Father , as I get ready to read what YOU have done for me in the last 7 years of my life .I ask YOU to forgive us , wash us, and cleanse us ÃÃàfrom anything we did today that was not pleasing to YOU.<br /> I confess that my ways are not the right ways and that I donate always do what is pleasing in YOUR sight <br /> I need YOU in every area of life. I pray for YOUR guidance , direction , and ÃÃàunderstanding during this opportunity, to share the LOVE , GRACE and MERCY ÃÃàgiven to me , through YOUR SON , JESUS CHRIST.ÃàOpen the ears of the people , prepare theirÃàhearts , and pour out the power of the HOLY SPIRIT on all of us .<br /> May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable and pleasing to YOU ....my ROCK and my REDEEMER!!!KING JESUS .. YOU are the ANSWER!!!!!!!!!!..<br /> in JESUS NAME we pray.and ÃÃàeverybody in agreement says : Amen.ÃÃà<br /> <br /> Hello friends , my name is Keith and I am a grateful and thankful Christian in recovery and I struggle with pride .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> Which brings me to my first scripture<br /> ÃÃàRomans 7 ; 18 For I know that in me [ that is my flesh ] nothing good dwells ; for to will is present with me , but how to perform what is good I don't do.ÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> It all started when I was about 13 , I had been growing up without a father and I had been growing up with a alcoholic mother who was not showing me or giving me what I needed as a kid . After I had been dealing with this stuff , I decided turn to drugs <br /> This destroyed , ruined , and crushed my life.ÃÃà<br /> ÃÃàThese drugs turned me into a person that was arrogant, self centered ,ÃÃàselfish , prideful ,ÃÃàand just didnÃÃât care about anyone or really want to care about anyone , BUT myself.ÃÃà<br /> The drugs were satisfying at the time , but over time , this is what they turned me into . I did not have any kind of relationship with GOD and I didnt want any kind of relationship with GOD ,ÃÃàÃÃàbecause I knew everything ,ÃÃàI could handle anything and you couldnt tell meÃÃànothing ,because I knew everything .!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> My attitude was not good , I had a bad temper ,ÃÃàI broke things andÃÃàhad no problem fighting.ÃÃà<br /> I had become someone I didnt want to accept , I had become someone I didnt want to know and I had become someone out of control..ÃÃà<br /> <br /> I was a person who had lots of friends , but I didnÃÃât know how to be a friend ,ÃÃà<br /> I was a person who always had a girlfriend , but I never knew how to be faithful to her ,ÃÃà<br /> I was a person who always had money , but never paid the bills ,ÃÃà<br /> I was a person who had a Mother , but didnt know how to be a son ,<br /> I was a person who had all the answers , but never knew any of the questionsÃÃàÃÃà<br /> <br /> Now we will fast forward about 20 years and where these drugs took me . When I hit my bottom , I hit bottom like I fell out of a 100 story building . Drugs had taken me to a place I hope I do not ever go back to. My bottom happen on February 14 , 2002 ..ÃÃàÃÃàI walked into a check cashing store and robbed them of $ 4,000 dollars , walked out and drove away in my car .ÃÃà<br /> After I spent the money I became homeless , living out of my car .ÃÃà<br /> These drugs had turned me into someone I didnt know , they turned me into someone I didnt like , and they turned me into a monster .ÃÃà<br /> I couldnt even believe what I had done , I couldnt believe what I had become, ÃÃàI didnt like myself , I didnt love myself , and I hatedÃÃàmyself and hated what I had done ,ÃÃàand I needed help.ÃÃà<br /> I was at my bottom and I was ready to change . I was sick and tired of being sick and tired ,I needed something different in my life , I needed something to change , andÃÃàI knew it was time to change.ÃÃà<br /> After about 3 weeks of being homeless and living out of my car I found a homeless shelter called St. MatthewsÃÃàHouse in NaplesÃÃà, FL. and they took me in .ÃÃà<br /> I was a mess ,ÃÃàI was scared , and I was at my bottom.ÃÃà<br /> This bottom was dark , coldÃÃàand lonely ! ÃÃà<br /> Never , ever in a million years did I think drugs would take to this dark , cold and lonely place.<br /> <br /> While at this homeless shelter I found this Church called the Tree of Life right down the streetÃÃàfrom the shelter and attended this place for the first time , when I walked in there something happen!