March 11: They Kept Showing Up

You went to meetings for a while. Then work got busy. Then you felt fine. Now it’s been a few weeks.

After Pentecost, the first believers did four things steadily. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to fellowship, to breaking bread together and to prayer. Not once in a while. Continually. They kept showing up.

That’s a good picture of a healthy recovery life. Learning. Being with people. Eating together. Praying. Over and over.

It’s common, a couple of months into sobriety, to drift away from meetings. You feel better. The crisis has passed. Life is busier now that you’re functioning again. Meetings start to feel optional. Then a hard week hits, and you realize you’ve lost touch with the people who could help.

Step Three is a decision to turn your life over to God’s care. One of the main ways God cares for people is through other people. The meeting where someone notices you look tired. The coffee afterward where you finally say what’s been bothering you. The newcomer who reminds you how far you’ve come. That’s fellowship, and it’s hard to get any other way.

The early church didn’t devote themselves to fellowship because it was always fun. They did it because they understood they needed each other. Faith alone, in isolation, gets thin. Faith in community gets stronger.

If you’ve drifted, there’s no shame in coming back. Just walk in. Most people will be glad to see you. Some might say they missed you. Nobody keeps attendance records.

It’s also worth thinking about church in the same way. If you’ve been attending a meeting but not a church, or a church but not a meeting, consider whether you need both. Each gives something the other doesn’t. Many Christians in recovery find that the honest sharing in a meeting and the worship and teaching in a church fit together well.

Devotion isn’t intensity. It’s steadiness. Keep showing up.

One thing today

Look at your calendar and put three meetings or gatherings on it for the next two weeks. Treat them like appointments you can’t miss.

A prayer

Lord, I’ve drifted from the people who help me. Bring me back. Give me a steady heart that keeps showing up for teaching, fellowship, meals and prayer.

Community is how Step Three gets lived.

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