Humility

We could all use more of it - especially me! Check out these and be challenged.

"God, give me a deep humility, a well-guided zeal, a burning love and a single eye, and then let men or devils do their worst!" - George Whitefield

"The way of the Christian leader is not the way of upward mobillity in which our world has invested so much, but the way of downard mobility ending on the cross...It is not a leadership of power and control, but a leadership of powerlessness and humility in which the suffering servant of God, Jesus Chrsit, is made manifest...I am speaking of a leadership in which power is constantly abandoned in favor of love." - Henri Nouwen, In the Name of Jesus

What does it mean to be humble?

AA and the gospel: the GOOD

(Just as a note, I do not claim this to be the final statement on the relationship between AA and the gospel. I approach this humbly knowing that my experience is only one. But, this is my experience, so consider it and refine my thoughts.)
For Christians that have struggled with addiction or who consider themselves alcoholics, AA offers lots of positive resources. First of all, the group support and identification are unmatched. The Christian that is coming off of drugs has likely had many experiences that your average believer will not understand. Regular church-goes will probably be scared by some of the things they learn about the pasts of their addicted friends! Therefore, AA brings together lots of people from different backgrounds that have had the same, terrible relationship with alcohol and can identify with each other. This identification, that the struggler is not alone, is possibly the greatest strength of AA.

The AA’s at the meetings have invaluable experience. Many of those in the halls had been drinking alcoholically for an obscene number of years, and yet they have found a way to put down the drink; in a sense, they have figured out how to cut of the hand that causes them to sin. The AA’s then have amazing practical advice on how to stop drinking that others in the church just will not be equipped with. This helps the Christian that struggles because they realize, “if this guy made it, I can too!” AA’s are also very supportive and make themselves available whenever possible, because they know how difficult it is to break free from addiction.

The number of AA meetings available is another strength of the program. In my city, Portsmouth, there are at least 3 meetings a day that the alcoholic can attend – morning, noon, and night. What church can offer such help? While many churches may have one midweek meeting, AA provides help, encouragement, and support every day of the week, 365 days a year.

One very important part of the upside of AA is it's teaching. Much of the teaching that is from the Big Book (which is like the bible of AA) is from the real bible. When going through "the steps," members go and repent to those that they have hurt, confess their sins to another and to help others along the way. Much of what was originally intended for AA came out of the new testament proverbs in the book of James. While you may hear different perspectives if you go to a meeting that seem anti-christian, the core of practice that is recognized in AA is based on biblical teaching and does not contradict biblical teaching.

One controversial component of AA is that whenever someone speaks, they say their name and then that they are an alcoholic. This has positive and negative effects but I’ll look only at the positives right now. Every Christian knows that they are sinners in need of a Savior. But alcoholics, Christian and not, have a poor memory. After being sober for a certain amount of time, they tend to forget just how bad it had gotten when they were in the midst of their addiction. They put on rose-colored glasses and tend to fall back into their old ways – often into a worse predicament than before. Verbally reminding oneself how broken you really are, how totally corrupt and disobedient they are in their flesh, helps the Christian to draw near to the throne of grace to receive grace and find mercy in times of need.

So should the Christian that struggles with addiction or alcohol look for help in AA? Absolutely. They can find strength and encouragement there and, as we’ll see later, they also have a great opportunity to be salt and light. This was a brief outline of the highlights of positives that can be found in AA. There are many more positives, these were the highlights. Should you recommend your Christian friends to AA if they struggle with alcoholism? Yes. Have no fear about it, God can use AA to help them.

AA and the gospel

As a member of Alcoholics Anonymous, I want to take the next few entries to look at the relationship between AA and the gospel of Jesus Christ. I want to address questions like: Is AA a christian organization? Is AA a good group? Should I join AA if I am a Christian struggling with alcohol addiction? Should I recommend members of my church to AA for support? Is AA anti-christian? I want to look at these and more as I analyze the relationship between Jesus and the members of AA. For the record, if Jesus were around today, you'd find Him hanging around the halls of AA, but maybe not for the same reasons we do!

Why this blog is called "refined thoughts"

It's a funny name, isn't it? My thoughts are not very "refined" in the traditional sense, so why did I call it refined thoughts? Well, it is because these thoughts are in the process of being refined. That's one of the points of a blog, right? To bounce ideas, concepts and visions off of others so that our thoughts and lives can be refined? Well, that is the purpose of this blog, anyway. Along those lines, please consider my writing and respond. Be angry, appreciative, devisive, or any other emotion. Let my thoughts refine yours as you refine mine along the way.

the flow of H. Upman smoke

The river flows forward
but the blowing wind keeps us back.
My teeth clench a cigar tightly
with smoke clouding the cloudless sky.
An oar in my hand, and also in my friend's, behind.
Or maybe a spear, as they would have had,
in New England on the river when leaves turn red.

My head is dizzy
but my lungs are full of life -
we are men.
I feel like a Native
as the river moves us on.

Mountains before us and also behind:
an adventure in every direction.
Maybe the West is gone,
but discovery seems to be around the bend,
under that rock,
behind the tree,
down stream ..
within our grasp.

As men we explore together,
with life in our hearts.
We are men that have come alive again.