Last Updated on January 20, 2025 by Rocklyn Clarke

Introduction:

Are you in a recovery fellowship? Stick with it! May it continue to be a blessing to you and those you love! We are not, in any way, trying to replace what you’ve found in recovery.

We wrote this page to help you apply what you’ve already learned in recovery to the process of following Jesus and becoming a disciple. We at Life Church have a great appreciation for the recovery movement, particularly, Narcotics Anonymous (NA). The material on this page is patterned after the material in the Narcotics Anonymous Basic Text. 

Basic Guide

Who Is an Addict?

We use the definition provided by the Narcotics Anonymous Basic Text.

God loves addicts and wants to free them from destructive behaviors.

What Is the Following Jesus Curriculum?

LIfe Church is a Christian church in Boston, Massachusetts. We want to lead people to a life of following Jesus; our Following Jesus curriculum is designed to show you how.

Why Are We Here?

We are here because, in addition to our commitment to recovery, we have come to believe that the claims that Jesus makes about himself are true and we want to follow him in a public, verifiable way.

How It Works (Twelve Steps)

What follows is a set of twelve steps for following Jesus. We have also re-printed the twelve steps from NA in blue below each one.

Step 1

We admitted that we were powerless over religious confusion and hypocrisy. Our spiritual lives had become ineffective.

I can no longer tell if my spiritual life is making a difference in my life, the lives of those I love or in the lives of others around me.

NA: We admitted that we were powerless over our addiction, that our lives had become unmanageable.

Step 2

We came to believe that by following the real resurrected Jesus of the Bible, we can be restored to God’s purpose for our lives.

NA: We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

Step 3

We made a decision to follow the resurrected Jesus of the Bible.

NA: We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.

Step 4

We made a searching and fearless study of the life of Jesus as recorded in the Bible.

NA: We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

Step 5

We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the ways that our lives fell short of Jesus’ teaching.

NA: We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

Step 6

We were entirely ready to have God transform us to be like Jesus.

NA: We were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

Step 7

We humbly asked God to transform us to be like Jesus.

NA: We humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.

Step 8

We made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.

NA: We made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.

Step 9

We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

NA: We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

Step 10

We continued to study the life of Jesus and when we fell short promptly admitted it.

NA: We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

Step 11

We sought through prayer, meditation, and the study of the Bible to be a disciple of Jesus, praying to know Him, His will for us and the power to carry that out.

NA: We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.

Step 12

Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to live for Jesus in all our affairs.

Checkout our Training Page:

Life Church Training Page

NA: Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

What Can I do?

As in the Narcotics Anonymous Basic Text, you can begin your own program by taking Step One from the previous chapter: “How It Works”. Ask someone from our ministry to disciple you and lead you through the Following Jesus curriculum.

The Twelve Traditions

Unlike NA, our Following Jesus curriculum does not have a set of twelve traditions.

Recovery and Relapse

From time to time, a person who has made a commitment to follow Jesus may turn away from his/her commitment. This is sometimes referred to as “backsliding”. If such a person has a change of heart and, once again, wishes to follow Jesus we welcome their return.

We Do Recover

As the Narcotics Anonymous Basic Text makes clear, addicts who follow the NA program do recover. Similarly, those who engage in a biblically-based discipleship program like our Following Jesus curriculum can expect to experience a transformed life. New godly habits replace old, ungodly habits and the believer becomes more and more, like Jesus.

Living For Today

In addition to following the recommendations from the Narcotics Anonymous Basic Text Chapter Nine: “Just for Today – Living the Program”, embrace the following disciplines for followers of Jesus:

• Just for today I will pray – asking God to make me more like Jesus.
• Just for today I will stay connected to someone who is discipling me.
• Just for today I will read from the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John)  – a gospel a month, a chapter a day.

More Will Be Revealed

Expect God to reveal more to you over time – directly in prayer and through your interaction with your brothers and sisters in Christ.

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Resources & Acknowledgements