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> ÃÃàThis was the something I had been looking for my whole life , as they started to sing and started to recognize GOD in this place , and felt this presence of love , peace ÃÃà, and hope come over me that I had neverÃÃà,ever ,ever felt before . This presence was the ANSWER I was looking for my entire life .ÃÃà<br /> I was already saved , but rededicated my life to JESUS on that day and was baptized into the HOLY SPIRItÃÃà, and my life has never been the same since .<br /> ÃÃà<br /> I continued to go there and I was baptized and went to the Bible studies and I got involved with the Church and started doing things that I had never done before . This brought to me the love , and the peace , and the hope that I had been looking for my whole entire life .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> JUST LIKE THAT MY LIFE HAD CHANGED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> I needed a job , so I went to the daily pay service called Able bodyÃÃà{ I still had my car at this time andÃÃàthis was a benefit that would help me } and they sent me to Shelton Jaguar and Porsche to work that day as a car detailer . I was excited , and I was ready to go to work !!!!!!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> As the day goes by ,ÃÃàeverything goes great andÃÃàthey ask for me back the next day , and the next day , and the next dayÃÃà. Finally , they decided they wanted to hire me full time and put me on the pay roll . Now this is a place that sells $ 100, 000 dollar cars and $200,000ÃÃàdollar cars . And not only was I cleaning and detailing these cars, but I was also driving them. GOD had given me a job that I had a hard time believing that IÃÃàhad , because I had only been in recoveryÃÃàfor about a week , and I was still living at the shelter . Things were coming together , I was excited , I was happy ,ÃÃàand I was satisfied with everything that was happening in my recovery and everything that GOD was doing in this new life I was living with HIM.ÃÃà<br /> <br /> Now about 1 month goes by and one of the salesman at this job GOD had given me , happen to ownedÃÃà4 apartmentsÃÃàand he was renting 1 of those apartments and I over heard him telling someone he had to go show it to someone so the following week I had asked him about it and he said they didnt want it . To make along story short , he ended up giving me the apartment . This was the icing on the cake , everything in my life was changing and the answer was JESUS CHRIST..ÃÃà<br /> After this , GOD had continued to show HIS grace and HE continued to give HIS grace over the next 5 months of this awesome , incredible ,ÃÃànew life HE had given to me . He had given me a second chance . My life finally had purpose in it , but there was one more thing I needed to take care of and I knew I had to take care of it before it was to late .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> Let me go back a little ways in my testimony , when I robbed this check cashing store I was never caught for it .ÃÃà<br /> Now as I was saying 5 months had gone by and it was July and and my life was becoming something awesome , I had this incredible job , I had a beautiful apartment and I had 5 months in recovery ,<br /> something I thought would never ever , happen!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I really didnt want to turn myself in , I really didnt want to go to prison , and I really wasnÃÃât ready for prisonÃÃà, because everything was going the way I had hoped for .ÃÃàBut this one thing that was becoming a stumbling block in my recovery , I knew I had to pay the consequences for .<br /> <br /> So this is what I did , IÃÃàprayed one night and ask GOD to help me in this situationÃÃà, I asked HIM for something to happen in thisÃÃàdark , cold and lonlely place in my life created through my chemical addiction and I asked HIM to fix what I had broken. The next day , YES, THE NEXT DAY!!!!!!!!!!! HE answered that prayer. I was pulled over while driving a car from work ,ÃÃà5 minutes later ,they said they had a warrant for my arrest for armed robbery and I was arrested . God had answered my prayer just like that .ÃÃà<br /> I went to court , the county suggested 10 years , butÃÃàGOD had a different agenda . <br /> I ended up serving 5 yearsÃÃàand here I almost 8 years later and still in my recovery, with my METSUDA , my FORTRESSS , JESUS CHRIST , the SAVIOR of my life , the TEACHER of my life and the PROTECTION of my life . GOD delivered me into what I had asked for just like that .ÃÃà<br /> Now when I went to prison I had been in my recovery for about 5months , and was not going to stop living this new, brilliant and hopeful life, JESUS has given to me..