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Community Corner

Conquering Addiction - Biblical 12-Step Study

Conquering Addiction:  Based on Recovery at the Village (Highland Village, TX - Matt Chandler, Pastor) - This fifteen-session addictions ministry program is based on the 12-step program and Recovery at The Village curriculum. It is open to anyone at no charge. This is an intense, Christ-centered, biblically-based program.

The class is held on fifteen consecutive Thursday evenings from 6:30 to 8:45 p.m.  The next class will be led by pastors Mike Hubbard and Michael Shattuck from Genesis Church and will be located at Vandover Baptist Church (1714 Smizer Station Road, Fenton, MO 63026).  The study begins Thursday 8/29 and will run weekly for 15 weeks with one break for Thanksgiving.  The final evening will be 12/12.

About this class:  This is a repentance and reconciliation course and Biblical 12-step study that meets weekly for 15 consecutive weeks. Participants will sit with the same table group throughout, and the weekly class consists of:

  • Daily homework that requires digging into the Word of God or Bible
  • Small group discussion—this is led by a table leader, and the discussion focuses on questions that are proposed in the previous week’s homework
  • A teaching on one of fifteen topics (see “Class Content,” below for examples)
  • Refreshments and fellowship
Class Content:  Conquering Addiction is based on “Recovery at the Village,” a curriculum developed by The Village Church in Highland Village, Texas. It includes daily homework and weekly teachings on topics such as,“The Beginning,”“The Problem,”“Anger and Abuse,”“Guilt & Shame, Fear & Sexual Immorality,” “Confession and Prayer,”“Reconciliation—Amends & Forgiveness,” and“The Pursuit of Joy.”

What is a Biblical 12-Step Study?  This class takes the traditional 12-steps from Alcoholics Anonymous and does a thorough study of each step from a biblical perspective. For example, the traditional Step 1 states:

“We admitted we were powerless over our addictions and compulsive and dysfunctional behaviors, that our lives had become unmanageable.”

In Conquering Addiction, the first 3 weeks are spent studying and understanding the creation prior to the Fall, giving us insight into God’s ideal picture of our relationship with Him, and studying and understanding how sin entered the world, and what the results and consequences are of this sin. Step 1 is then redefined as follows:

“Man, as a creature in relationship to his Creator, has fallen from a place of dignity, humility and dependence to a state of depravity, pride and rebellion. Any attempts on his own to redeem himself are futile, only increasing the problem of independence and self-sufficiency. Therefore, because the problem is sin, I am powerless to overcome it and my attempts to control it only increase the chaos.”
This teaches that we are powerless to conquer our sin or addictions on our own, and it goes on to introduce the Gospel, and dependence on Christ as the answer. The curriculum addresses how to deal with guilt and shame, abuse, sexual sin, resentments and fears and has a strong component which teaches about repentance, forgiveness and making amends. Our curriculum is available for review here

Is this class just for those with addictions? No. Anyone who wants excellent discipleship teaching, anyone who wants to root out past sin from his or her life, or anyone who wants to become equipped to serve in this ministry is welcome.
RegistrationConquering Addiction is free. While participants are welcome to just “show up,” it would be helpful to know how many are planning to attend. Please register in advance:

Office Phone: (636) 686-0321
E-Mail: vlshattuck@gmail.com
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