Psalm 106:1-23 (KJV): O visit me with thy salvation

From Psalms

Psalm 106:1-23

¹Praise ye the LORD.

O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good:
      for his mercy endureth for ever.
²Who can utter the mighty acts of the LORD?
      who can shew forth all his praise?
³Blessed are they that keep judgment,
      and he that doeth righteousness at all times.
⁴Remember me, O LORD, with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people:
      O visit me with thy salvation;
⁵That I may see the good of thy chosen,
      that I may rejoice in the gladness of thy nation,
      that I may glory with thine inheritance.

⁶We have sinned with our fathers,
      we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.
⁷Our fathers understood not thy wonders in Egypt;
they remembered not the multitude of thy mercies;
      but provoked him at the sea, even at the Red sea.
⁸Nevertheless he saved them for his name's sake,
      that he might make his mighty power to be known.
⁹He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up:
      so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.
¹⁰And he saved them from the hand of him that hated them,
      and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
¹¹And the waters covered their enemies:
      there was not one of them left.
¹²Then believed they his words;
      they sang his praise.

¹³They soon forgat his works;
      they waited not for his counsel:
¹⁴But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness,
      and tempted God in the desert.
¹⁵And he gave them their request;
      but sent leanness into their soul.

¹⁶They envied Moses also in the camp,
      and Aaron the saint of the LORD.
¹⁷The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan
      and covered the company of Abiram.
¹⁸And a fire was kindled in their company;
      the flame burned up the wicked.

¹⁹They made a calf in Horeb,
      and worshipped the molten image.
²⁰Thus they changed their glory
      into the similitude of an ox that eateth grass.
²¹They forgat God their saviour,
      which had done great things in Egypt;
²²Wondrous works in the land of Ham,
      and terrible things by the Red sea.
²³Therefore he said that he would destroy them,
      had not Moses his chosen
stood before him in the breach,
      to turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.

Recovery is a process of salvation.  I have come to learn that my addiction was merely a symptom of other things that were wrong in my life and in my heart.  This transformation often fills us with new understandings and revelations and open new opportunities.  However, we must be careful with this gift.  An alcoholic that I look-up to once advised me that I should try not to make any big adjustments in my life in the first year of sobriety.  And that probably holds true until I've completed the 12 steps, if that takes longer than the first year of sobriety.

It's a big temptation, with the freedom and liberation from addiction to try and "reinvent ourselves" and go-out and do something big.  However, there's a few reasons why a recovering addict should try to avoid this temptation.  First, as recovering addicts, we are learning things about ourselves that had been hidden and that we had lied about for years.  It will take focused effort to expose and understand those things.  Significant changes in our lives will only complicate recovery, and distract from the healing process and work that needs to be done.

Everyday I pray for his guidance, to show me the path, keep me focused, and help me make good decisions.  If He can provide this for me I need nothing else.  I am still on step 9, and as you can see, I still have some 40 odd psalms to complete.  There are many things that I would like to do in my life, but I know for now my focus needs to be with my recovery and turning things over to God.  I may be working on recovery this for sometime, possibly forever, but for right now it needs be a priority over many other things I could be doing.

Thanks for letting me share.