Overcomers Outreach  

From the Director As another year draws to a close, we can be thankful for so much. We have meetings in 49 of 50 states, new meetings overseas, and over the past year some 25 new meetings have started - 8 in the last 3 months! Requests for information packets have tripled. Groups are working together to put on events, set up HIM services and committees, and raise public awareness. So, why do we give thanks in the first place? Usually we have received something. In fact, our gratitude is in response to receiving something we weren�t too sure about getting, or from an unexpected source, or even something turning out �better than expected�. Often, we call these outcomes gifts or blessings, to honor their source. When we earn something, like a paycheck, diploma or certificate, we may view these as �rewards� � the results of our hard work � yet the opportunities for these achievements are blessings as well. We are blessed by God through others, and He blesses others through us. A gift becomes a gift only when we accept it, and the blessing is in the giving and receiving of each other, rather than the having or lacking of things to give. A �thank you� and our shared prosperity are how we acknowledge and receive these blessings, thus honoring the giver. God has given us this day, this life as we live it now, and by His Providence our needs are met. He has given us His revealed Will, in His Word, the Bible, to guide us through our time in this world, He has given us the greatest gift - a gift so great it is worthy of Him - with all honor and glory, life with Him and life abundant, through His Son, Jesus Christ. Have you honored Him by accepting and sharing these gifts? I thank God for the honor to share this life with you. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Jeff M.

Events
Annual Gratitude Dinner
Once again, the Porter Ranch group hosted a gratitude potluck dinner, and it was great! Overcomers from 6 different groups attended, and together we worshipped, broke bread, and praised the works of God in our lives. Everyone had a good time, and a generous donation was collected for the Central Office as well. Thank you Porter Ranch group!
Upcoming Events: The Overcomers Outreach World Convention will be held January 17th- 19th, 2014, in Cedar Hill, TX. This event is free, and special room rates are available. Flier, schedule, and hotel details are on the Events page of the website.
6th Annual OO Campout Get ready! We have the group campsite this year which allows 35 overnight campers, up to 15 vehicles, including 2 RVs (no hook-ups), or other vehicles (trailers, pop-ups, etc.), but primarily tent-camping. With shower facility, large grill pit, and away from the rest of the campground, this is a great spot. We will have a "pot-luck" night Friday, where everyone shares a dish, and a barbecue dinner Saturday night. Campfire meetings, day hikes, beach and even shopping downtown Morro Bay! Something for everyone, so bring your s'mores and join us. Everyone had a great time last year and we are looking forward to next year! Details

