Happy New Year!

It's almost 2010 as this is being written! Here's a sneak peak at what could be coming next: CLICK HERE! Take a look and find the "Comments" page and let us know what you think.

Testimony by Carl B. (video)

We had a guest speaker Carl B. on 12-14-09. Carl gave his personal testimony.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Testimony by Carmen B. (video)

Carmen B. gave her personal testimony on 11-30-09.


(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 12-21-09

We had a great night at Celebrate Recovery Monday night. It began with another chili cook off. Ron was the winner and revealed his secret ingredient, chocolate!! The worship team praised with all their hearts and the Christmas carols sung without instruments were a beautiful noise unto the Lord. The Spirit was surely felt. Shawn brought us the message on the 7 things that keep people stuck and from growing in the Lord. He did a super job and shared many of his own experiences with us. We had a planning meeting during small group time for those people who are serving for BCCR New Year's Eve/Day Bash. We are getting geared up and appreciate all the support from the church and our beloved pastor and his family who plan on joining us in the celebration! If you would like to help in any way, please let us know by sending us an email. We still have many openings on the cafe, security, greeting, set-up, childcare and clean-up teams. We are having the event from 6 PM New Year's Eve to 8 AM New Year's Day.

Recap of 12-14-09

Carl from Cornerstone Church in Myrtle Beach came and gave his testimony. It was heartfelt, honest, courageous and transparent. It never ceases to amaze me that grown men continue to bare their souls with us. Where else can we go and get this kind of gut renching honesty from people? It gives all of us hope that one day the Holy Spirit will give some us that call ourselves mature Christians the kind of courage these men and women portray as they continue to give their testimony every other week. Many of these people even choose to allow us to film them so their testimony will be available online for others around the world to view or use for their own meetings. We have even heard from a CR group that started up in a jail and uses our testimonies in their meetings.

Thanks to those of you who showed up for the training on Saturday. It was a big success. Tim and Liz are already thinking of creative ideas for the next training that will be held on the 2nd Saturday of January on sponsorship. Mark you calendars now.

We are gearing up for our New Year's Eve Bash that will be held at Barefoot Church due to the graciousness of our Pastor who believes in this ministry because we have the same vision as the church: Changing Lives that Change the World. Invite cards will be ready Friday for us to pass out to everyone we know who needs a safe place to ring in the New Year. Let us know if you would like some to pass out. It will be from 6 PM New Year's Eve to 8 AM on New Year's Day and limited childcare will be provided.

Be patient with us as we work out the technical difficulties with our camera and getting the testimonies up for viewing on the blog.

UPDATE: We have the last two testimonies ready to be uploaded and now Vimeo is having some technical issues preventing this. So now that we have our technical problems resolved we’re now waiting on others to get theirs resolved! Please keep praying!

Good News!

We got the camera back to capture our videos with! There have been three testimonies given since the last one that was posted. The first of those three was given by Erin K. from Beach Church CR and she gave us permission to post it here but unfortunately there were technical difficulties that evening and her testimony was not recorded. We do have the last two on tape though and they will be on here soon. Carmen’s is being captured right now and should be up by tomorrow. Carl B. from Cornerstone CR gave his testimony last night and it’s next in line after Carmen’s.

Recap of 12-07-09

We had a great night on Monday at Barefoot Celebrate Recovery. We have been fortunate to have some dedicated leaders cook for us weekly and are always looking for more volunteers in that area. Sacred Blend rocked the house as usual with a Spirit filled worship set. Barry R. delivered the lesson entitled, "Yes." It was more about spreading the gospel, sharing our experience with others and yielding ourselves fully so we can be used by the Lord.

Tim and Liz are gearing up for a training on Saturday that will be presented in a creative way in keeping with the Barefoot tradition. You will also get a chance to break up into small groups yourself for a little friendly competition. If you have ever been a victim of gossip, having your anonymity broken, or been a victim of crosstalk in a meeting, you won't want to miss this one. You will understand like never before why the guidelines are sacred in Celebrate Recovery, and that they come straight from the Bible - much from Matthew 18. In addition, you will feel more comfortable after this training enforcing the guidelines yourself, if you are a leader of a meeting, as well as how to run a smooth step meeting. All leaders are required to attend and potential leaders PLEASE JOIN US!!!! Snacks are welcome. See you all Saturday at the Church office on 2nd Avenue North at 9:00. We should be done no later that 11:30.

