September is the month that recognizes “recovery”. What does this mean? Quite simply, statistics show that last year alone over 20 million people endured some form of addiction in one form or another, as well as navigating the effects of living with mental health issues. Human sufferings are nothing new, yet for far too long many people have lived trying to hide addictions, mental stress, etc. while feeling that in their isolation they are alone, that no one knows or cares about the situation, or worse–there’s no hope. Living in a state of feeling trapped or isolated from loved ones is a bag of lies. That’s why I’m glad that someone somewhere declared the month of September to recognize struggles and bring awareness to those things that weigh people down. This awareness has been in effect for about 30 years.

I typed in my search engine “September is Recovery Awareness Month” and numerous sites popped up with great information that spells out the background of behaviors that lead individuals into unhealthy choices that affect minds and bodies. Quite honestly, help is available by numerous organizations in communities. The burden of finding help lies upon the one who is affected and willing to seek assistance. One of the best gems I know of personally that offers hope and freedom is Celebrate Recovery. Sometimes I think our ministry is the best kept secret in our county, when actually the opposite is our desire–to see men and women come into recovery to change lives that overflow into bettering the health of relationships, the family, the workplace, and inside church walls.

Livingston County has four Celebrate Recovery locations with Stockbridge as a nearby neighbor in Ingham County. Fowlerville and Pinckney groups meet on Tuesday evenings, The Naz in Brighton hosts on Mondays, Cornerstone Church in Brighton meets on Thursdays as well as Crossroads Church in Stockbridge that same night. All meetings are free and offer a safe environment for those who attend. Attention to safety and confidentiality for each attendee is of utmost importance to the success of Celebrate Recovery ministries which will celebrate 35 years of existence in 2026.

In Jesus’ own words that are recorded in John 10:10 He said “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Who is this thief? He is our adversary, satan, and his only role is destroying God’s people. He does his work with a lot of tools in his belt: pride, anger, lust, gambling, strife, greed, substance abuse, lying, cheating, gluttony, addictions,  laziness…the list of negative hammers trying to pound out everything that is good from God for us is loud, persistent, and often continuous until a person falls prey to his tactics, living in a state of no hope or despair.

We need not go far to see people who are consumed with partying too hard under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Visit a casino and witness people glued to chairs trying to make a big hit on a jackpot. Or, dine at a restaurant buffet and watch how many plates are refilled beyond what a body actually needs to be properly fed. Drive on our roads and experience road rage. Work alongside folks who irritate you and try to maintain composure when someone ticks you off.  Attend a sporting event and witness those who take the game a bit too seriously, yelling and screaming at coaches or players. Turn on news clips and hear how our leaders treat one another when disagreements on policy arise. No, we don’t need to look very far from our own homes to find dysfunction. But, the good news is we as individuals, families, and communities do not have to live like slaves to satan’s tactics because in Christ there is hope! There is healing! There is freedom! Yet–another “but here”–the latter things do not come without first surrendering our hurts and habits to the power of God and a willingness to change. In Celebrate Recovery we call that process “coming out of denial” and realizing that we are powerless to change, we aren’t God and only He can help us work on leaving destructive lives on a trash pile that is recycled to build new and healthy habits, even restoring relationships that formerly appeared hopeless to become stable.

You and I weren’t created to be people living under yokes of slavery caused by any negative behavior or habit that satan throws at us. On the contrary, you and I were created in the image of God which is all that is good, worthy, loved and valued. Exchanging deep habits or wounds is hard work, it’s not as easy as swapping out coins for currency bills at a bank, but the end results are worth more than silver or gold. Every person has something they struggle with; every person can find alternative ways to cope with those struggles. The choice is 1) will you cope with something that leaves you sick and tired or 2) will you cope with something that speaks of healing, freedom and healing.

I can’t think of a better scripture which highlights part of Jesus’ job description (as if He had one!) than Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners….”

Do you need some good news? Are you brokenhearted?  Do you feel like a captive by your own devices? Are you living under a cloak of darkness?

Recovery is possible. Recovery is in our community. Recovery is found in Jesus Christ.

Will you step out of denial? Will you exchange pride for humility? Are you willing to set a new course for yourself and your family?

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If you’d like more information about Celebrate Recovery, please call me at 517.223.9490. It’s the number of my church. Your message will be given to me and I or one of our leaders will call you.

“A person’s wisdom yields patience; it is to one’s glory to overlook an offense”.