Mailbox
Goa, India writes: Would it be possible to email me The Preamble? My Kindle tablet will not download it from you Homepage. I am praying about starting a group on an experimental basis in Goa India. Thank you so much! Diana G.
Pakistan writes:
Dear Brother, Peace in Jesus Name. I hope you are doing well in the Lord. We are praying for Overcomers Outreach and growing. God is good to us. Although we are facing lot of challenges, persecution is one of the worst. Yet we are growing. We have formed four more groups as below:
1-Pastor Munir Shahid (Narag Mandi), 2-Pastor Sajad (Narowal), 3-Mr. Zartash Zaidi (Samundari), and 4-Shakeel Anjam (Khanewal).
I will be sending you pictures of some places before Christmas. Be Blessed, In Christ Family, Pastor Azhar kaleem
Cuxhaven, Germany writes: Hi Jeff - At the end of the year, just a word of praying for your Go(o)d Work in Jesus Christ's Name you all are performing � Well done & Praise the Lord! Things are running ok here with us personally after some problems of a water leak in our rooms but with God's help we have overcome all this. Our Online-Meetings (especially with Boris} are in progress and we hope that others will join. In Oct. 2014 we are planning our annual regular C12-Convent at Fulda (in the middle of Germany near Frankfurt/M.) to spread the Message of Hope and Freedom through our country. For the upcoming holidays and the New Year all our prayers and blessings are with you, greetings to all who know us and we say thank you, bye, bye - and until then trudging the road to our common Happy Destiny. One day, one step in God's Time and Will. Amen. Rolf & Uta
Baton Rouge, LA writes: Dear Jeff - Just now read about the World Convention near Dallas. That's only an eight hour drive for us, so we will get to attend. I'm excited. Also I'd like to offer my help for people who may wish to start an OO meeting in South Louisiana. This could include Gonzales, Denham Springs, Walker, Hammond, Covington, Mandeville, New Orleans, Lafayette, Opelousas, Slidell, Lake Charles, and of course, Baton Rouge. I'd really like to see another meeting in Baton Rouge, but I'm too busy with sponcees, Back To Basics (AA from 1941), and life, to start one. However, I'd help start one and give any assistance possible. You and OO are a blessing to me and many others. Last year the Pastor at the Baton Rouge Vineyard preached a 12 Step sermon the 4th Sunday of each month. We are gaining new AA and Al Anon members in the church from the community. (Probably 10 in the last year) Sincerely, Jack C
From our Blog Site: Our blog site is intended to offer sample material from our literature, while also serving as an �online meeting�. Here are some recent posts to the topic pages mentioned:
�Does Someone You Love�
Alli comments:
My fianc� has been struggling with alcoholism since he was 19. He had a lot of issues growing up which I think led him to drink. But he drinks to calm down, to forget, and hope the pain will all go away. I can't do it anymore. It's hurting me to see him like this. I've tried to help. I can't.
Gail says: It has been a turbulent 4 years, I was married to my first alcoholic for 11, and swore I would never do it again. Then I met Randy, sweet, funny. He drank every day, morning, noon, and night. His mother paid for his rent for two years, the day she came to pick him up to take him job hunting and he was naked and trying to jump in the closet to hide from her, she wrote him a letter she was done. But I stayed. He would call me the love of his life, I live in an apartment section 42, I cannot have a felon live with me, so between homeless missions and his retired Uncle in Kentucky and my place for short stays I thought He would be okay. Somehow he found the $25.00 a week room, and I have been told he has been buying the big bottle of VODKA, and the place has bedbugs, cockroaches, and fleas. It has a woman. Now he is cooking and cleaning for her instead of me. I have to let go. He looks like the Cirrhosis picture on-line. He has been drunk daily for the two weeks he has lived there. He mockingly was telling someone to tell me he loves me over the phone as she was fighting with him and called me. I guess it was all a lie, and I thought he was the love of my life. SAD, I went to church today, and they said Hatred is Heavy, Forgiveness is the only way to go on without hurting yourself. I have prayed to forgive him. Did he love me? Did he use me? Now that he is drinking, there is no point in trying to find out. I am sure he is going to kill himself and it breaks my heart. I never knew I could hate alcohol for what it does to some people. He doesn�t even seem to care, I don�t understand. He is supposed to be going to school, I wonder how that will go? I loved him so much - He is gone. The $25.00 room was a better choice than the mission we agreed upon. He is going to die with the bottle in his hand. I am sad.
�Richard� posts: Hi, my spouse drinks and say�s that�s what he loves. I love doing things at church. He compares the two. He stopped for 18 months and it gave me false hope. At times I feel it�s my fault and I don�t want to leave him, for who else will care?
�Sharing Jesus�
Marilyn M. comments:
There is overwhelming evidence all over the internet that Bill in particular may have called himself a Christian, but he did not live that way. I know less about Dr. Bob's life but I do know that anyone can call themselves a Christian. God has recently convicted me that as a Believer I can no longer participate in arenas where people are teaching that you can choose your own God. That is idol/pagan worship. If you look at the roots of early AA meetings, they came from the Oxford Groups which were indeed true Believers in Jesus Christ as the one true living God. They shared their "program" of living by prayer and faith and their format for group discussions with Bill and Dr. Bob. By the time their "methods" were officially incorporated into AA, Jesus had been erased. Ask yourself: what does it do to your relationship with God when you participate in teaching others that it's OK to choose your own God? It is against everything you believe, if you truly believe in the deity of Jesus Christ and the words he spoke. The enemy LOVES "the god of your understanding". He has perverted the Oxford Groups' teachings and mixed just enough truth into AA to soften and disguise the lies. "The enemy will come to you masqueraded as an angel of light". Ask God to show you.
Our reply is posted on our blog site under �Sharing Jesus with my 12 Step Friends�. Feel free to visit and comment.
�Starting a Meeting�
Steven W comments:
I am very interested in starting a group in Port Charlotte Florida. Our church DDM Discipleship Driven Ministries is expanding. I believe this would help our community. What do I need to do next? I have been sober for 26 years and want to spread Jesus to the broken. Thank you.
Steve also emailed us, and will be starting a group soon. � Ed.

Welcome New Groups: Welcome to the new groups in Sandy, UT, Dallas, TX, Montpelier, OH, Carlsbad, CA, Minden, NV, Colorado Springs, CO, Canoga Park, CA, Kansas City, KS, and Topaz Ranch estates, NV.
Special Thanks: Frank and Annie H., of Cypress TX, kept the doors open for 22years, and Verda B, of Scottsdale, AZ, did so for nearly as long. The meetings had to close recently, but we are thankful for their faithful service to so many.
Happy Birthday/Anniversary - The following people have recently celebrated milestones in recovery: Mark T, Cathedral City, CA � 5yrs, Rocky J, S. Lake Tahoe, CA � 7yrs, Darla W, Burley, ID � 10yrs, Ralph M, Elizabeth, NJ � 24yrs, Bill D, Porter Ranch, CA � 25yrs, and Linde C, Colorado Springs, CO � 26yrs. They made donations ($1 for each year of their recovery) to the Central Office to express their gratitude and help us �carry the message�. The following groups celebrated anniversaries this quarter: New Beginnings group - -4yrs., and �God�s Mighty Little Meeting� � 13 yrs., both in Simi Valley, CA, and Yorba Linda, CA, group � 24yrs. Also, the very first group, in Whittier, CA celebrated 36 years this past October. These groups make regular 7th tradition donations to the Central Office and continue, through their love and support, to help many people. If you or your group would like to be added to our list, please visit our Birthday Page or call the Central Office for details.

