Bøger af Gregory L Madison

Overcoming addiction as God desires involves clarity. Jesus Christ had the clearest mind conceivable. The three phases to overcoming addiction are evaluation, transformation, and transition. Every program has these three elements to some degree. It is only in Christ that they are perfected.

Why Not Get High! explains the reason that we surrender to addiction. And yet, Why Not Get High! makes a distinction between reasons and excuses. Why Not Get High! is a supplement to Quality Sobriety. Why Not Get High! initially draws your attention to the value of reverencing God as the primary motive for abstaining from addiction. Why Not Get High! goes beyond self-seeking motives for developing a sober life. And yet, Why Not Get High! explains that self-preservation can be either reverential towards God or selfish. Why Not Get High! will help you to explore some of the aspects of addiction/sobriety that are often neglected but ironically crucial. Why Not Get High! is divided into three parts. The first part is an explanation of why we are prone to addiction. The second part is why addictions are not to be embraced. The third part is God's way of resolving addiction. Though seldom mentioned, Why Not Get High reveals how there are only four responses to addictions and only one has God's approval. Part One of Why Not Get High! explains the difference between healthy and unhealthy euphoria. I'll show you the faith that we place in addictions. Why I get high can be explained by how I am deceived by Satan. Hence, there is faulty reasoning is beyond our justification of addiction. I will also reveal the unpleasantness of the dishonesty and wicked imaginations behind every addiction. As addictions are sought out of dissatisfaction they lead to more dissatisfaction. Yet and still, we are motivated by our dedication to addictions. It is the awe of euphoria that drives us. Awe can be sane when it is directed towards God. The awe of addiction is insane. This is the stronghold that addictions possess. This is what has the potential of hardening our hearts. That's why every addictions is selfish. Part Two of Why Not Get High! gives you sound reasons for not indulging in addiction. Self-concern can either be honoring to God or just selfish. Another reason for abstaining from addiction is reasoning itself. God reasons with us through consequences as well as other methods. The consequences of idolatry from the Scriptures are relative to addictions. While the judgment of God is a consequence of addiction for some, His discipline is a consequence for others. The discipline of God is how He molds and shapes His vessels. Judgment is how He disposes of what will anyway be contrary to His nature. Since the nature of addictions must be revealed for us to thoroughly and accurately handle addiction, we must consider our ways. We begin to understand how unbecoming addictions are to us as God reasons with us. The Scriptures give tremendous insight into the nature of addiction as revealed within the nature of idolatry. The sobriety of loving God undermines addiction. As we develop the love that Jesus has for the Father, we are transformed. Transformation is the result of practicing our response to God just as we practiced response to addictions. In our transformation we become useful to God and others It is in loving God that we love others. All of the components of Part Two provide us with conviction (we are convinced.) In Part Three of Why Not Get High! I have explained the simple formula for sobriety that has been in existence since the beginning of time. The three basics of reverential sobriety are where pride is stripped, God rules, and joy overwhelms. Look closely and you will find this in any program for treating addictions in one form or another. Where either is lacking in any degree determines the effectiveness of the program.

Sober Questions Volume One is the first book in a series that discusses the relevance of the questions in the Bible to addiction. Sober Questions Volume One covers questions that are found from Genesis to the first two chapters of1 Samuel. Sober Questions Volume One is dated from the month of January through June.

