Can you ever quit doing recovery work? What if you have ten years of sobriety? Or twenty? I love the way Dr. Milton Magness says it: “You might outgrow addiction, but you’ll never outgrow recovery.” Let me use an analogy. Imagine that you are climbing a 14,000-foot mountain. The more you climb and the higher…
God promised King Hezekiah, “I will add 15 more years to your life” (2 Kings 20:6). If you had a guarantee of 15 more years, what would you do with that promise? Let me suggest a few things. I give you 15 ideas for 15 years. Make your own list. Be proactive with your life…
It happened on April 14, 1912, at 11:40 p.m. The unsinkable did the unthinkable. The RMS Titanic sank 2.5 miles to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Of the 2,208 people aboard, about 1,500 died in the icy waters. But 712 survived. The most famous of the survivors was Molly Brown, who lived another 20…
On March 2, 1775, Patrick Henry spoke at St. John’s Church in Richmond, Virginia. He offered this famous line: “I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death.” We should all cherish liberty as much as Patrick Henry did. Slaves to our addictions, we have…
I recently came across a little verse in one of the least quoted books of the Bible. John, one of the early followers of Christ, was checking up on the development of new believers. Word came back to John. Notice his response to that report: “It has given me great joy to find some of…
Mr. Potato Head was invented by George Lerner in 1949, and distributed widely by Hasbro. The new children’s toy was an overnight success. And anything that is a success is worth talking about. Within three years, the world had met Mr. Potato Head. In 1952, it became the first toy advertised on national television. Anything…
What is recovery? The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) defines recovery as “a process of change through which individuals improve their health and wellness, live a self-directed life, and strive to reach their full potential.” The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) offers a slightly different definition. They write, “Recovery is an…
There are several ways to burn calories. Swim one hour and you’ll burn 250 calories. By riding a bike for an hour, you can burn another 600. Walking an hour will burn 300 more. If that’s not enough, try beating your head against a wall. Seriously. If you strike your head against a wall for…
Looking for a good laugh? Consider these nuggets of wisdom from the great Mark Twain. Better yet, let’s consider some even deeper truths from King Solomon. I love to read. Some of my favorite topics are history, theology, philosophy, politics, biographies, and sports. I enjoy the classics – the works of Tolstoy, Dickens, Twain, and…
If you want an in-depth description of the addiction cycle, read the works of men who are much smarter than me – such as Milton Magness and Patrick Carnes. If you are a simple man like me, the following description may make sense. As I look back over the decades in which I lived in…