Summary of Ed Welch’s Crossroads Addictions Curriculum (CCEF Conference Live Blog)
(I am writing these little summaries in between the live blog entries to let you know how Fred and I experienced the conference–and to give you just a flavor of the live blogs in case you were scared off by the 60,000 word count. 🙂 )
Back to our arrival (Wednesday, November 12) …
I was so happy when Fred and I (finally!) made it to our hotel room. Strangely, the carpets were WET even though we were on the highest/concierge level—but it was obvious that they were wet because they had just been CLEANED. So it was strange but not too gross.
(Well, except when I asked myself the question, ‘WHY were they just cleaned?’ I have to admit that THAT was a little icky to me.) But I just did my standard, ‘What if I were a missionary in AFRICA’ mental game (remember the COCKROACH on my PILLOW at that one women’s retreat I did?!?) … told myself, ‘This is no biggie’ and went to sleep.)
Waking up early was hard in one way (east coast trips are HARD on Montana-time-zone bodies) and easy in another because I was so eager to get to the training event. Plus I was excited to try my hand at live blogging.
We got to the room very early because I knew the courtesy (which I tell Sophia is just another way that we love God and love our neighbor) would require me to be there early if I was going to secure a seat toward the back, by an outlet, on the end of a row—which is what I really needed in order to transcribe the entire day. We found just the spot, Fred set me up, and we were off live blogging the CCEF Conference. Hooray!
Highlights for me were meeting Pastor Dave and his deacon-brother-Mark and laughing as hard as I’ve laughed in a long time—well, not counting our 30 minutes of hysteria reading through the CakeWrecks blog (‘When professional cakes go horribly, hilariously WRONG’). Seriously? Just our few little interactions reminded me so sweetly of how fun friendship can be and what an ‘innocent pleasure’—to use David Powlison’s term of art—relationship can be. So hooray for Pastor Dave & Deacon Mark!
And hooray for a warm welcome from the CCEF staff and volunteers. I just can’t tell you how sweet it is to be greeted not only by professional signage, an organized registration/check-in process, and a hospitable/conducive-to-learning environment … but also by warm and gracious and welcoming PEOPLE (Hi Tosha!).
Right on time, the session began and I was simply thrilled. I really am an Ed Welch junkie. I read and re-read his books because they always draw me to Christ and Scripture as they also show me more clearly my own heart and my desperate need for the Savior.
I was, I will admit, a little nervous about transcribing him, however, because I had heard ‘through the grapevine’ that he is, ummmm, how shall I say this?? … that he is not so good with the LINEAR progression of thoughts when teaching. (Hooray for good book editors!)
I wondered how I’d do if he wandered—but I shouldn’t have worried. I found it a snap to track exactly with him and every moment was edifying. Seriously. At no time was I tempted to ‘zone out’—too many rich truths; too many reminders. I just drank it all in.
Let me give you just a tiny amount of the highlights and then strongly urge you to get every single Ed Welch book you can, including his new addictions curriculum for use in small groups. Really. A few bullet points just can’t reflect the depth of this wonderful session. Even the 32 pages of notes that I took in the Live Blog miss the mark terribly.
But let me tempt you with just a few highlights …
Dr. Welch organized his teaching around three main points:
1. The inner world of addiction
2. For a fractured life, a coherent story: Trials, tests, and temptations in the wilderness
3. Gospel methods
He reminded us that the inner world of addiction is: foreign, hidden, complicated, insane, shame-filled, hopeless, immature, and God-suppressing. The fog of addiction is so messy and unclear that it is hard to find words to express it.
The words, “STOP IT” are not enough.
It is appropriate to feel overwhelmed when you begin to consider addiction.
Addiction hurts a lot of people. One person Dr. Welch knows calls himself, “The Ruiner of Lives.” Spouse, family, friends–he identifies himself as “The Ruiner.”
How are you going to help a “Ruiner”? They are reluctant to say, “Will you forgive me?” because they have said that over and over again. It feels more and more hollow. It feels like they will never be any person other than a Ruiner.
Deuteronomy 28 speaks of the darkness and how darkness is a horrible curse. The experience of darkness is the experience of fear and vulnerability; the language of lies.
The experience of addiction is complicated. You will see kindness, contrition, hardness of heart, openness, lies, arrogance (“my way!”) and SHAME (the person is persuaded they have no right to even be alive). You find the desire for change–they don’t want to do it again. But there is also sabotage. Mark 7. Young man aimlessly wandering around, putting the banana peel right in front of him, almost intentional about it, almost a commitment to sabotage change.
You see the complexity. How do they coexist in one heart? Hatred for the addictive object; love for the addictive object. You find death and you find life. Warring themes; kingdoms in conflict. Chaos and insanity. Hopelessness. Immaturity.
So how do you start? ‘Lord, have mercy!’
The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of change.
The threat of consequences will not change us.
Jesus is our Hero. All change goes through Him.
We are ushered into the throne room of God—Isaiah 6!—and we are changed.
OK. Tara here again. I’m going to stop there because seriously? This is already too long of a blog and I haven’t even gotten us out of the INTRODUCTION!
Oh, dear blog friends! Please do consider setting aside some time and reading the entire LiveBlog. It’s really that good. And please be sure that your church knows that there is now a biblical, Christ-centered, GOSPEL curriculum available for use in your church because I KNOW that your church has addicts. We are all addicts, yes. To be sure. Fear of Man and laziness; overeating, etc. But in your church, some of your brothers and sisters are struggling right now with the ‘harder’ addictions (street drugs, prescription drugs, pornography, gambling)—and they need help. Please get to know CCEF and pray about how you can help your church to bring biblical and practical help to not only the addicts, but the people affected by the addicts too.
I’ll leave Dr. Welch with the last word …
We sin because we love it. That’s why saying, “No” is not effective. We say “no” when the thing is far away. But when it gets close? We love it.
That’s why when talking to the addict, we quickly begin saying, “we” instead of “you.”
Remember the Pharisee and the tax collector? This is a wonderful beginning every day treatment for the addictive heart.
We come to the temple and don’t feel worthy to lift our heads. “Lord have mercy toward me a sinner.”
We have a God Who delights in showering an abundance of mercy on those who ask for mercy. Those who ask for mercy receive an abundance of mercy.