Ask anybody on the street, and they will tell you that they are a God-fearing person! People look up to someone who is God-fearing. When in need of help, we would all be inclined to first seek the aid of a God-fearing person. God-fearing people are known for being kind, merciful, understanding, forgiving, just and fair. And so it is, that The Fear of the Almighty begins with how the fear of the Lord is manifest in this world in chapter two, just after an explanation of the origin of the fear of the Lord in chapter one. Though it is hard to imagine, the fear of the Lord, or the lack thereof, is the silent motive beyond our every action. And within this reverence that we have for God there must be pure motives. Should we, merely, reverence God for whatever benefits we may gain? Isn't God wise enough to see how genuine and pure our reverence is? So, why do we reverence God? This is covered in chapter three under the basis of our reverence. Chapter nine through twelve explain the rewards of God in response to our reverence for Him. Do you want to grow in your reverence for God? Just as with our maturity, there are levels of reverence. Just as when we measure heat by degrees of intensity, there are degrees of reverence. One of the vehicles that causes our reverence to increase is commitment. The Fear of the Almighty is a study that demands commitment. This is the discipleship that Jesus demands in stating that if anyone comes after Him "they must deny themselves" (Luke 9:23). And so, while chapter four through six address the scope and the range of our reverence for God, chapter seven explains how reverence was exemplified by different Bible characters. Where there are examples of those who reverenced God and were thus rewarded, there are those who despised God and suffered grave consequences. Chapter eight gives us a list of the Bible characters who are specifically noted for their irreverent disposition. The scriptures explain the source of their irreverent disposition by its root and the outcome of their irreverence by it fruit. So, what kind of fruit do you want to bear? Do you not know that the fruit that you bear will become a legacy for your children? The fear of the Lord builds houses, governments, and nations. If society is built on institutions, then we need the fear of the Lord for those institutions to stand. The fear of the Lord is a matter of national security. A nation is not safe without a healthy number of true, God-fearing people. In his book, Shaping History Through Prayer and Fasting, Derek Prince said that the only reason God does not destroy a nation the size of the United States is because of 250,000 God-fearing individuals (the ratio that Prince deduced from the offer that God made to Abraham in holding back His wrath upon Sodom and Gomorrah). Some may wrestle with "the fear of the Lord" as an old English phase. As there is no other like God, there is no other fear like the fear of the Almighty. I consider the phrase to be no more obsolete than Mr. Beaver's explanation of how Aslan was to be revered (the lion of The Narnia Chronicles that portrayed Christ)."Aslan is a lion- the Lion, the great Lion." "Ooh" said Susan. "I'd thought he was a man. Is he-quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.""Safe?" said Mr. Beaver "Who said anything about safe? Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you."

The idols of addiction must be dealt with through reverence for God just as they are chosen through our irreverence. Reverentially Turning to God from Idols is 365-day reading. It is a combination of Addiction: A Tug of War, Quality Sobriety (Volumes 1-5), Turning to God from Idols, as well as a few other works by Gregory Madison. The epitome of reverencing God is the mind of Christ. It is impossible for someone abiding in Christ to relapse!

Just as other volumes of Quality Sobriety, the theme to Quality Sobriety Volume Three is the relevance of reverence for complete, lasting, and joyful sobriety. Quality Sobriety Volume Three covers passages from Nehemiah and Job, while the first two volumes cover the earlier books listed in the Bible. Although Volume Three is based on fewer passages, the issues that were discovered have led me to believe that reverence applies to addiction more than we could ever imagine. Volume Three starts with passages on the delightful contentment that we find in reverencing God. What we delight in questions our allegiances, our reverence, our sobriety! Contentment and discontentment are some of the large issues that this volume covers. The discontentment of addictions reveals dysfunction. Dysfunction is widely discussed in Quality Sobriety Volume Three. In response to the dysfunction of addiction, we have the examples of Nehemiah, Hanani, Job, and others, who demonstrated how the fear of the Lord produces order. Quality Sobriety Volume Three discusses the productivity and advancement that is possible with those who revere the Lord. Dysfunction not only plagues individuals but communities. Quality Sobriety Volume Three explains how addictions have always been a threat to the development of every nation. Insanity and disorder go hand in hand. Insanity may be defined as a weak and futile attempt to stifle the voice of God. Insanity denies and distorts the truth. Quality Sobriety Volume Three reveals how insanity believes Satan's inaccurate allegations against both God and us. The accuracy of the revelation of God affects God's reputation as well as our understanding of God, ourselves, and the world that we live in (including how we judge addictions.) Quality Sobriety Volume Three argues against the disease concept more than the first two volumes. 1. We don't practice diseases. 2. Addiction is a desire. 3. A disease cannot separate us from God. 4. There is no such thing as repenting from a disease. 5. Addiction is a deformity found in our souls. Deformities and diseases are not necessarily the same. Science fails to answer many of the mysteries of addiction that are clearly found in the Scriptures. Another major issue that Quality Sobriety Three discusses is repentance. Every program that offers help in overcoming addiction endorses repentance in one form or another. Repentance generally means change. In this volume, the process of repentance is discussed more than in the other volumes. The formula for repentance involves a process that is woven throughout every entry to this volume. Addiction is best understood as a worship disorder. The plain and simple remedy is reverence. Worship disorder cause dysfunction on every other level. Rebellion opposes worship. Rebellion displays irreverence that carries severe consequences. The consequences of irreverence that are prescribed in Scripture read much like the consequences of addiction. The consequences of irreverence produce the judgment of God. The quality of our sobriety must include every aspect of addiction (including the judgment of God.) Quality Sobriety Volume Three reveals more concerning the judgment of God than the previous volumes. No one can argue against the quality of our sobriety is related to stability. Quality Sobriety Volume Three explains how the intensity of our reverence is related to the stability of our sobriety. The intensity of our reverence is relative to our intimacy with the Almighty. To be estranged or distant from God is dysfunctional. Loving God and loving others is a priority with quality sobriety.