Living Well Together

  Living life … ‘SURVIVING’ 

(check ALL that apply -

 TAKE SURVEY BELOW!)

Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms and/or Obsessive Compulsive Behaviors

• Addiction / Substance Abuse
• Eating Disorders
• Excessive Gambling / Shopping
• Excessive Plastic Surgery
• Over-Exercising
• Diet Roller Coaster
• Other 

Emotional Challenges

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Low self-esteem
• Worthiness “not good enough”
• Grief / Despair
• Loneliness
• Assertiveness
• Negative Body Image
• Perfectionism
• Relational difficulties
• Other

Physical Challenges

• Chronic Pain
• Mental Illness
• Insomnia
• Heart Disease
• Any disease diagnosis
• Unhealthy Weight
• Other 

Feeling LOST ~ Searching For …

• Meaning of life
• Purpose in life
• Freedom from stress
• Receiving / Giving / Understanding LOVE
• Spiritual maturity
• Contentment / PEACE
• Other

What happens when we embark on a healing journey?

• Improved relationships with others
• Healthier relationship with food
• Improved physical health
• Healthy relationship with self
• Improved body image / self-acceptance
• Spiritual growth/maturity
• A more peaceful, contented life and so much more!

We break free from the darkness of barely surviving …

We embrace our power to THRIVE …

And we begin to ‘SHINE OUR LIGHT’ for all to see!

Are you ready to join us by taking the FIRST STEP to healing …

“We admitted we were powerless over our problems (fill in the _______ from ‘surviving’ list!), that our [lives] / [relationships] / [physical challenges] had become unmanageable.”

  The world thinks intimacy occurs in the dark but God says it happens in the light. Darkness is used to hide our hurts, faults, fears, failures, and flaws. But in the light we bring them all out into the open and admit who we really are.

“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so you can live together whole and healed.” ~ James 5:16a

In our coming together, we honor the group by releasing any judgement of personalities, preferences, interpretations, styles, or methods. We will concentrate on loving each other and fulfilling God’s purposes.

“Let there be real harmony … I plead with you to be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.” ~ 1 Corinthians 1:10 (NLT)

To ensure the loving standard of this fellowship, WE WILL …

1. Share our true feelings (authenticity)
2. Encourage each other (mutuality)
3. Support each other (sympathy)
4. Forgive each other (mercy)
5. Speak the truth in love (honesty)
6. Admit our weaknesses (humility)
7. Respect our differences (courtesy)
8. Not gossip (confidentiality)
9. Make group a priority (frequency)

“[We] are joined together with peace through the Spirit, so [let us] make every effort to continue together in this way.” ~ Ephesians 4:3 (NCV)

In our journey through the 12 steps, a spiritual awakening forms the purpose of healing our relationships with self, others, and God. To be free of addictions and unhealthy ways of coping with difficult life circumstances, we must be willing to go to any lengths to achieve this spiritual healing. 

1. We admitted that we were powerless over our problems [fill in the blank] and that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity (shining LIGHT into our lives!)
3. We made a decision to turn our wills and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
4. We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. We were entirely ready to have God remove these defects of character.
7. We humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings.
8. We made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. We continued to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
11. We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of his will for us and the power to carry it out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

 ( The Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous have been reprinted and adapted with the permission of Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc. (“A.A.W.S.”).  Permission to reprint and adapt the Twelve Steps does not mean that Alcoholics Anonymous is affiliated with this program. A.A. is a program of recovery from alcoholism only - use of A.A.’s Steps or an adapted version in connection with programs and activities which are patterned after A.A., but which address other problems, or use in any other non-A.A. context, does not imply otherwise. )

"Recovery is not for people who need it, it's for people who WANT it."

God grant me the serenity

To accept the things I cannot change;

Courage to change the things I can;

And wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;

Enjoying one moment at a time;

Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;

Taking, as He did, this sinful world

As it is, not as I would have it;

Trusting that He will make things right

If I surrender to His Will;

So that I may be reasonably happy in this life

And supremely happy with Him

Forever and ever in the next.

Amen.

  by Ginni Reiss Bradbury

"Life … the experiences, the traumas, the struggles … the ‘twigs’ that are found broken on the earth’s floor. I walk through life crushing them, the broken sticks of my past, those pieces of my being that have created who I am today. I disregard them, ignore their existence, pretend they aren’t there even though every step I take … ‘crunch’ … I hear the rustling, I feel the uneven ground beneath me, the painful steps poking at my bare feet. But I do nothing. I search for more even ground, a quieter space to walk, somewhere to exist without all the noise, without all the pain.  Masks are on, false identities are born, I try to embrace a life that feels more ‘doable’, an easier existence. To no avail…. The trying, the running, the surviving, the avoiding; I find myself broken and lying lost in the brush around me, no sense of self, no sense of purpose, no sense of being. I can’t run anymore, I am lost, the forest has become too dense. 

The time has come… The twigs are waiting, to be embraced as who I am, to be picked up and used to create the ‘nest’ that is ME. 

I stand in the open field, completely stripped of all facades, all armor has been shattered … I am naked, surrounded by green grass and the most beautiful wild flowers; purple, white, yellow, orange, all colors of the rainbow. My bare feet feel the cool dew beneath as my toes welcome the soft surface. I am all alone, I am exposed and yet I am not afraid. As I stroll through the field, I can see the twigs everywhere, those jagged edges that have been poking at me all these years but they don’t seem to hurt me anymore. I notice how unique they are, some are long and spikey, while others are very dark in color or larger in girth. Some are easily bendable, some more delicate and threatening to break. They are all so very different, each having a story to tell.  The collection begins … how many can a find? It’s an adventure, a scavenger hunt. The more I collect, the more beautiful the vision becomes. I am ready to let go of pretense, of who I am supposed to be … I am ready to embrace who I am. As I examine the ‘brush’ that is my life, I can see that independently each piece isn’t much. But as I begin to build the nest, to connect all the branches together, they are becoming something quite unique, something beautiful. Piece by piece I build … gently forming a safe place ‘within’ the battle wounds. The sharp edges aren’t poking me anymore because the nest has become a refuge, a home. I place the nest in the center of the field stepping back to embrace the awesomeness of its creation. Did I create that? Yes … I created that … my life IS that beautiful masterpiece. My heart is light and I’m so ready to climb into this welcoming place, where it’s warm, where I can be with all that is ME, feeling comfort in who I am and being grateful for all that has made this home. I no longer have to fight the battles of my past, I can live within them and embrace the strength they have created to hold me now. The healing has begun… "