or even what to say. So, as I grew up, I turned to ALL KINDS of things to try and cover up the pain of my past…fighting, drugs, alcohol, pornography, video games, relationships, more drugs, more alcohol…you get the picture. I was POWERLESS over my past. I couldn’t control it. I couldn’t contain it. I could only ignore it and that was only for a moment. Sound familiar?

I was experiencing INSANITY and didn’t even know it! I was caught up in a crazy cycle of dysfunction that led me time and time again to poor decision after poor decision. I was killing myself and hurting everyone around me. I had no STRENGTH, but I was convinced I was strong! I thought I was handling it on my own and doing a good job!

Principle 2: Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him, and that He has the power to help me recover.

Where was this Principle when I was growing up? If you’ve asked yourself something similar, you understand the astronomical IMPORTANCE of Celebration Station (PreK5-5th) and The Landing (6th-12th).

Look back to the very top of this post and reread Psalm 46:1-3. Don’t keep reading. Stop. Go back and read.

Replace “our” with “my”
Replace “we” with “I”
Make it personal. He is a PERSONAL God. He WANTS you to make it personal.

SANITY might as well of been a foreign language. I didn’t understand it. I didn’t even know it existed until the day I finally surrendered my life to Jesus. My life wasn’t instantly changed, but my OUTLOOK was. I finally realized the void I was seeking to fill, that giant gaping hole in my life was meant for Jesus and everything else simply couldn’t measure up…which is why I kept having to go back again and again and again and again (notice the cycle).

I realized I didn't HAVE to be strong and it didn’t matter because I wasn’t STRONG ENOUGH anyways! Jesus WAS and IS my strength! Whatever it is I’ve faced in the past I can let go and turn over to him. He gives me peace. He gives me rest. He gives me STRENGTH. I was trying to carry a burden that wasn’t meant for MY shoulders which is why it weighed so heavy on me. Jesus died on the cross so I wouldn’t have to. He took it FOR me. He died AS me.

When I hold on to the pain of my past, all I’m saying is, “I’m sorry God, but the cross just isn’t enough.”

You don’t have to be afraid.
You don’t have to live in shame.
You don’t have to stay where you are.

Though the world around you may seem to be crashing down and crumbling out from under you, remember God is in CONTROL. He is YOUR very present help. He is YOUR strength.

There’s ALWAYS hope.

Maybe today’s the day you decide to take a step toward SANITY. It starts by realizing your POWERLESSNESS and God’s miraculous way of transforming your weakness into your greatest STRENGTH because He IS that strength! The first step toward SANITY is trusting in HIS ability to bring you through whatever it is your facing.

Will you trust Him?