Sorry for the delay

Sorry for not getting the latest testimonies up here in a timely fashion. Apparently we’ve lost access to the camera we were using to capture with. We are in the process of trying to come up with another one if indeed this is the case. Please keep checking back, we’re confident that God will provide us with everything we need and we will get the testimonies given in the last few weeks up here ASAP.

Recap of 11-30-09

Last night despite the MANY technical difficulties, God showed up at Barefoot Church Celebrate Recovery. There was a good crowd even during the holiday season and good food was enjoyed by all.

We had a very lively heartfelt testimony that will be available for viewing here soon given by Carmen. We were excited to see Pastor Clay and Kim come to hear Carmen's testimony.

We are gearing up for our important Leadership Training next Saturday from 9-12 at the church office. We will be going over the Guidelines, How to Lead and Participate in a Step Group and How to Lead a Step Group through the Fourth Step. Tim from Beach church will be joining Liz for the training session. It should be interesting and interactive. We are thanking God in advance for the best attendance yet!

Recent Vistors Map

I just discovered this map in our tracking software; this is just over the last two weeks!

Recap of 11-23-09

It was another night of great praise and worship last night at Barefoot Church Celebrate Recovery. The CR band set the tone with some incredible praise and worship music. You could feel the presence of God among us.

The lesson was on the GIVE principle. It was a great reminder that we need to remember that God comes first in this process. Then we display this principle by moving into a spirit of action followed by the victories that we share with others. By doing this, we become witnesses for Christ.

The Team told everyone of the opportunity we have to do some giving ourselves. From New Year's Eve at 12 Noon to New Year's Day 12 Noon, the church will be open for anyone who needs a safe place to usher in the New Year. I can think of no better way to celebrate our first official year in this ministry. We will have food, games, great music, and show a great movie. A lot of members have already stepped up to serve. We believe if we seek God, He will show up in a mighty way. Mark your calendars now. You won't want to miss this evening with God and friends.

Recap of 11-16-09

We were honored to have Erin K. from Beach Church give us her testimony. She was very open and transparent with us and she set the tone for a great night of small groups. Everyone loved our new meeting rooms. We now have space to spread out and privacy to boot thanks to the new children's building. Next week stay tuned to a teaching on the 12th step - sharing the message with others and practicing these biblical principals in all our affairs....A tall order, but with His strength all things are possible.

Recap of 11-09-09

The Celebration Station Children's program is going very well and the children are excited to be at Barefoot Church learning more about Jesus each week.

Barry brought us the lesson on gratitude coinciding with the 11th step on prayer and mediation. He added many examples from his own life of things he is grateful for including a Pastor who takes the time to think of relevant messages that he can apply to his life. He referred to Sunday's sermon. (All this rain the past couple of days really helps solidify the "umbrella" analogy from 2 Tim 3:16. For those that didn't see the sermon last week, you can see it on BarefootChurch.com. It will be well worth your time and entertaining too :)).

Taking the time to seek the Lord first thing in the morning is so important. Matthew 6:33 promises us: "But, seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you". The next verse after that is, "So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Therefore, it can be concluded that if we pray and meditate on His word first thing in the morning, we won't be as likely to worry about things that He has well in hand. Have a dry week and make sure your umbrella doesn't have too many holes in it. Might be a good week to open the Bible every day and take in the whole counsel of the Word of God.

Testimony by Paul C. (video)

We had a guest speaker Paul C. on 11-02-09. Paul gave his personal testimony.


(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 10-26-09

Monday night at Barefoot Church Celebrate Recovery, we had a great lesson on relapse and how to avoid it, using how Jesus faced temptation as an example. John M. did a great job presenting the lesson and thanked us for our prayers for his wife LeAnne who is recovering nicely from her surgery. In case you missed the lesson, you have another chance to hear it again at Beach Church on Friday night. Barry reminded us relapse does not have to be a part of recovery and there are some of us that have not relapsed thanks to the grace of Jesus Christ. Don't forget there is an important Leadership Meeting/Training on Saturday, November 7th at the church office at 9:00 am. If you would like to be involved in leadership in any way, we welcome you to attend and find out more about the opportunities awaiting you.

Recap of 10-19-09

We were blessed to have a guest speaker join us from another CR. He really opened up and shared his heart with us. We all were blown away at his honesty and the amount of courage it took to admit all of his sins with us. He also shared his incredible victories thanks to his total surrender to Jesus Christ which he did before he entered Celebrate Recovery. He has been living the 12 steps taken from the beatitudes for several years now, and it shows. God has changed him from the inside out. After hearing this testimony, it’s easy to realize God has only just begun His work in us. His dedication to living the life Jesus wants us to, is a true witness to us all! This was an incredible testimony – if you weren’t there to hear it Monday night you really missed a good one. We only put testimonies on here that we have permission to do so. This speaker asked us not to and of course we respect that decision. This is why you want to try and come in person because they might not all make it to here!

Recap of 10-12-09

Last night started off with an awesome night of worship as Sacred Blend led us through a Spirit filled set of songs. We were honored to have Tim V. from Beach Church join us to give us a lesson from the 10th step on the importance of daily inventory with a focus on journaling. He gave us all a sample of a journal which included some tough questions to ask ourselves about our godly behavior throughout the day. He brought up the different types of inventories: daily, periodic and yearly and the importance of all three to keep spiritually fit. If you missed it, you can go over it yourself in the step book because as Tim brought up, the lessons, "Daily Inventory" and "Yes" are the 2 most important lessons to continue spiritual health as Christians. Mark your calendar for the leadership meeting the first Saturday in November at 9 am. Have a blessed week.

Testimony by Jamie P. (video)

We had a guest speaker Jamie P. on 10-05-09. Jamie gave her personal testimony.




(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 10-05-09

We had a real night of celebration last night at Barefoot Church Celebrate Recovery. First, many pitched in to have our first "Soup Cook Off." There were over 10 different types to choose from and the people's choice won a $40 gift certificate to Applebee's. The night continued with a great worship time and heartfelt testimony from Jamie P. of Myrtle Beach Community Church. If you missed it, you can see it here later today or at the latest Wednesday morning to hear how misplaced love can cause real hurts and hang ups. Finally hear how Jesus always came to her rescue and ultimately healed her of her issues. More children came back this week to hear their next lesson from the "Celebration Station" curriculum on denial. They are really getting a lot out of it, and we are already seeing changes in the children. Thank you Deborah and Rachel for your devotion to God's children! Hope to see you next week when Tim V. of Myrtle Beach Community Church shares on the 10th step and the importance of journaling. Thanks Tim for Celebrate Recovery ENews and keeping us informed of events in the surrounding area taking place in Celebrate Recovery.

Testimony by Cheryl S. (video)

We had a guest speaker Cheryl S. on 09-28-09. Cheryl gave her personal testimony.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 09-28-09

God gets all the glory for bringing hurting and healing people back week after week. Cheryl S. shared her personal testimony and was gracious enough to allow us to film her. It will be available here soon! Her testimony was very powerful and has a strong message for many of us that are devoted servants to the Lord. It was an excellent follow up to Pastor Clay's spirited sermon on the 2nd half of the gospel this past Sunday. You have to view it for yourself to see how God got that message across to Cheryl in a real and personal way. It totally delivered her from all that she was enslaved to. We invite you to join us next week for another great lesson.


You also invited to join us Saturday, October 3rd at the Christian American Music Festival where Chris Gastardi will be speaking at 2:00 and the Celebrate Recovery Band will be playing at 2:20. There will be four other bands and many other great speakers including Shawn Norton, the Celebrate Recovery State Representative for SC.

Recap of 09-21-09

Cathy H. delivered a great lesson on Crossroads last night. This lesson corresponds to Principle 7: Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, and prayer in order to know God and His will for my life and to gain the power to follow His will. She asked God to speak through her, and He did as she spoke straight from the heart. The message was powerful, but she personalized it with examples from her own life as well. Those of us that are in step groups know how powerful the "Crossroads" assignment was to journal about our behavior each day in a one week period. This was to reflect on how we handled our reactions to people and situations so that we might identify patterns, look at our part and grow through the process. The suggestion Cathy reminded us of, written by John Baker of Saddleback Church, was to keep doing this throughout our Christian walk, but not to forget to note when we handled things well too.

Testimony by Deborah B. (video)

Deborah B. gave her personal testimony on 09-14-09.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 09-14-09

Hope you are all well. We had a great showing at Celebrate Recovery Monday night. It was the largest group since the launch with 104 people total in attendance. The worship band gave God all the glory and prepared our hearts for Deborah B.'s testimony. She has recovered from Co-Dependency and many other wounds from her childhood that, according to her, "no child should have to endure." Her testimony is available to watch on here and you don't want to miss this one. Forgiveness permeated her testimony which gave us a little insight as to the love that Jesus has for all of us even though we hurt Him deeply at times. God bless you all and have a great week!

Recap of 09-07-09

Last night the CR band set the tone with a worship experience that brought in the presence of the Holy Spirit. Then Shawn, our State Representative, brought a powerful lesson on the grace of God. One memorable moment was when he passed out a check from Jesus to us and the amount of the payment was "Grace." We were then asked to fill our names in the "Pay to the Order of" category. Even though it was a holiday weekend, the Lord still brought 82 people and 4 children. Praise be to the Lord and Barefoot Church for giving us the opportunity to serve others who are desperate to heal their hurts, habits and hang-ups. The verses of the lesson are the theme verses of Celebrate Recovery: “But he said to me, ‘My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, my power is made perfect in you.’ So I am very happy to brag about my weaknesses. Then Christ's power can live in me. For this reason I am happy when I have weaknesses, insults, hard times, sufferings, and all kinds of troubles for Christ. Because when I am weak, then I am truly strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NCV).

Testimony by John M. (video)

John M. gave his personal testimony on 08-31-09.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 08-31-09

Once again we had another spirit filled night of worship by our recently and appropriately named Celebrate Recovery Band, "The Sacred Blend." They set the tone for a testimony by John M., Barry's Co-Director of Celebrate Recovery at Barefoot Church; that was deeply powerful and full of God's healing touch. If you couldn't make it, it will be well worth your while to check it out here later today or early tomorrow at the latest. You will learn about the countless miracles that happened in John's life as he diligently acted out what James 5:16 directs us to do. "Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray one another so you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much." He gives example after example of answered prayer and healing. You won't want to miss this one. The last verse I want to give you applies to the testimony you heard and perhaps your own life and is full of hope, "This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me, I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day." John 6:39. AMEN and AMEN

September is National Recovery Month!

Just thought you'd like to know! :)

Recap of 08-24-09

Last night at Celebrate Recovery we had a great lesson on Forgiveness from our guest speaker, George B. from Alexandria, (Celebrate Recovery Ministry Leader and Children's Pastor at his church). If you couldn't make it, you missed a great delivery by a dynamic speaker.

Praise God for the all the baptisms we had on Sunday throughout all of Barefoot Church and Monday school starting up to emphasize how important it is to work Christ's principles in our lives every day for everyone in the body of Christ! Jesus' prayer before He went to the Father for us to be unified comes to mind. John 17: 21: "...that they may all be one even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me."

Next week our very own John M. will be giving his testimony. You won't want to miss this! His is a true life transformation. See you next week.

Testimony by Lynn W. (video)

Lynn W. gave her personal testimony on 08-17-09.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 08-17-09

Last night we really felt the Lord's presence, first with the Celebrate Recovery band and later, as Lynn W. shared her personal testimony and complete deliverance through the prayer of God's people and Jesus Christ. Watch her testimony to see how Celebrate Recovery later became such an important part of her life. It should be on here later today or at the latest Wednesday. We also had several people confirm that they are getting baptized and new people sign up for Sunday. Glory to God in the Highest who will not share His glory with another.

Join us next week when our special friend George B. from Virginia joins us with a lesson on forgiveness. We will also be sharing a special time of the Lord's Supper together in the large group. You won't want to miss next week. See you then. :))

Blog Comments

There was recently a negative comment left on here about our leadership. We will not publish such comments but will instead address it this way.

If you have a genuine interest and concern for our ministry and our leadership I would like to ask you to please pray. Pray for us and for God’s will to be done in and through us. We are just people, flawed people trying to grow in our own relationships with Christ and to give back what has so freely been given to us, His love.

If there is something going on you don’t like we invite you to come to our monthly meetings (the first Saturday at 9:00 am) and to freely express yourself and your concerns. That is a way to get involved and to possibly make a positive influence. Leaving negative comments here is not the solution and frankly, not very Christ like.

