8 Recovery Principles (based on the Beatitudes – Matthew 5:3-12) By Pastor Rick Warren 1. Realise I’m not God. I admit that I am powerless to control my tendency to do the wrong thing & that my life is unmanageable. Happy are those who know they are spiritually poor. 2. Earnestly believe that God exists, that I matter to Him, & that He has the power to help me recover. Happy are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 3. Consciously choose to commit my life & my will to Christ’s care & control. Happy are the meek. 4. Openly examine & confess my faults to myself, to God & to someone I trust. Happy are the pure in heart. 5. Voluntarily submit to every change God wants to make in my life & humbly ask Him to remove my character defects. Happy are those whose greatest desire is to do what God requires. 6. Evaluate all my relationships. Offer forgiveness to those who have hurt me & make amends for harm I have done to others, except when to do so would harm them or others. Happy are the merciful. Happy are the peacemakers. 7. Reserve a daily time with God for self-examination, Bible reading, & prayer in order to know God & His will for my life & to gain the power to follow His will. 8. Yield myself to God to be used to bring this Good News to others, both by my example & by my words. Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires.