May 26

Psalm 68:2
As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.

The conference room was a fog of cigarette smoke. Everyone sat red-eyed, both smoker and nonsmoker alike. It was hard to utter a sentence without choking. Finally, someone discovered switches that turned on exhaust fans. The room cleared, and breathing was possible once more.

 

Evil is as oppressive as a thick cloud of smoke. It envelops people and chokes them, making it impossible for them to function. The Lord will one day dispel all evil as a fan dispels smoke. On that day, all good people will breathe richly of the fragrance of God, and no more will we be covered by the haze of sin.

 

Prayer: Lord, send the breath of Your Spirit to cleanse me of all sin. Free me from the oppression of all that I have done wrong, through Your blessed forgiveness. Amen.

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23 Attorneys General Urge Urban Outfitters to Pull Products Promoting Rx Drug Abuse

By Join Together Staff | May 23, 2013 | Leave a comment | Filed in Advocacy, Marketing And Media, Prescription Drugs & Prevention

On Wednesday 23 attorneys general sent a letter to Urban Outfitters CEO and Chairman Richard A. Hayne, urging him to remove products promoting prescription drug abuse from the stores’ shelves.
The letter asked the company to stop selling a line of items that look like prescription pill bottles, boxes, pads and syringes, according to The Miami Herald.
“These products are not in any way fun or humorous but make light of this rampant problem,” the attorneys general wrote. “We invite you to pull these products from your shelves and join with us to fight prescription drug abuse.”
Earlier this month, The Partnership at Drugfree.org urged people to write or email Hayne, or sign a Facebook petition calling on Urban Outfitters to remove the products from its stores and website. A week later, the Chairman of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee, Hal Rogers, called on Urban Outfitters to stop selling the products.
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who signed the letter, said in a statement, “Profiting from an ad campaign that is contrary to Florida’s efforts to combat prescription drug overdoses and drinking is unacceptable. We are calling on Urban Outfitters to forgo a few sales and help us save a lot of lives.”

May 25

Psalm 66:20
Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.

Think of it! God is actually waiting to hear from us. It's not that God doesn't have other things to do, but that there is nothing He'd rather do than spend time with the children He loves. It boggles the mind to realize that God loves us that much. He has made us to be like Him, and He anxiously awaits our call. Offer your prayers to God. He will hear them, and He will send His mercy upon them.

 

Prayer: Hear me, O God. Though I may have nothing of much importance to say to You, I need to know that You will listen to me and respond. I love You, Lord. Amen.

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May 24

Psalm 66:6
He turned the sea into dry land: they went through the flood on foot: there did we rejoice in him.

Professor Marsh shook his head emphatically. He maintained that the story of the Red Sea was phony. Dr. Reed proposed that maybe they crossed somewhere else. Brother Allwell said true believers knew it happened just as it was written. For hours the men argued and fought. No one changed his mind, nothing was gained, faith was never spoken of, and the promoters of the debate thought, all in all, it was a great success.

What is the big idea? The fact is, the Hebrew people escaped the finest fighting force of its day by crossing a body of water that stopped the Egyptian army. A miracle is a miracle is a miracle. The [how] is not nearly as important as the fact that it [did] happen. Our God is a God of miracle and wonder. Praise Him for what He does, rather than for how He does it, and you will find your faith grows by leaps and bounds.

Prayer: When Your miracles get reduced to topics for debate, I find I lose interest, Father. Refresh me with the strangeness and awe of Your power, Lord. Amen.

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The first ever EAST COAST SUMMIT will be held Wednesday, July 10th – Friday, July 12th

Start making plans now to join us for the 1st Annual Celebrate Recovery East Coast Summit

This event is being held at: RESTORATION CHURCH 6655 Pottery Road Spartanburg, SC  29303

Register here is you are a resident of the USA

Register here if you are a resident outside the USA

For a printable Registration Form click here 

Questions about registration? Please send an e-mail to registration@saddleback.com or call (949) 609-8020

Questions about the travel arrangements or local hotels? Please click here

New Psychiatric Manual Combines Alcohol Disorders

By Join Together Staff | May 22, 2013 | 2 Comments | Filed in Alcohol & Mental Health

The newly released update to psychiatry’s diagnostic manual combines problem drinking and alcoholism into a single condition known as “alcohol use disorder,” which some experts say could lead binge drinkers to be mislabeled as alcoholics.

CNN reports the new diagnosis, found in the updated Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, known as DSM-5, could follow college students into adulthood. The earlier version of the manual, DSM-4, had separate categories for alcohol abuse and the more serious alcohol dependence.

A recent study suggests the changes to alcohol disorders may not improve the diagnosis of alcoholism. The study found the changes are unlikely to result in a less accurate diagnosis, but they do not represent a clear improvement above the current diagnostic criteria.

In addition to being used by mental health professionals to diagnose patients, the DSM is used by insurance companies and schools in making decisions about coverage and special provisions for people with developmental or mental disorders, the article notes.

Critics of the DSM-5 say it will expand the list of what constitutes mental illness and will lead to a needless increase in diagnoses. A growing number of psychiatrists, psychologists and clinical social workers say depression and other normal responses to life events are too often labeled as mental illness, increasing the use of potentially dangerous medication.