Dying to be FREE

We're excited to introduce a NEW SERIES focusing on Addiction
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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Stay tuned for the next post in this series on Addiction!

Fighting Addiction, and Experiencing God’s Love

We're excited to introduce a NEW SERIES focusing on Addiction
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.

To receive our next Messenger magazine electronically, Click Here to sign up.

The Lydia Center is currently home to a young mom who joined our program without her children.

She believed in God until her dad passed away when she was 14. From then she shared that she felt like no one could love her but her dad & he was no longer here.

She was in relationship after relationship and a few were very abusive. She struggles with addiction to alcohol & drugs.

Today she told me that since she has accepted Jesus she feels loved by God & even though she hopes to marry & have a complete family one day she said that just knowing that God loves her right now gives her so much peace.

She is growing in trusting God & loves to spend time reading His word. I see life, peace, hope and a hunger for God in her that she did not have 3 weeks ago. She is actually getting baptized this Sunday.

I love the way our Savior brings this type of transformation!!!

Carrie Libonati • Lydia Center, Learning Center Instructor

We love hearing from you! Post your comments on our Blog, or Click Here to visit our Facebook page and join the conversation!

Stay tuned for the next post in this series on Addiction!

Fighting Addiction with the Armor of God

Recently, God has been telling me how important and necessary it is to pray with the “armor of God” for those in bondage to addiction.

I have a niece who is only 22 years old. She has already overdosed on heroine, been in and out of ICU multiple times with multi-system organ damage (liver and kidneys) from her severe alcoholism.

I had begun praying for her and she is showing small signs of new life yet she has a long road ahead for solid recovery. I know God does not want his children to live like that.

As it says in Ephesians 6:10-18,
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

We who are blessed with faith and health are needed to do spiritual battle on the behalf of those who are fighting against addiction.

- Submitted by an employee of Water Street Health Services

To read more stories like this on Addiction, we invite you to read the latest Messenger magazine by visiting: http://www.waterstreetministries.org/Libraries/Documents/Winter2011_Messenger_PDF_web_1.sflb.ashx,

You can also Sign Up to receive the Messenger magazine electronically, by visiting: www.WaterStreetMinistries.org/SignUp

Finding Time for Restoration

We live in such a fast paced society where one must keep up with the pace in order to survive. Often times when life becomes more demanding, the more we busy ourselves to keep from feeling the pressure. This is especially true of any pain we may experience. If something hurts, you get up, brush yourself off, and keep moving. This is what we learned as children when we fell down, and yet this mentality can get in the way of truly allowing ourselves to be healed.

Restoration is such a fluid process. Sometimes we don’t see the progress we think we should. Sometimes we think we should be further along in our journey than we are. Sometimes we think we are the ones responsible for bringing healing to ourselves. Little by little we take back pieces of our journey we once submitted to God. The process is unknown and hazy, and all we can see is what we want our wholeness to look like. We attempt to outrun God, when He is the one calling us to slow down. He longs to draw us to still waters in order to restore our souls, but His miraculous work of healing can only be done when our souls are quieted before Him. It is then, when we relinquish our best strivings, where our souls can find trust rest and healing.

As a staff, we have the opportunity to see the residents of the Lydia Center through various stages of their healing during their time here. For the first time in their lives these women are beginning to face the harsh pain of their past in order to embrace the abundant life their Father has set before them. They are no longer running from that which has kept them in bondage, and yet the motivation to keep the fast pace still lingers. What a joy it is to see them slow down in order to walk alongside their Savior as He gently heals their wounds!

Andrea Handwerk • Lydia Center Intern

Greetings from Men’s Ministry!