We hope you will pray for us as we are praying for you, be blessed…

Recap of 08-10-09

Last night at CR our ministry leader Barry delivered the lesson titled “Amends”. Barry mentioned that he knew it was a hard lesson to hear. This is such an important part of our recovery and our Christian walk. If we know we have offended somebody we must make an amends and if we’ve been offended we must forgive. That’s how you get on the road to freedom. Jesus says in Luke 6:36 that we must be compassionate (or merciful) just as our Father is compassionate. This isn’t a casual suggestion, He said we must. The next verse He says forgive others and we will be forgiven. That’s something to think about!

Barry was busy last night, before our large group he grilled up some chicken breast that Ron had marinated and they were awesome! You never know what we’ll be eating at CR but we will be eating! You have to come and find out.

Next week we have special testimony from a woman who used to would have been classified as a guest speaker but she has become one of our regular attendees. She drives probably 40 miles every Monday to be with us so make sure you make it out to hear her testimony.

Testimony by Jeff S. (video)

We had a guest speaker Jeff S. on 08-03-09. Jeff gave his personal testimony.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 08-03-09

Last night at CR Jeff S. who is a CR ministry leader from Fayetteville, NC gave his personal testimony. He spoke about his involvement in biker gangs and about how he ended up becoming addicted to crack cocaine. Two and a half years ago he surrendered his life to Jesus and then ended up at a Celebrate Recovery meeting in …
You can hear Jeff’s entire journey (so far) for yourself by coming back to our blog and watching his testimony from last night. It will be here later today or by tomorrow at the latest.

Jeff initiated an alter call by first asking a simple question, “If you were to die tonight, are you sure if you’d go to Heaven?” He then asked anybody that wasn’t sure to raise their hand. Four people ended up committing or recommitting their life to Jesus and have also shown an interest in being baptized the next time the church does baptisms. Amen! Our powerful and almighty Father is always at work, He is so good!

Recap of 07-27-09

Last night Rand A. did an excellent job delivering the lesson titled “Victory”. Jesus told us we would have struggles but He also promises we’ll have victories through Him. Paul told us in Romans 5:3-5 that “we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.” That’s victory! But sometimes it must start with sufferings.

Barry also spent some time talking about the upcoming Dreamfest this Saturday. If any of you reading this and don’t know, it’s going to be huge this time; you don’t want to miss it. The United Way is providing some funds for this one to be spent on food to the tune of 8 times what is usually spent! Come participate, volunteer, go through the line, tell everyone you can, all the food must be given away. What a powerful opportunity we all have to share the love of Jesus with our community and with each other. Our CR Band will be playing some live music and rumor has it there might also be food being cooked and served for everyone! Make sure you wear your Celebrate Recovery or Barefoot Church t-shirt if you have one.

Next Monday night we have a special guest, Jeff S. giving his personal testimony. Jeff is a CR ministry leader from Fayetteville, NC and he has an incredible testimony to share.

Testimony by Cheri D. (video)

We had a guest speaker Cheri D. on 07-20-09. Cheri gave her personal testimony.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 07-20-09

We had a wonderful time at CR last night. Our CR Band rocked “Can't No Grave Hold My Body Down” for the first time. And they were coming through the “house” sound for the first time in long time, not completely but we’re getting there!

Cheri D. from Beach Church CR gave her testimony which covered a lot of different issues God has brought her through. There is something in her story that you can relate to, we promise. She did give us permission to upload it to our blog so you can look for it here by at least tomorrow. If you weren’t with us last night you should really take the time to hear her journey. Or if you were with us and you want to share it with someone, send them to the blog, that’s what it’s here for!

Next week Rand A. from Beach Church CR will be delivering the lesson titled “Victory”, what a great name for a lesson! We like to say “it works if you work it!” The victories are what we love to celebrate together. It can be a lot of hard work but as our testimonies always confirm, through Jesus Christ, there are victories to be had!

Recap of 07-13-09

Last night at CR our ministry leader Barry delivered a lesson titled “Ready”. It spoke about how we must be ready to get one on one with God and surrender all to Him but then to make sure we replace the bad that we allow God to remove with good. We must allow God to fill the empty wholes with positives. In other words when we clean our house out, we can’t leave it empty.

"When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it.
Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order.
Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation."
Matthew 12:43-45

Next week we have another special guest from our sister CR at Beach Church. This woman has a tremendous testimony. We don’t know yet if she will allow us to put it on our blog but she may not so you might want to make plans to be here in person because you won’t want to miss this!