From the pamphlet: �Progress � Steps 10, 11, 12�
He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Revelation 21:5
We are reborn! Every day is a new opportunity to glorify God in all we do. If we fall short, we have a 10th step inventory process to recognize our mistakes and promptly set them right. And every day is a new opportunity to come to God and seek to serve Him. We do this through prayer and meditation, ever growing in our relationship with Him. Like changing water into wine, our past problems have become strong assets as we reach out to help others suffering as we once did � a true miracle! With our newly acquired spiritual �tools� (the principles of the 12 Steps) we continue to grow in usefulness, wisdom, and understanding. We think of what we may bring to an occasion rather than what we might get from it, and we focus on helping others, as God has commanded us to do. We are not limited to our own little groups, or the church, or our homes. We practice these principles in all our affairs, advancing the Kingdom wherever we go as we are led by His Spirit. We humbly preach the gospel of love by our actions, using words only as necessary or when asked. Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. - Luke 9:23-24
We practice this new way of living every day in obedience and gratitude. We meet with others to share our greatest gifts � God�s love for us and our love for Him � and to be there to offer our experience, strength and hope to others who may be suffering. We give freely of ourselves and that which has been given us, so we may serve as channels of His peace.
I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Literature Update - We now have wall posters - "12 Steps with Scriptures" and "OO 12 Traditions". They are 20 inches wide and 30 inches long, with dark green lettering on white vinyl, with hanging grommets. Other sizes are available. Contact the office by phone or email for further details.
The One Year Recovery Prayer Devotional is for those who seek freedom and recovery from destructive habits and addictions. Each day, the book encourages you to bring your struggles to God in prayer, asking for strength and power. - $10 plus shipping.
Our Steps and Traditions Guidebook has been revised and enhanced with study scriptures, prayers, and additional material, in a spiral bound booklet. We are offering the new guidebook for $6, with extra volume discount pricing starting at 10 copies or more. We also have the Newly Revised Group Traditions Guide (traditions only) for $3 each.
Our OO �big book�, A Bridge to Recovery, is an excellent resource for a �book study� meeting. It also has guidelines, formats, 36 stories of recovery and the history of Overcomers Outreach. We offer a Group Discount on orders of ten or more books shipped directly from the publisher for $17.50 per book (shipping included). Visit our Books page in our online shop, where we also offer discounts by the case for the Life Recovery Bible in soft cover and personal size editions.
Literature sales help fund the Central Office. We are happy to help your group find the literature they want at a good price, and offer discount prices on some books and Bibles by the case.
Office News - We need �likes� and �follows� on our Face Book page. Visit the page for posts and devotionals, and be sure to share any group news or events you care to. Our weekly Phone Meeting is still in need of a leader, but is �off and on� for now. Our blog site � The Bridge � is a great place to share online and a good resource for some of our literature. Our Group Network link provides helpful information for starting, growing, and improving group attendance or outreach to the community. A discussion of our Group Traditions and helpful forms will be found on this site, too.

A Prayer of Thanks

The �Holiday Season� can be one of joy and hope, with family gatherings, celebrations with friends and fellowship. For some, it is a time of despair, of feelings of inadequacy, or missing lost ones, or being apart from loved ones. This world would have us regret what is not, instead of rejoicing in what is. But Jesus was, is, and forever will be, and all else pales in significance. And we can be comforted that this season is really a celebration of when He chose us to be with Him, as brothers and sisters in the Kingdom of God for all eternity. Let us seek Him now:

King of Kings, Lord of all, we come before you now with praise and thanksgiving. We love you, we thank you, we worship you, and we need you. Guide us Lord, that we may fulfill your commands. May we seek to love those who do not know you, just as You first loved us, so that they may come to know you as well. Help us Lord to freely give all that we have received from You � Your Grace, Your Love, Your presence now and ever after. In Jesus name we pray. Amen

If you would like to donate to Overcomers Outreach, Inc. to help defray the cost of this newsletter as well as other operating expenses, please visit our website overcomersoutreach.org or send to Overcomers Outreach, 12828 Acheson Dr., Whittier, CA 90601. All donations are tax deductible. To be added to our mailing list, or removed from it, please so indicate, along with your donation, or call us at (800)310-3001. You can also email us at [email protected] and we will be happy to accommodate your request. We also welcome any news articles or testimonies you would care to submit for future newsletters. God Bless

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