NACR Daily Meditation for Sunday, May 4, 2003

4 May 2003 07:00:01 -0000

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NACR Daily Meditation for Sunday, May 4, 2003

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No more lying then. Everyone must tell the truth to his fellow believers
because we are all members together in the body of Christ. 

Ephesians 4:25

Honesty is essential to recovery. Honesty is essential to intimacy. But
honesty is not easy.

We were not created to be isolated, independent creatures. We were created
to be interdependent. We need each other. And in order for us to be helped
by others and to be helpful to others, we need to practice honesty. That
means we must learn how to talk to each other about our thoughts and our
feelings and our needs. We must learn to talk about our struggles and failures,
about our dreams and our successes.

Honesty is the soil in which intimate relationships grow. It creates the
possibility of being known and loved for who we really are. But it is also
full of risks. If we tell the truth about ourselves, people may not listen.
They may not want to know. They may not understand. They may judge and reject.
They may dislike us. They may give us simple answers to unanswerable questions.
They may repeat what we have said to others.

We hesitate to be honest because we have experienced these things in the
past. Our feelings may have been minimized. Our thoughts may have been devalued.
Our reality may have been denied. But in order to grow healthy relationships,
in order to heal and recover, we need to begin to take risks. Learning honesty
will be a process for us. It will not come quickly. But as we practice the
disciplines of honesty we gradually become more secure in telling the truth.

I am tired of lying, when it would be just as easy to tell the truth.
But I am afraid of honesty, Lord.
It's not as easy as it sounds.
Help me to pursue honesty today.
Help me to be honest with you.
Help me to be honest with myself.
Help me to build a community of faith
where honesty is the norm.
Build in me a capacity for truth.
Amen.

Copyright 1991 Dale and Juanita Ryan 

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ROOTED IN GOD'S LOVE (the book from which these meditations are taken, is back in print! To order call our office at 714-529-6227 ext 111 or order online at

http://www.nacronline.com/dox/store/dox/nacrbooks.htm

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Meditations from previous days can be viewed at:  

http://two.pairlist.net/pipermail/nacrmed/

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Plan now to join us at STEPS 2003, a national conference for Christians in recovery jointly sponsored by the NACR and Overcomers Outreach. It will be held June 26-28, 2003 in Southern California. Plenary speakers are Steve Arterburn, David Stoop, Rich Buhler, Sandra Wilson, Mark Laaser and Ann Kiemel Anderson. Over 45 workshops. Support groups. Specialized gatherings. And lots of fellowship and support for your recovery. Details as they become available and online registration will be at:

 http://www.nacronline.com/dox/steps2003.htm

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