09/07/2026
SEPTEMBER IS RECOVERY MONTH + SU***DE AWARENESS MONTH. 💜 WE DO RECOVER
We need to talk about something that is often difficult to say:
Addiction can become a slow path toward death or jail.
What begins as an attempt to numb pain, escape trauma, quiet the mind, or cope with life can eventually become a prison that steals relationships, purpose, health, hope—and sometimes life itself.
But addiction does not have to have the final word.
THERE IS HOPE.
THERE IS HEALING.
THERE IS FREEDOM.
THERE IS A NEW LIFE IN CHRIST.
I know because I was that person.
I spent half my life bound up in my mind, believing I could never change my life because of trauma, my past, and the bad choices I had made.
I knew about church.
I knew about God.
But I didn’t truly understand freedom.
It wasn’t until I surrendered my life to Christ—not just in words, but in action—that things began to change.
I began applying God’s Word to my life.
I began recognizing the lies I had believed about myself, other people, and even God—and replacing those lies with truth.
I began renewing my mind.
I began closing doors that had given darkness influence in my life.
I allowed the Lord to expose and demolish strongholds that had been built over years of pain, trauma, fear, shame, unforgiveness, and wrong thinking.
Romans 12:2 says:
“Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
Freedom began when my thinking began to change.
And that’s why I am so passionate about seeing people set free.
Because I was that person.
The person stuck in yesterday.
The person replaying the past.
The person believing, “This is just who I am.”
The person who couldn’t imagine a different future.
But God showed me something:
Your past may explain some of what happened to you, but it doesn’t have to determine who you become.
Jesus came to set captives free.
“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” — John 8:36
🔓 12 STEPS TO WALKING IN FREEDOM IN CHRIST
1. SURRENDER
Give your life completely to Jesus.
Romans 12:1
2. BELIEVE
Believe that God can actually change you.
Mark 9:23
3. REPENT
Turn away from sin and turn toward God.
Acts 3:19
4. RENEW YOUR MIND
Replace lies with the truth of God’s Word.
Romans 12:2
5. IDENTIFY THE LIES
Ask: What have I believed about myself, God, and others that contradicts God’s Word?
John 8:32
6. FORGIVE
Release others—and receive God’s forgiveness for yourself.
Ephesians 4:31–32
7. CLOSE UNHEALTHY DOORS
Walk away from behaviors, relationships, environments, and practices that continually pull you back into bo***ge.
Ephesians 5:11
8. DEMOLISH STRONGHOLDS
Bring destructive patterns of thinking under the authority of Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:4–5
9. WALK IN THE LIGHT
Stop hiding. Bring what is hidden into godly community and accountability.
1 John 1:7
10. BUILD NEW HABITS
Don’t just stop what is destroying you—learn how to live differently.
Ephesians 4:22–24
11. STAY CONNECTED
You were never designed to walk this journey alone. Find healthy, Christ-centered community and wise support.
Ecclesiastes 4:9–10
12. WALK FORWARD
Your story isn’t over. Let God use what He redeemed to help someone else find hope.
Philippians 3:13–14
WE DO RECOVER.
WE DO HEAL.
WE CAN CHANGE.
AND LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL. 💜
If you are struggling with addiction, trauma, depression, or thoughts of su***de, please don’t fight alone. Reach out to someone you trust and seek qualified professional help and support. If you are in immediate danger or thinking about su***de, call or text 988 in the United States.
And if you’re reading this thinking, “But you don’t know what I’ve done. You don’t know how broken I am.”
You’re right—I don’t know your whole story.
But Jesus does.
And He is not intimidated by your mess.
Open your heart to Christ.
Let His Word transform you from the inside out.
The same God who brought me out can meet you right where you are.
There is still a future.
There is still purpose.
There is still hope.
Keep moving forward. 💜
