“I hate myself! I just made a great confession and felt clean and blessed. So, why did I commit this sin yet again?” I often had the above thought when I fell to sexual sin and before I took my recovery from pornography and masturbation seriously. Perhaps it’s a...
As a cradle Catholic, I was familiar with Eucharistic adoration. I vaguely remember going with my class in elementary school. However, I was not a practitioner of this method to adore Jesus. Truth be told, until 2015 I was not really a faithful Catholic. I went to...
After I first became sober I thought that I’m better now. I can handle it. I had been in AA for years and attended hundreds, maybe thousands, of meetings. I had volunteered, read the Big Book, and the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, and worked through the Twelve...
During this time of uncertainty and fear, one thing I am certain of is that God is with us and will never leave or forsake us. As never before, we are being called in faith to pick up our cross and walk this lonesome valley. The good news is that we are never alone...
When I first came to a recovery program I was brought to it by a very caring woman who saw the pain I was going through. She stressed the need for having a sponsor and suggested that I listen and find someone with a length of sobriety whom I respected. There was an...
Before discussing five strategies that help me stay clean with regard to porn and masturbation, let me start by explaining that nothing short of the grace and mercy of God ever worked in helping me experience victory over this ongoing battle, which spanned over 40...
Those of us who have fought the battle of habitual sin often times have had difficulty with the feelings and consequences of being caught in our sins. When we think back to the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, after the Fall, we recall that they hid...
I’m an addict. But you can’t tell by looking at me. I don’t have needle marks and I don’t smell of alcohol. I’m not a compulsive gambler or a shopper, either. I’m a food addict. And I hide it well. Most of my family members and work associates are unaware of my...
Over the last couple of years I have made a decision to go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation as often as I can. One church in the area makes the sacrament available on weekdays, although most churches make it available on Saturday afternoons. Since I am an in-home...
Step Eight: Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all. Step Nine: Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others. In Step Four through Step Seven, all of my...