Questions and Suggestions for Christian Recovery - Dick B.

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Questions and Suggestions for Recovery by Christians

By Dick B.
Author, Historian of A.A., Bible Student, and Retired Attorney

© 2014 Anonymous. All rights reserved


Helping Alcoholics and Addicts Who Know They Are Licked, Long for a Way Out, Believe God Can Help Them Out of Their Mire, Attain Complete Recovery and Prevent Chronic Relapses

Questions

• Could you benefit from learning additional Christian recovery techniques that enhance your effectiveness?
• Could becoming more knowledgeable of the successful efforts of Christian individuals and organizations working in the recovery arena between 1850 and 1939—including those of A.A.’s Christian pioneers—help you in your recovery work?
• Could a more extensive knowledge of Bible-based victories improve your results?
• Could your learning the role that God, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Bible have played in Christian recovery efforts over the past one-and-a-half centuries or more help you bring “Divine Aid” to those still suffering today?

Are you willing to consider the more than 25 years of historical research, active recovery successes, and practical work by Dick B. and his son Ken B. with alcoholics and addicts which could show you a way to apply in today’s recovery arena the success factors of A.A.’s Christian progenitors and of early A.A. pioneers?

Would you take some time out of your busy schedule to consider what a fast-growing group of Christian recovery pastors, recovery program directors, leaders, sponsors, counselors, and speakers are using today as historical helps and tools?

Suggestions

Here are a few of the major, documented, successful elements our work can bring to your attention, thinking, and purpose-filled leadership:

• The principles and practices of First Century Christians, as seen in the Book of Acts.
• The application of principles and practices of First Century Christianity by a number of Christian individuals and organizations from the 1850’s to the 1930’s which brought God’s power, love, healing, and deliverance to those still suffering.
• A major change in direction occurred from the 1850’s forward in America among a host of Christian entities and leaders who—using their own Christian programs—helped countless down-and-out derelicts be delivered from the power of darkness in their self-imposed holes. These rescuers included the Young Men’s Christian Association, Gospel rescue missions, Christian evangelists, the Salvation Army, Congregationalism (particularly as seen in Vermont), the United Society of Christian Endeavor, and (later) Dr. Frank Buchman’s “A First Century Christian Fellowship” (also known as “the Oxford Group” beginning in September 1928)—all of whom made great strides in changing lives and helping down-and-out alcoholics, addicts, and derelicts, and restoring many to sanity.
• The principal emphasis of most of these rescuers was not on fighting liquor and saloons, or on shaming and condemning unfortunates. It was on offering abstinence, the Bible, salvation, healing, sustenance, Christian fellowship, and God’s help to those in need—including alcoholics and addicts.
• A.A.’s cofounders, Bill W. and Dr. Bob, were brought up in Vermont between 1879 and 1917—a time of conversions, revivals, the YMCA, Gospel rescue missions, Christian evangelism, and Christian Endeavor—organizations and movements that grew worldwide into millions of message carriers.
• We believe that, when A.A.’s cofounders laid aside their Christian upbringing and descended into the pit of alcoholic degradation and drug-dependent horrors, they still remembered from their upbringing the conversions, revivals, Congregational churches and Sunday schools, Bible studies, prayer meetings, sermons, hymns, Scripture reading, and daily chapel disciplines of their younger days in Vermont.

Our Goal

To have our readers, viewers, and listeners conclude that they—like the forbears above—can learn and apply in today’s recovery arena the personal work, hospitalizations, Bible studies, prayers, healings, and fellowship that were so effectively carried out in years past.

Request

If you have questions, concerns, suggestions, experiences, and/or activities like those covered here, please contact Dick B., PO Box 837, Kihei, HI 96753-9837; (808) 874-4876; DickB@DickB.com.
It you would like our help, our recommendations, and/or an attentive ear, please do as thousands of others have done over the last 25 years, and make your needs known.