(Proverbs 19: 11)

Isn’t this quite the statement considering what is a common thread of conversations in today’s culture–at every turn of comments on social media or televised news outlets–”someone is taking offense at “someone” or “something” that’s been said. While I don’t dismiss sincere mean spirited opinions, the bottomline for me is that we’re living, actually cultivating, a generation purposely “looking” at something to be offended by whether it’s from a person, an organization, or a business’ method of operating. 

Years ago when I was a child, I was with my parents on a Friday night; it was the evening of their mixed doubles bowling league. All the teams were made up from City of Saginaw folks. At this time in dad’s career, he had been promoted to a position that required him to supervise a small staff of people. On one Friday night, one of his newer employees brought his wife over to meet dad. After the introduction was made the wife innocently blurted out “Oh, you’re the boss my husband doesn’t like!” I can still remember how I felt when I heard the exchange. I am able to recall dad’s smile and chuckle. I don’t remember him giving her any type of response. He maintained his composure.

On the car ride home I couldn’t wait to ask my dad “how could she say such a thing!” and “aren’t you upset that she said that!” Dad was still calm, retained his composure and responded “not everyone likes their boss” along with “she probably didn’t realize what she was actually saying, maybe she was nervous”. That was my dad, quick to give everyone the benefit of the doubt rather than get angry over something that was trivial to him.

In the past two weeks American Eagle launched an ad promoting their blue jeans. Using Sydney Sweeney as their model for televised ads, they’ve come under some heavy scrutiny for their ad copy which says “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality and even eye color My jeans are blue.” 

I’ve seen the ad several times. I’m not offended. I don’t have blue eyes or blonde hair. I certainly don’t look like Miss Sweeney. I’m not offended. She looks beautiful in American Eagle’s jeans. Will I purchase a pair based on the ad? Most likely not; I’m not your typical American Eagle shopper at this point in my life.

A popular quote that has evolved in some Christian circles is “there’s a demon behind every bush”. While there’s absolute truth regarding spiritual warfare inside the Christian community, there is no biblical reference that supports this statement. So, I think we can compare quick tendencies to blaming satan for most of the negative behaviors in ourselves or others is akin to the same rapid offenses some people find in everyday conversations, speeches given by our variety of leaders, and in this case–an ad for blue jeans.

In my humble opinion there are more important matters to be offended by than a blue jean ad. For years I’ve been offended by the upsurge in pornography use, human trafficking, disrespect for authority in our schools, and above all, twisting the truth of scripture in order to justify personal beliefs and life choices that are contrary to God’s commands. I like what this man, Russell Moore, says when answering the question “are we living in a post Christian culture?”

“Someone said to me one time, “We just need to get back to where we were before this culture fell apart.” And I said, “You don’t even remember when the culture fell apart, because the culture fell apart somewhere between the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers in Genesis 3.” Every generation since then has manifested fallenness and brokenness—just in different ways. There are different challenges in each generation, but they’re always there. Where I would say that we’re a post-Christian society is that we’re a post-pretend-Christian society. There was a previous era when people had a certain basic understanding of biblical truths and some connection to the church. That brought some benefit because, in many cases, there was some sort of stable understanding of morality. But, it also brought a lot of drawbacks because a nominal Christianity doesn’t save.” (source Crossway.org)

When confronted whether to be truly offended or not, my personal response draws from my dad’s gentle wisdom and composure in a seemingly awkward moment. Did that one woman’s description of him define or determine his future as a successful supervisor? I’d have to say, no. I also remember what else dad said in response to her exposing her husband’s dislike for him. “I guess if he doesn’t like me it means I’m doing my job”. 

As Christians, we have jobs to do, too. We were commanded in the book of Deuteronomy to “love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength”.  When we put God first, everything falls into place. When we love God and others with sincere hearts, those around us will experience genuine compassion. When we are determined to be on the lookout for every offense, satan is pleased he was able to distract us from what’s truly important living as authentic Christ followers. 

It was during a recent road trip that I realized a valuable lesson. Just because the technology you’re relying on for directions says one thing..it’s not necessarily accurate. Therefore, by obeying what the application is telling you, there’s still room to trust your gut. In our case, the old reliable feeling of trusting the gut came too late.