On the left you'll see some of the people involved in the Men’s Ministry Department at WSM. In the past we have included some comments from these folks. Look for future postings and hear how the Lord is working in the lives of His people serving the residents and guests at WSM!
From left to right in the photo on the front porch of Kuhns Hall:
Jim Stanton – Program Counselor, Steve Brubaker – Chief Vision Officer, David Miller – Learning Center Director, Andrew Onguka-Program Counselor, Chuck Albrecht-Shelter Manager, Aaron Eggers-Director of Men’s Ministry, Philip Wrightstone-Resident Assistant, Mark Noel-Program Counselor, Michael Kerrigone-Evening Chaplain, Emily Towers-Residential Ministries Secretary, Jon Shacklett-Program Counselor

Also be sure to take notice of some progress on our Community Mosaic (on the front of the staircase). This mosaic was an Open Studio Project lead by Kevin Lehman's Pottery for Family Day 2010 as friends and families from the community joined with our volunteers, residents, and staff to complete this masterpiece. We are excited to continue it's installation after the weather warms up!

A Snowy Weekend at Teen Haven Camp

During a weekend retreat in January at Teen Haven Camp, the camp staff and I were preparing for the boys to arrive at camp. As I contemplated their arrival, and considered that it was going to be a smaller group of campers, and that there was a snowy forecast I wondered, “why did we not cancel the weekend?”

Shortly after, the boys arrived! As they sat down in the dining hall, I noticed one boy, Kory*, with his head down on the table. I asked him if he was alright. He acknowledged that he was ok. Yet, I noticed that he had tears in his eyes. So, I asked again.

This time, he filled in the details. He had just gotten 20 staples removed from his skull and was experiencing a headache. He told me that his brother had pushed him out of the car and he sustained a good gash on the side of his head. It was healed but still ached in the cold weather.

I looked at him and questioned his being here. He looked up at me and said, "Mr. Vin, I just had to be here. I just had to be here!" And again his eyes swelled with tears.

As the weekend went on Kory got into his routine, and it was apparent that he wasn’t as aware of the pain that he had shared about on Friday night. Saturday afternoon the kids went sledding but Kory did not have a hat. One of our interns, Willie Davis, came up to Kory and gave him his hat to wear. Kory had a blast and wore that hat all weekend.

Kory came up to one of the staff members and said, “I was able to go sledding because someone gave me a hat to wear to keep my head from hurting.” He shared, "That made my weekend." And as I heard his excitement and joy, I realized that this demonstration of compassion made my weekend also!

I realized that this weekend was worth it even for just for him. As Kory received something as simple as a hat, I believe it helped transfer the burden’s he carried before his arrival to camp, to an understanding of how loved he was!

Sunday before he boarded the bus, he came up to me and said, “I'd like to be a junior counselor one day.” I believe that he will be! As he spoke these words, I praised God for the privilege of seeing this hurting camper experience Christ’s hope and healing.

Only God can transform a broken situation like this and allow our campers to leave camp with this type of excitement to serve others and grow as leaders!

Vinny Mikusow, Field Director – Teen Haven Camp
*name changed

Lydia Center - Self-Evaluations and Celebrations

At the Lydia Center self-evaluation is a tool we often use for a resident to begin to learn to figure out why they do positive things as well as negative ones. We train them to figure out why they do what they do. They answer questions regarding the behavior they wish to change and then invite the community at the Lydia Center to ask questions around the choice that was made. When a resident speaks an unkind word, doesn’t do homework, procrastinates on their job search or doesn’t do tasks completely - these things often come from a wound of the past. Self-evaluations open them up to allowing God together with the community at Lydia Center to bring healing in those painful areas from the past.

Today I had a great time chatting with one of our residents who just came to us from prison. She said that when she was in prison she was not looking forward to self-evaluations with the community because she had grown accustomed to being shamed when she made a mistake.

After being here a month she says that she really enjoys them and after each self-evaluation with her peers, she feels loved, encouraged and respected. She says, “I actually have girl friends here”.

She has been in prison for 5 years and says she has learned more this month about herself than she has her whole life and that is partly due to the fact that “you can’t hide here”. She understands that she uses humor to be popular and doesn’t want to do that anymore. She is committed to falling in love with the Lord and even though she has read the Bible before, she now really wants to have intimacy with Christ.

She said “I know my way has not worked”. She was lit up with hope as she left my office – hope that God will turn her life around, hope that she will have a stronger marriage upon departure, hope that He has good plans for her future. I love that God can do so much in a day, a week or a month! Week one wanted to leave……week 4 committed to the journey of life change!

Melissa Alcorn • Executive Director, Lydia Center