<br /> just because I was on my way to prison for 5 years .<br /> My recovery is the most important thing in my life and instead of this being a stumbling block in my recoveryÃÃà, right here , right NOW !!!, this was an opportunity to grow in my recovery , to draw closer to my JESUS , and to understand HIS will in my LIFE..<br /> And this is exactly what I did .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> As I drew closer to JESUS , I learned more and more how to live with HIM as the LORD of my life .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> This is what I did , I enrolled in to a 12 step program called 12 steps with JESUS CHRISTÃÃàand after I completed that course , I enrolled into another 12 step program Overcoming addictions and afterÃÃàI completed that course ,<br /> I enrolled into another 12 step program called Bridge builders ,<br /> completed that course , <br /> that course was so good I enrolled in it again . <br /> My relationship was growing with JESUS , JESUS had become my Father I never had , JESUS had become the love I never had , JESUS had become the peace I never had , JESUS had become the hope I never had , JESUS had become the faith I never had , in fact JESUS CHRISt had become Everything I needed in my life and in my recovery , even while I was payingÃÃàthe consequences for what I had done .<br /> <br /> Now when I was released from prison on February 1, 2007 I knew I needed to continue on this path that I was on and had decided that I needed to be around people that were in love with JESUSÃÃàandÃÃàwere in recovering just like I was so I called my Pastor about a year before I was getting out and told him I needed a structure environmentÃÃàto go to and would he help me .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> ÃÃàOver these years of my recoveryÃÃàmy Pastor , Pastor Andrew Delong and his congregation Tree of Life had been supporting me , in fact when I went to court in 2002 , he came to court while I was locked up and he had spoken in favor of me , about how I had been in recovery the last 5 months and how I had changed my lifeÃâÃæ ÃÃà<br /> <br /> When we talked in the beginning of 2006 ,ÃÃà<br /> Pastor Andrew suggested I come to this program called the LIFE <br /> this is exactly what I did and graduated ÃÃàthe program after 11 months on Dec 25, ÃÃà2007<br /> <br /> WhenÃÃàI was releasedÃÃàI knew I needed a support group and GOD provided one . This support group is Celebrate Recovery , this place is a place I am supported, accountable , loved ,encouraged to keep pressing on and keep pressing in , and keep living this new life been given through JESUS CHRISt ,no matter what the cost .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> LivingÃÃàthis program is not just going there once a week to get a fix for 3 hours , BUT livingÃÃàthis programÃÃàis a daily opportunity to be in the presence of GOD Almighty , because ifÃÃàyou do what JESUS tells you to do ,ÃÃà<br /> <br /> YOUR LIFE will CHANGE forever ÃâÃæ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> The steps that have been the my favorite steps are steps 11 andÃÃà12<br /> <br /> I seek through prayer and meditation to improve my conscious contact with GOD as I understand HIM praying only for the knowledge of HIS will for me and the power to carry that out . <br /> Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, I try to carry this message to others and to practice these principles in all my affairs . <br /> These 2 steps are the most important steps of my life<br /> WHY ??? YOU MAY ASK !!!!!!!!well this is whyÃâÃæ<br /> ÃÃàthey help me come in to the presence of GOD ,they help me give away what JESUS so freely gave to me ,they are special , because JESUS paid the price in full for all my sins , all my mistakes , and all my foolishness I lived in for so many years.<br /> <br /> <br /> JESUS has changed my life 180 degrees . He has turned my relationships with others into healthy relationships . I actually have a relationship with my Mom today , <br /> Im 40 ÃÃàyears young , <br /> I finally know how to be a son to my Mom , <br /> NOW IÃÃàcan call my Mom and just say hello , I love you . Mom , I care about youÃÃà,<br /> is there anything I can do for you ?<br /> I have a healthy relationship with both my Pastors today ,<br /> this is something that was unimaginable with the old Keith , but with the new Keith ,ÃÃàthese relationships are real to meÃÃà, and they are healthy to me , and they are necessary for me in my recovery .