~THANKSGIVING ~ Let's Remember to Give Thanks!

~THANKSGIVING ~ Let's Remember to Give Thanks! Welcome to the November issue of The Recovery Report, the official newsletter of Faithful & True. The m...
Author: Joella Rodgers
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~THANKSGIVING ~ Let's Remember to Give Thanks! Welcome to the November issue of The Recovery Report, the official newsletter of Faithful & True. The month of November serves as a good reminder to us all to take time to give thanks for the many blessings in our lives... our spouse and family, our freedom, our military troupes, our job, our health and all of the daily things that we all-toooften seem to take for granted. The following are two of our Thanksgiving favorites that we would like to share with you: "To be grateful is to recognize the love of God in everything He has given us -- and He has given us everything. Every breath we draw is a gift of His love, every moment of existence is a grace, for it brings with it immense graces from Him." - Thomas Merton (Thoughts on Solitude)

A Wonderful Thanksgiving Story A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." There were only a few coins in the hat. A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words. Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?" The man said, "I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way." I wrote: "Today is a beautiful day, but I cannot see it." Both signs told people that the boy was blind. But the first sign simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people that they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective? Moral of the Story: Be thankful for what you have. Be creative. Be innovative. Think differently and positively. When life gives you a 100 reasons to cry, show life that you have 1000 reasons to smile. Face your past without regret. Handle your present with confidence. Prepare for the future without fear. Keep the faith and drop the fear. The most beautiful thing is to see a person smiling. And even more beautiful, is knowing that you are the reason behind it! Happy Thanksgiving to all! ~Dr. Joseph Mercola

Don't miss this month's feature article, Sexually Addicted Couples Can Grow Together Spiritually. As we celebrate and give thanks for the many blessings in our lives, it gives us great hope knowing that not only is it possible for sexually addicted men to grow individually, but to grow spiritually with their spouse as a couple through their healing journey. We are grateful for our many clients, family and friends and we wish you and your family a blessed Thanksgiving!

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Scan the QR Code above to visit the Faithful & True website where you will find helpful information and registration for our 3 -Day Intensive Workshops, info regarding our Counseling Services, the Faithful & True online bookstore, The Men of Valor Podcasts, hosted by Dr. Mark Laaser and co-host, Randy Evert and other healing resources.

Are you looking for books by Mark or Debbie Laaser? Then you've come to the right place! Simply scan the QR Code above to visit the Faithful & True online book-store where you will find all of the books, workbooks, CDs and e-products by Dr. Mark Laaser and his wife, Debbie Laaser. Same day shipping and free shipping for orders over $50!

LISTEN TO THE MEN OF VALOR PROGRAM Join Dr. Mark Laaser and cohost, Randy Evert each week for their online radio show, THE MEN OF VALOR PROGRAM. The Men of Valor Programs are 25 - 30 minute, free downloadable podcasts available at faithfulandtrue.com and also on iTunes. Each show is dedicated to helping men lead a life of sexual purity and moral accountability. We invite you to check out THE MEN OF VALOR PROGRAM.

Listen to THE MEN OF VALOR PROGRAM We recently celebrated our 100th podcast of THE MEN OF VALOR PROGRAM and we would like to thank all of our loyal listeners who have joined us along the way. The responses from our listeners have been very encouraging and we appreciate that we have both men and women listening to us on a regular basis. The podcasts are available on our website: faithfulandtrue.com and on iTunes. Questions and comments for Dr. Mark Laaser and co-host, Randy Evert are welcome via email at [email protected] . Thanks for listening!

Is Sexual Purity a Problem... an Addiction? Our MEN OF VALOR 3-DAY INTENSIVE WORKSHOPS host men from across the country and, in some cases, around the world, at our counseling center in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Sexual addiction is at an epidemic level in our world today with easy access to pornography on smart phones, iPads, laptops, etc. If you are struggling with sexual behavior issues, our Men of Valor 3-Day Intensive Workshop is the answer that you have been seeking to get you on your healing journey to recovery. To register, visit our workshop page at faithfulandtrue.com or call 952.746.3880. Here is the remaining 2014 MEN OF VALOR 3-Day Intensive Workshop schedule: December 11 - 13, 2014 (Registration is still available) Here is our SPRING 2015 Men of Valor Workshop Schedule: January 22 - 24, 2015 February 19 - 21, 2015 March 19 - 21, 2015 April 16 - 18, 2015 Visit our website at faithfulandtrue.com or call us at 952.746.3880 to register. Check our website for the 2015 dates for The Women's Journey Workshops and Couples 3Day Workshop too!

The greatest miracle of recovery is a deepening relationship with God. As sex addicts grow individually, they must bring their spiritual growth to their partners and learn how to grow together spiritually as a couple. In early recovery, the sexually addicted couple can establish a "spiritual quest" contract, pledging to go to church together, pray and read Scripture together, or have family devotions. The contract should be monitored by Christian friends, a support network, or the couple's pastor. Couples must be aware that either partner could be a spiritual abuse victim. If so, participating in any religious practice may remind them of past pain. One sex addict, a minister's son, was sexually and emotionally abused by his father and was forced to be at church many hours every week. All of these dynamics make it very hard for him to go into a church building. For years he was unable to tell his wife why he didn't want to go to church. Without that information, she believed he didn't care, and her anger only drove him farther away from church. A spiritual contract helps a couple to build trust. They commit to each other and to God to be honest and faithful to each other. Sometimes, to seal this vow, a couple officially rededicates their marriage vows in a ceremony. This spiritual contract should include spiritual discipline and the commitment to pray together, study Scripture, and participate in a worshipping community. A spiritual contract can only proceed when there have been three acts of surrender; 1. The husband and wife must surrender their lives to Christ. 2. The husband and wife must surrender each other's lives to Christ. Neither one of them has any power to control the other and must trust that all of a partner's actions are between him or her and God. 3. The husband and wife must surrender their marriage to Christ. They are powerless without God's help. Finally, a couple needs to have a vision together as a couple. So many couples can be divided by pursuing individual visions. If I have a vision of my calling, and my wife, Deb, has a vision of her calling, what we really have is two visions and most probably division. If I pursue mine and Deb hasn't fully embraced it, when I go off to pursue it she may be resentful. It has

given us a great deal of joy to ask God the simple question, "What is your calling, plan and purpose for us as a couple?" Couples who can develop a vision agree to become allies in the journey. We live in a culture that has been, and continues to be, wounded by divorce and broken families. Sexually addicted couples who survive their pain and rebuild their marriages have much to teach us about the joys of becoming one flesh, breaking the cycle of abuse, and rebuilding families. Sexually addicted couples who choose to heal their relationships and build new and healthier ones break the cycle of sins that have been passed down, as the Bible says, for generations.