Celebrate Recovery

Hurts, Habits, and Hang-ups:
People have a misconception about Celebrate Recovery:  that we are simply a Christian “AA”.  The fact is, over 750,000 people are attending Celebrate Recovery meetings this week in 19,000 churches worldwide.  Two-thirds of them are attending for something other than drugs or alcohol. Most are here because Celebrate Recovery is a safe place to “recover from life’s hurts, hang-ups and habits.” We use the phrase hurts, habits, and hang-ups a lot around here, but what does this mean?

Generally, a hurt, habit or hang-up could be anything that is keeping you from the life God has intended for you. These are things that cause you pain, interfere with your life, impact your relationships, or stunt your spiritual growth.  Here is a closer look at hurts, habits, and hang-ups.

Hurt: to experience physical pain caused by yourself or another; to feel emotional pain; undergo or experience difficulties or setbacks.  A “Hurt” could be some life experience or experiences that perhaps damaged your emotional health. It may have even been an offense against you, or even something you couldn’t keep from happening in your life. These hurt maybe crippling your ability to deal with the world in a healthy way. Or, it could be something that twisted your view of yourself, God or others that’s unhealthy and unrealistic. These hurts could affect your relationships, your employment and your future. A few common hurts include:

Abandonment, Abortion, Neglect, Abuse as a child/adult by a spouse/employer/church, Adoption, Rape, Rejection, Dysfunctional family (divorce, alcohol & drug abuse, rage), Violence Rage

Habit: regular repeated behavior pattern. An action or pattern of behavior that is repeated so often that it becomes typical of somebody, although he or she may be unaware of it. Addiction, such as an addiction to a drug, food or some other stimuli that deadens ones feelings. “Habits” tend to be those unhealthy patterns that often start as a perceived “remedy” for some problem in your life, but end up turning into a chronic bad behavior or even an addiction. Habits are the repeat, default scripts or things that you run to when the going gets tough and you’re not sure how to cope with reality. Some common habits are:

Abusive behavior, Alcohol, Bitterness, Infidelity, Unmarried sex, Critical spirit, Drugs, Gambling, Eating disorders, Homosexuality, Gossip, Isolation, Self-mutilation, Sex addiction, Lying, Spending problems, Unforgiveness, Workaholism

Hang-up: a psychological or emotional problem or fixation about something. An issue that causes persistent impediment or source of delay.  “Hang-ups” are those road blocks that keep you from progressing further into God’s plan for your life. They are sometimes shaped by some bent thinking you may have received as a child, or some unhealthy attitude you may have adopted as a means of coping with life’s challenges. Here are some common hang-ups:

Anger, Arrogance, Anxiety, Worry, Fear, Frigidity, Codependency, Greed/Envy, Impatience, Bullying, Body image issues, Bigotry Depression, Laziness, Control, Manipulation, Pride, Materialism, Guilt, Shame, Lack of self-control, Perfectionism, Procrastination Lack of trust in God, People-pleasing, Insecurities, Mental Illness

If we’re honest with ourselves, nearly everyone suffers from a hurt, habit or hang-up. This means that almost anyone can benefit from Celebrate Recovery!