As you read these stories we invite you to share your thoughts, reflections and insights. This series will include stories on addiction, along with 8 articles from our most recent Messenger magazine. Our hope is that as we engage in conversation together, we can gain a deeper understanding in the midst of trials and celebrations of overcoming addiction.
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Article 1 of 8 - From the Messenger magazine! Click Here to read more stories from this Winter 2011 edition of the Messenger magazine.
By Aaron Eggers, Director of Men’s Ministries, Water Street Mission and Daral Boles, Director of Women’s Ministries, Water Street Mission
Though the face of addiction has changed remarkably in the last 50 years, the dismal statistics continue. Fifty-two people die every day in this country from addiction (alcohol and other drug) related complications*. Those 52 people are moms, dads, sons, daughters, brothers, or sisters to someone. At the Water Street Mission in our LifeRecovery Program alone, 23 men have died as a consequence of their substance abuse over the past five years. One young man, well-liked by this community and actively struggling to shake his addiction, died in our cafeteria bathroom with a needle in his arm.While we at the Water Street Mission understand that biological vulnerability plays a part in addiction, we also know that addiction plays out in relationship. Addiction of any kind, be it to substances, partners, or behavior patterns, reflects and perpetuates the cycle of broken relationships.
We see the impact of addictive choices in every aspect of our clients’ lives, in their relationships with self, others, and God. Water Street Ministries therefore addresses it on all fronts, in all ministry divisions:
• Addiction is a physiological problem (Water Street Health Services and the Water Street Mission).
• Addiction is a family problem (the Water Street Mission, Lydia Center, Teen Haven and Wonder Club Early Learning Centers).
• Addiction is a spiritual, relational problem (all of the divisions of Water Street Ministries).
• Addiction is a community problem (Water Street Mission in collaboration with our many partner churches and agencies, including housing, drug & alcohol treatment programs, counseling centers, public assistance programs, and schools).
52 people die every day in this country from addiction.*
No one ever plans to become an addict. It doesn’t happen overnight, but neither does the journey to recovery. Recognizing that recovery is a process that may take time, we commit to a long-term relationship with our clients that may involve several stays at the Mission. We understand that relapse is part of recovery (for more on this concept, see page 6), and we rejoice over baby steps as much as big ones.
The residential programs at the Water Street Mission offer a purposeful mix of Christian guidance and evidencebased relapse prevention, while our Community Emergency Shelter enables us to engage with individuals who have not yet committed to change. We look to help our clients not only change destructive life habits but also maintain those changes with the support of churches, mentors, and the community. Above all, we practice new, healthy relationships, centered on Christ Jesus, who forgives us regardless of the nature of our addiction or sin.
All Christ-centered relationships grow and change over time, and our relationships with addicted clients are no different. For some of our clients, sobriety begins when they step onto this campus. Newly clean and sober, they know better than anyone the fragility of that early stage, and while they may sometimes resist it, many also recognize that structure and accountability are the keys to gaining traction in the battle.
A client at our women’s emergency shelter, for example, recently talked of the “blessing” of nightly blood alcohol content monitoring. (All shelter residents are tested nightly for alcohol, and random drug tests are also performed in our programs.) There have been days, this client says, when the only thing keeping her out of the bars is the knowledge that she will be tested that night.
That baseline accountability is bolstered over time in group and individual counseling that addresses not only addictive behaviors but the issues that led into that substance abuse and the fallout it has produced. We know that the first months of recovery are times of remarkable and sometimes even miraculous neurological and spiritual healing, but also pain.
Those who persevere, however, reap the blessings of peace, stability, and a sound mind. And they in turn begin in the 12-step tradition to “give back” to our community, modeling to staff and residents alike a life of dependence on God and caring for others. Every Mission staff member could, if asked, recall the names and stories of specific individuals who have touched our lives in the course of their recovery. We know that we have been blessed by them, and we thank God for allowing us to witness and support their
journey of healing.
*www.selectown.com/drug-addiction-statistics.php
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