By the way, we no longer put lessons on the blog but we do still record them. If anyone ever would like to see the video of a particular lesson you can request a DVD by emailing us.

Strand Recovery ENews July 2009

Strand Area Celebrate Recovery’s July Newsletter

Testimony by Gary & Michelle W. (video)

We had guest speakers Gary & Michelle W. on 07-06-09. They gave their personal testimony.



(Some images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 07-06-09

What a time we had at CR last night! God’s Spirit was felt by all present. We always have a time of prayer at the alter at the end of our large group but last night people were drawn to do so early on during our opening praise & worship music. It was incredible and powerful. God also brought the most people we’ve had on a regular (no special event) CR night since the week after our Grand Launch (84 people including 2 children). We heard a powerful testimony from Gary & Michelle W. that was from the heart with honesty and compassion along with there own PowerPoint, special music, unknown speaker and sea shells! I guess you had to be there! If you weren’t, or if you were and want to share it with someone, it will be here on our blog by sometime tomorrow. You’ll miss some of the special effects but you’ll still get to hear their awesome testimony.

Next week one of our own will be presenting a lesson titled “Ready”. Prayerfully consider coming to see what CR is all about if you’ve never been and if you’ve been before but not recently we invite you back to see how God is growing this ministry and we invite you to get involved, for your own healing as well as the healing of others. Come catch the wave!

Check out Tuesday Night Rewind tonight at www.BarefootChurchLive.com to hear more about this exciting ministry. It starts at 7:00 pm.

CR Cookout

We had a wonderful time yesterday at our CR Cookout. Last month we had a small cookout that was basically just people from our CR group. That was our practice run. Yesterday we wanted to serve our church leaders and volunteers. We did with the help of leaders from two other area Celebrate Recovery groups. We estimated we had about 150 people present throughout the afternoon. We had two egg toss contests which of all people our pastor and his wife won the first one! It was an awesome time of fellowship and it gave us an opportunity to serve and give back to our church.

Testimony by Brandon H. (video)

We had a guest speaker Brandon H. on 06-22-09. Brandon gave his personal testimony.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Danny B. ~ 1 Year Clean (video)

06-15-09 Danny B. gives a mini-testimony after receiving his “1 Year Coin”.



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Testimony by Mary B. (video)

We had a guest speaker Mary B. on 06-08-09. Mary gave her personal testimony. (Sorry it's so late getting here.)



(All images used were created by and are owned by Celebrate Recovery of Saddleback Church. As an authentic Celebrate Recovery ministry we use them only to promote Celebrate Recovery and the love and saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.)

Recap of 05-25-09

We had a very nice Memorial Day CR service last night. We started out with a couple of patriotic songs and a video about the state of our country reminding us to pray for it. We also acknowledged our veterans we had with us. We had a special moment with Ron C., who just celebrated 1 year of living a new life. Pat the Poet wrote and read him a poem. Then we heard a very moving testimony from a special guest speaker. This person chose to not have their testimony recorded and put on the web so if you missed it, sorry.

If you haven’t went back and read any old posts then you might not know but we are no longer putting lessons on the web either. We’ve actually gone back and took them all off. We will only put testimonies that we’re given signed permission up on the web. Make every effort you can to get to a CR near you on a regular basis to here these life changing lessons and testimonies. The fellowship and time to share is also so valuable.

Last night we had 48 people including 6 children.

Our first CR Cookout!

We had an awesome time in the park yesterday! This was our first official CR Cookout, with plans of many more. We had about 40 people who showed up between the 3-4 hours we were there. A lot of people weren’t CR people (yet anyway!) who had just heard about it at church and came to check it out. We cooked about 70 burgers and 50 hot dogs and even fed a couple people who just walked by, it was great. We had an egg toss that ended up being a little messy for a few people and we had a “not your average” volleyball game. Only one person remembered a camera and apparently it only had a few pictures left on it so we missed a lot of stuff but we did get a few pics and there on here!

We hope to do this monthly for the rest of the season. Oh yea, there was like an 80-90% chance of rain and thunderstorms yesterday and it didn’t look to promising at the beginning but a couple of us prayed that God might hold it off for us. Well, the sun tried to come out but it didn’t rain until about 30 minutes after we had all left and then the bottom fell out! Thank you Father for answered prayer and for Your Son that came out in each one of us and for a wonderful time we all had!