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> I would like to give a shout out and a call of honor to my Mom and my Grandma @ this time , who have been with me through this whole thing and stood by my side supporting , helping , and loving..ÃÃà<br /> Thanks MOM and Ma!!!;)))ÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> Some areas of my old life that JESUS has changed for me and has help me change through the 12 step programs and Celebrate Recovery ,ÃÃà<br /> areÃâÃæ<br /> JESUS has made me into a caring person ,ÃÃà<br /> JESUS has made me into a humble person ,<br /> JESUS has made me into a loving personÃÃà<br /> JESUS has made me into a compassionate person ,ÃÃà<br /> JESUS has made me into a someone that can only be DESCRIBED ÃÃàthrough HIM.ÃÃà<br /> KING JESUS is the ANSWER to everything that has changed my life today !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> NOW I would like to share with you just some of the great benefits in my life today , that have been made possible , but seemed impossible a long time ago ..LOL <br /> ÃÃà<br /> <br /> 1. I have an intimate relationship with my JESUS today.ÃÃà<br /> 2. IÃÃàhave 7 years ofÃÃàrecovery in my life today.ÃÃà<br /> 3. I have an awesome relationship with my Mom todayÃÃàÃÃà<br /> 4. I understand how to be a son to my Mom today.ÃÃà<br /> 5. I have a great job today.ÃÃà<br /> 6. I wake up with a clear mind and a clean conscious today.ÃÃà<br /> 7. I have friends in JESUS today.ÃÃà<br /> 8. I amÃÃàthe Coordinator of our RPM REVOLUTIONARY PRAYER MINISTRY<br /> @ the TREE of LIFE today.ÃÃà<br /> 9. I went on a missions trip in to Guatemala ÃÃàin dec 2007 .<br /> 10. I have many , manyÃÃàmore to share with you all ,but not tonight ,<br /> but I will share with you the greatest benefit of them all .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> And that is I am FORGIVEN..ÃÃàÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> Now if you want what I have today , and <br /> are willing to surrender the things in your life which have been weighing you down <br /> for so long , whatever they may be , we all have them .ÃÃà<br /> ÃÃàWe here at Celebrate call them hurts, habits , and hang ups .ÃÃà<br /> <br /> ÃÃàI am here today to let you know God loves you!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> I am here today to encourage you that this program works !!!!!!!!!!, if you let it?ÃÃà<br /> <br /> I am here tonight to show you that JESUS is REAL ,<br /> ÃÃàand the ANSWERÃÃàto your lifeÃâÃæ..<br /> <br /> JESUS understands , JESUS knows what you going through, and JESUS is here today with you right here ,right now !!!<br /> HE wants ÃÃàto bring you , carry u and walk with you through WHATEVER it is that you might need HELP with or be struggling with ..!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> so in closing , let's wrap this thing upÃâÃæ.ÃÃà<br /> <br /> This new life JESUS has given to me is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> and my favorite scripture is , and alwayz will be..<br /> Philippians 3;13-14ÃÃà<br /> <br /> I hope you all will be encouraged with it !!!!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> Brethrens , I do not count myself to have apprehended ,<br /> but this one thing that I do ,<br /> I forget about the things which are behind me , <br /> and I reach forward for the things which are ahead ofÃÃàme ,<br /> I press on toward the goal for the prize of the calling of GOD in JESUS CHRISTÃâÃæ<br /> <br /> this is another translation that <br /> might speak a little bit clearer to u.<br /> .ÃÃà<br /> I'm not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made.<br /> But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. <br /> Friends, don't get me wrong: <br /> By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, <br /> but I've got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward to Jesus.<br /> I'm off and running, and I'm not turning back. <br /> The Message BibleÃÃà<br /> <br /> THANK YOU for listening ÃÃà,hearing ,and opening your HEARTS to how JESUS CHRIST has changed my life . ÃÃà<br /> <br /> HE can do the sameÃÃàthingÃÃàfor you ,<br /> IF you are willing to confess ,ACCEPT, and receive HIM as LORD and SAVIOR of your life.<br /> HIS FORGIVENESS is real, true, and essential for recoveryÃâÃæÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> . I love you all thank you all !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ÃÃà<br /> AMEN.ÃÃà<br /> <br /> <br /> thanks ,<br /> RPM <br /> (Revolutionary Prayer Ministry)<br /> ÃÃàCoordinater,<br /> Keith Crandell 2009! ÃïÃÿÃü<br /> <br /> <br /> <br />
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