Last week we drove to Indiana, departing from DeWitt about 8:00 pm after watching our granddaughter’s softball game. Our destination was Fremont Indiana where I had reserved a hotel room. Our plan was to open the hotel’s app on my IPhone once we crossed into Indiana and have GPS navigate us to our location which would have us arrive about 11 pm. Unfortunately, in hindsight, we probably should have opened the app sooner because the route that was given put us on a highway heading in the opposite direction for at least 15 miles before we could turn back in the correct direction. In full disclosure, late night driving, being tired, getting bad directions, and the inconvenience of added time and miles to an otherwise easy trip is a strain on nerves and emotions. Because we had no other alternative, we stayed the course that “Siri” was announcing and arrived at our hotel safely, very tired, upset with one another and with the information GPS fed us.

Our experience reminded me of the account in Genesis about the Israelites being set free from slavery in Egypt, getting across the Red Sea with miraculous results, entering the desert and being there for 40 years. Their journey from Egypt to the Promised Land was about 250 miles which meant they could have covered their route in a matter of months. Instead, according to scripture and scholars, finding themselves wandering in the Sinai Peninsula came from a disobedience against God, lack of faith in His guidance, too. Their 40 year delay in entering the Promised Land served as a reminder of the consequences of disobedience.  Yet, in those same years they did learn survival was impossible without God’s provision and guidance. Their journey through the desert is a powerful story of enduring lessons about faith, obedience, and God’s faithfulness in providing for His people. Today, thousands of years later, we can glean our own lessons from their experiences as we reflect on our journey through life.

What lessons can we learn? We need to depend on God. There are consequences to disobedience towards God. There is an importance of faith. God will meet needs even when we have strayed from His plan.

When we opened the application to get directions to our hotel, we were trusting in the information. We got on the highway heading west even though we knew we needed to be going east. We ignored Siri’s prompt to make a U-turn as those maneuvers on a toll road are illegal. We stayed the course even though we sputtered at one another or sat in silence waiting for each prompt telling us where to turn. Thankfully, although we had traveled 15 miles out of our way, we did arrive at our destination. All it cost us was some negative emotions and a $2 toll fee.

I’m chuckling now. It’s safe to do so now that our experience is behind us. A half hour delay really wasn’t worth the arguments we created from being weary and frustrated.

Now, we have a good story to tell even though the mystery remains as to why “Siri” launched us west instead of east. I imagine the Israelites had plenty more good stories to tell after 40 years of desert life. Like, have you heard the one about how God parted the Red Sea so we could escape Pharoah? Or, did you know there’s a lot of recipes for eating manna, this funny dew-like wafer that only lasts for 24 hours? Or, we never had to shop for clothes and our feet never swelled from all the walking and heat…somehow our wardrobe never wore out.

Moses had the original GPS applications of all mankind, God Himself. Today, we have Siri and other maps with voice activation to direct us. But, we still have God.  He is absolutely reliable. The others remain questionable at times. Both will get us to our destination. Both will reward us with stories to tell about our experiences along the way!

It’s been my practice of late that after morning dew has evaporated from our deck chairs, coffee in hand, I enjoy some of my first hour sitting in the quiet that a new day offers. With the exception of numerous birds flying back and forth from our trees to those of neighbors, our neighborhood is quiet. By the time I rise I think most of the folks in the homes near us have already left for work. Even though it’s summer vacation from school, there are no children playing outside. I think the kids who do live near us are older now, the ages where they maybe prefer the comfort of air conditioning versus riding bikes or playing outside in July’s heat. Which brings me to my next thoughts. July has been a bit brutal.

As I work in a few flower beds that I maintain, I am beginning to notice some of my flowers have succumbed to recent temperatures, regardless of consistent watering and care. Once vibrant blooms that flourished under June’s beautiful weather, now lay limp or dried out no matter the attention I’ve given them. July’s heat has also caused numerous unwanted grasses to grow and thrive around plants, thus creating more work to keep clear and clean, carefully planning what time of day to work without collapsing in a heap from the sun’s scorching rays.

On a positive note, the two tomato plants on our deck are doing great! Flower buds have made the turn to green fruit. Careful pruning along with watering and fertilizing are giving me hope we will have a nice harvest when the fruit turns juicy red. We are also keeping close watch for any of those nasty worms that can strip a tomato plant bare in the matter of 24 hours.

