Edwin, a burly guy who once ran with bikers, struggles with pride, trust, and self-esteem.
“My pride almost caused me to lose my family, my job,” he said. Edwin also had to have surgery on his heart. Though it saved his life, it left him with some issues the talented surgeons could not fix. “I dealt with depression. I had an attitude. I was not the same man I was before the operation.”
After a friend invited him to Celebrate Recovery, he listened to a testimony he felt could very well have been his own. “This got my attention.” Once in Celebrate Recovery, his wife noticed the changes he was making within himself and Edwin was at peace with the idea that CR is Christ-centered. He is concerned about the welfare of troubled people in our society and hopes CR can help with some of that. “The nation’s falling apart,” he said.
“We have so many kids overdosing, babies dying because their parents were not there looking after them. Some of the adults, kids, are gonna do what they’re gonna do. They’re gonna steal, rob, and kill — whatever necessary — and they’re gonna get their drugs one way or another. If we could reach those kids before they get to the adult side, maybe we could save a few. We can’t save everybody. If we could just save one or two, and if maybe
that one or two could save somebody else, then that’s how it starts.” Heavily involved in CR and his church, Edwin likes to greet people at both venues.
“When they first walk in that door – the newcomers — they have no idea what they are getting into, and they feel intimidated, lost, hurt, ashamed. They got that sad look on their face. I get a chance to witness to them, a chance to welcome them, make them feel at home, welcome to be part of the family.” He wants people to know about the benefits of Celebrate Recovery, as well as the healing powers of Jesus Christ. “I’m a grateful believer. It was Christ who allowed me to live, to be a witness, and to preach the gospel. I have to talk to other individuals. Let them know what I have been through.” He went on to recognize the loneliness a lot of people deal with, be it a ramification of their own troubles or someone else’s.
“A lot of those who come to Celebrate Recovery don’t have families. They’ve been kicked to the side, or abused. They are waiting for someone to tell them ‘it’s gonna be alright.’”
(to be continued)
