Last issue we continued reading about Jamie Rich, leader of the Aaron Lake Baptist Church Celebrate Recovery Program (CR), as he continued telling his story of hitting rock bottom. After receiving advice from his wife, she told him that although she can not help him, she knows someone who can. Jesus Christ. After discovering he needed to get help, he utilized Step Study class. In a matter of time, Jamie and his wife decided this concent of CR was something they wanted to bring to their home church…
She [Amy] struggles with co-dependency, and has had to learn to limit the carrying of other peoples problems on her own shoulders. “I still mess up, but I have a better understanding of how I would weigh down my own life by trying to fix everybody else.
I have found a lot of freedom in focusing on my own issues.” CR has helped Amy realize when the struggle is happening, and that she needs to get back on track rather than allow her struggles to take over.
The program offers her an emotional connection she could not find in other self- help groups. Amy utilized Step Study class, where participants are guided through the twelve steps by two leaders who have already worked through them. “It opens up a lot of internal closets that you have stuff shoved into. It reveals where things in your past can still be hurting you, causing you to go through what your’re going through now.”
Though many other twelve-step programs specialize in specific struggles, such as AA or NA, the scope of Celebrate Recovery is more transverse.
According to Amy, they see everything from time management problems, to eating disorders, to people struggling with sexual addictions, or even medical problems. “Our largest group is A-Z, both men’s and women’s.”
(to be continued)