My devotion reading this morning (Wednesday) was from Jeremiah 18: 1-6. In these verses, God is giving Jeremiah–a prophet–a visual description of His relationship with Israel, describing His sovereignty over them and His ability to remake or reshape them as He sees fit. These few sentences offer a beautiful image of a potter carefully shaping a lump of clay into a vessel that is pleasing to him, and useful. When properly applied to our own life, we can imagine ourselves as a lump of clay being molded and shaped into a beautiful vessel for God’s purposes. As easy as it may sound, therein lies the rub, transformation can be slow and difficult, especially when a prideful or rebellious heart is in opposition to the work of God’s hands trying to mold and reshape our sinful nature.  This is why I love the words from 1 Corinthians 13: 7 “It (love) always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres”. This promise from proper love offers encouragement for every person seeking to find comfort in our world and above all, a relationship with the living God.

Birds singing. A gentle breeze ushering in the coming heat of another July day. Clouds enshrining the morning sun in the east. These and more of God’s creation fill my morning. Along with those things, I smiled in amusement as I opened the door to sit on our deck with a cup of coffee. Perched on the deck railing was a young robin. He or she was still sporting baby feathers on top of its head. Startled by my presence as it flew away I could tell it was still learning the mechanics of flight. Mom was waiting for her youngster on the edge of a flower bed and for a few moments, baby and mom “chatted”. Maybe mom was saying “good job flying!” or “see, I told you there’s other creatures around our yard and sometimes they appear without notice”. Hopefully, mom and baby will come to know I am not a threat to them. On the contrary, I like to imagine that our lil family of robins is aware that they matter to God and they, like me, like you, have purpose. As proclaimed in Psalm 19: 1 “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.”

Lumps of clay. Skies that are a canvas for God’s handiwork. Heat from July’s sunny hot days. All have a purpose. Each point us heavenward to proclaim God’s glory.  Be safe during these hot summer days. May you grasp that you have a heavenly Father waiting to cheer you on–”good job!” and that He will love, guide, and instruct you in preparation for every day under the sun.

“From the dew of heaven and the richness of the earth, may God always give you abundant harvests of grain and bountiful new wine. (Genesis 27: 28 New Living Translation)

Much to my delight, one morning  last week offered me perfect conditions to enjoy sitting on our deck in the early hours of my day. With my second mug of coffee, my Bible and journal in hand, I made my way to a comfortable deck chair to sit in the sunshine and also enjoy a gentle breeze on my body. But, before I could begin my little “retreat”, I needed to wipe my chair dry from  morning’s dew. Funny how a mere amount of water on a chair can create an uncomfortable feeling or harm the pages of my journal if I should choose to set it down momentarily.

I’ve always enjoyed a slow quiet start to my day. Even in the years I had to be awake and up for school, I preferred to wake on my own, never to an alarm or my mother’s urgent voice coaxing me from the comfort of warm blankets. Now, I still find great inner peace inside the confines of quiet that our yard offers as I greet a new day with happy anticipation for what it will offer, the tasks I want to accomplish, books to read, music to fill the house–all part of who I am and what brings me joy.

So, as I sat drinking my coffee, journal in my lap, I slowly became engaged with my surroundings, observing with my eyes and ears all the activity of the morning. Soon I realized I was a disturbance to several birds and one chipmunk who wanted to feed at the seed we provide every day. They came close but quickly exited when seeing me. A blue jay landed on the clothes line pole to check out the situation. A sparrow flew in like a bomber plane and with great skill made a hasty escape when spying me. Off in the distance I could hear birds of several kinds singing as well as crickets or other insects joining in the chorus. I felt the irony of my inner peace being invaded by nature’s choir and thought to myself “who’s invading who’s world? Am I inserting myself into nature’s habitat or are these little creatures interrupting my space?”

As I enjoyed all the songs, my mind returned to dealing with morning dew on my chair. A couple questions formed from my curiosity and I found myself writing them in my journal. “What is the source of dew?” “What purpose does dew serve?” I vowed I would look for answers to both questions. A quick search online provided me fast simple answers. Dew is formed when water in the air condenses on plant leaves during cool nights. Why? It helps plants accelerate their metabolism, improves soil moisture conditions, and helps plants survive in drought conditions. (source Shuncy.com)

Dew’s temporary blanket of moisture on every surface–living or inanimate–serves as beneficial or a slight nuisance. As quickly as it may form, several hours under the heat of the day causes it to dry up, disappear, forgotten about until the next morning when the cycle will repeat. Its repetition reminds me of a favorite portion of scripture from the Bible: “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” (Lamentations 3: 22-24)

Morning dew has the capacity to quench an arid plant and nourish the very soil around it. So it is with God’s great love for you and me. From the beginning of time itself, our sun has risen every day. Birds and other creatures have announced the arrival of a new day with their heavenly chorus and whether they have inserted themselves into our habitat or the other way around, it does not matter. What is important is remembering and embracing that the Lord is “our portion”…..no matter our current circumstances we “can wait for Him”….and simply find rest, inner peace, and above all, incredible benefits of daily provision from our heavenly Father.

“Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting  shadow.”(James 1: 17)

Never underestimate the limitless power of God. This concept was born early in my relationship with Him over 40 years ago. Time and time again, His promises and work in my life have shown up in big and small ways, confirming the truth of who He is for me and for countless times in circumstances surrounding family and friends. Often, as a believer, I almost expect my timing to be honored by God, but on the contrary, it’s always in His schedule that “things” happen or manifest. When they do, I stand amazed.

I have a very dear cousin, Judy, who is a few years older than me. She graduated college as an educator and spent her teaching career in a very small community in northern Michigan. Before retiring, she served as a building principal. Young children and teens have always been part of her life; she has a deep abiding love and passion to see that the kids in her life know about the love of Christ. Therefore, in addition to teaching and living her Christian faith by example, she has served on staff for a teen center which is located in Kalkaska. While on sabbatical, I had the privilege of attending the dedication for the center’s renovated building which is beautiful now, but wasn’t always so. Here’s the backstory.

Over 20 years ago one woman in Kalkaska had a burden for the teens in her small city and surrounding rural townships. She began praying that “someone” or “somehow” a place for teens to come hear the gospel, have fun doing so, would be established. Her answer to prayer came about 10 years ago when a ministry took hold of that vision. Created under the auspices of Crossroads Farm is “The Lanes”, located in Kalkaska. An empty run down bowling alley was up for auction. The ministry team which had been serving teens during these 10 years didn’t have funds to place an auction bid to secure the building’s purchase, but God used a local businessman to step up and buy the facility. In turn, he put the bowling alley in the hands of the ministry. Over many months, volunteers in the community gutted the building, rebuilt and painted walls for offices and meeting rooms, and a group of men refurbished the bowling equipment and resurfaced the lanes. Several pool tables occupy space outside the large meeting room along with a concession counter for snacks and beverages. 

“The Lanes” is currently seeing about 80 teens come on Sunday nights for a safe place to hang out with friends and adult volunteers. There’s a bus driver who begins a 4 pm route in the afternoon, traveling to five townships to pick up kids who want to attend “The Lanes”. These are kids who live in some very extreme circumstances. Unfortunately, rural communities are under threats from drugs, homelessness, lack of hope, etc. 

As I sat in the large meeting room with other guests who came to dedicate the facility, it struck me that most of the men and women in the room were gray haired. Very few “younger” adults filled the chairs. Lingering in my thoughts, my “aha” moment was this–it’s we who are now older, retired, still with many years ahead of us–who have the time–and money–to invest in the needs of today’s youth.

I met people who had gutted rooms, the guys who repaired bowling pin racks, men who come to play popular Christian songs using musical talents on guitars and drums. As I smiled, sitting in reverent awe, I heard a voice in my  head that a family friend shared with me years ago….”nowhere in the Bible does it way we get to retire from doing God’s work”.

Moses was 80 when God sent him to Egypt to get His people from slavery under the pharaoh. It took Noah over 100 years to build an ark. Paul was well into adulthood when Jesus met him on the road to Damascus to confront his zealous ways towards Christ followers and convert him into one of the greatest messengers for the gospel! 

That Saturday evening in April will remain a special memory for me. I witnessed one woman’s lone prayer from years ago become a living and vital reality for many teens within range of “The Lanes” influence. Hearing how successful business people from all Christian denominations come together to create a space for teens humbled my troubled thoughts that sometimes I fear that our communities don’t care enough about others to deliver answers for difficult problems that come along in life, especially for our youth.

If having “The Lanes” isn’t wonderful already, Crossroad Farm has plans to establish similar meeting places around our nation, all in rural settings because that’s where their vision lies–to cast hope into the lives of young people who may otherwise slip under the radar of being ignored, not having someone mentor them, and above all, missing the opportunity to hear that Jesus loves them, that each life has a plan and purpose, and people–gray haired and all–are here to help, teach, and love.

Now, when I see empty buildings, vacant storefronts, I say “hmmmmm….” “What if?”