A Pathway to Freedom… a year in review
By December 12, 2011 “A Pathway to Freedom” was published and in print with the first group being prepped to start January of 2012.
The writing of the program was a side project of mine for the two previous years; what I really needed however, was the support of family and friends and six weeks of planning and writing to put it together.
The idea began when I took 2010 off work to write. I had the time to attend more meetings than usual, volunteer counseling services, as well as participate in literature studies associated to certain theories of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction.
On their own, the independent study groups appeared helpful and informative, but one thing I noticed was a lack of adjoining information from outside sources. If there were outside theories introduced, it was in a basic and specific way only in so far that the information presented would lend credibility to the main theory under review.
In almost every case when this “support” information was included, it had been altered to fit in to the original intent of the study. I say in almost every case because some of these literature studies did not acknowledge other theories at all as being potentially suitable for programs of recovery.
Upon further investigation however, it was not the theories so much as the presenters, who lacked openness, understanding, and awareness. I do not believe such things were done in malice, but the end result remains the same; the view being described was narrow.
The most troubling thing is how desperate individuals seeking recovery become when over and over again they attempt the same “narrow road” only to hit the same walls repeatedly with very little offered by way of alternatives. They often believe there is only one way to get and stay sober based on the information they are receiving, whether it is from one source or another.
In my travels individuals were rarely directed to incorporate recovery models, instead they were generally told that it is either or.
This is troubling because some of these people are no longer present… their constant frustration and failure inevitably led them to our ultimate bottom, which of course is death. I don’t blame anyone for this, as the mere thought of blame is anti-climactic and irresponsible; however I certainly recognized my own need to broaden my approach to service delivery.
Hence, A Pathway to Freedom was laid to paper 12 months ago. I wanted to do the best I could to ensure that at the least, I would keep an open mind to all manner of approaches, theories, and ideas.
I tried to ensure that my own ideas remained flexible and open, remembering that what worked for me after exhausting nearly every other avenue, may not work for others.
I also needed to remember that what actually worked for me was a combination of theories and approaches from the start until present day; there is no wasted information, practical knowledge, or life experience once the final blend came together and God revealed the value of them all.
I did not shrug off everything I had learned up until that point of surrender into a twelve step method. The twelve steps are such that one can bring all manner of theories, as they work the steps to develop a very holistic one day at a time life in recovery.
This of course does not mean that A Pathway to Freedom has no solid core of information, but what the actual practice of the group work has taught me through the past twelve months is far different from what I had learned elsewhere…
When I sat down to write the manual, I heard a constant and steady voice telling me to be flexible; always lending a sense of freedom to allow people to move the learning according to their need. The manual is simply a guide, one that is quite often the seed necessary to inspire individuals to move in the direction their Higher Power sees fit to take them.
Having been a part of this beautiful process for the past twelve months has shown me many things of course, but one thing which stands out to me as I write this; the information evolves as the group participants change and evolve each and every month.
Although the basis is a spiritual approach to the twelve step model of recovery, the practical application is far more complex, holistic, and ever changing. The result has been extraordinary and all due to God’s presence at every step of the way.
Through the twelve months of groups; the participants have ranged from individuals struggling with their own recoveries, family members of people in addiction, and colleagues wanting to learn more about the disease of alcoholism and addiction from a wide range of human services departments.
The participants report to me that they are pushed in ways that whether happy or sad, joyful or angry, they each recognize that nothing will ever be the same again once they leave.
They have identified that it is truly faith, which pushes them through the long days of emotional and intellectual upheaval. The faith they speak of is not always a faith in God, but it becomes a faith in the process… the process that they begin to inherently understand as an opportunity to a different life; one free of their individual prisons.
This recognition the members of the groups discuss is not isolated to those struggling with addictions; the truth is, many of us are hurting and wanting answers to grow beyond and with the pain. For those members, who come free of addiction, they’ve identified the wonderfully open nature of not only the twelve steps but of the very practical application of spiritual principles in their own lives.
I will say that each group takes its toll on me as well; I find that I am touched in all areas of my being by the end of the weekend and that I am better off for the opportunity to be in the presence of such amazing spirits.
Watching people become more like the people they want to be has convinced me we are on the right path; not only in the Pathway groups, but at Central United Church as a whole.
Thank you God for the opportunities to minister in whatever way You choose.
And of course witnessing the light of hope return to people’s eyes, as we sit close together for three days is an incredible sight; one that I would not trade for anything else I have experienced. It is the reminder to me that God is constantly at work and one hundred percent in control of everything.
If there was ever a way in which I could bear witness to the unending love, power, and transforming energy of God it is through the glimmering hope in the eyes of my brothers and sisters.
May God bless you all on whichever path you choose… when in doubt, act in love, for there seems no better way to live.
Thank you,
David Lewry
By December 12, 2011 “A Pathway to Freedom” was published and in print with the first group being prepped to start January of 2012.
The writing of the program was a side project of mine for the two previous years; what I really needed however, was the support of family and friends and six weeks of planning and writing to put it together.
The idea began when I took 2010 off work to write. I had the time to attend more meetings than usual, volunteer counseling services, as well as participate in literature studies associated to certain theories of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction.
On their own, the independent study groups appeared helpful and informative, but one thing I noticed was a lack of adjoining information from outside sources. If there were outside theories introduced, it was in a basic and specific way only in so far that the information presented would lend credibility to the main theory under review.
In almost every case when this “support” information was included, it had been altered to fit in to the original intent of the study. I say in almost every case because some of these literature studies did not acknowledge other theories at all as being potentially suitable for programs of recovery.
Upon further investigation however, it was not the theories so much as the presenters, who lacked openness, understanding, and awareness. I do not believe such things were done in malice, but the end result remains the same; the view being described was narrow.
The most troubling thing is how desperate individuals seeking recovery become when over and over again they attempt the same “narrow road” only to hit the same walls repeatedly with very little offered by way of alternatives. They often believe there is only one way to get and stay sober based on the information they are receiving, whether it is from one source or another.
In my travels individuals were rarely directed to incorporate recovery models, instead they were generally told that it is either or.
This is troubling because some of these people are no longer present… their constant frustration and failure inevitably led them to our ultimate bottom, which of course is death. I don’t blame anyone for this, as the mere thought of blame is anti-climactic and irresponsible; however I certainly recognized my own need to broaden my approach to service delivery.
Hence, A Pathway to Freedom was laid to paper 12 months ago. I wanted to do the best I could to ensure that at the least, I would keep an open mind to all manner of approaches, theories, and ideas.
I tried to ensure that my own ideas remained flexible and open, remembering that what worked for me after exhausting nearly every other avenue, may not work for others.
I also needed to remember that what actually worked for me was a combination of theories and approaches from the start until present day; there is no wasted information, practical knowledge, or life experience once the final blend came together and God revealed the value of them all.
I did not shrug off everything I had learned up until that point of surrender into a twelve step method. The twelve steps are such that one can bring all manner of theories, as they work the steps to develop a very holistic one day at a time life in recovery.
This of course does not mean that A Pathway to Freedom has no solid core of information, but what the actual practice of the group work has taught me through the past twelve months is far different from what I had learned elsewhere…
When I sat down to write the manual, I heard a constant and steady voice telling me to be flexible; always lending a sense of freedom to allow people to move the learning according to their need. The manual is simply a guide, one that is quite often the seed necessary to inspire individuals to move in the direction their Higher Power sees fit to take them.
Having been a part of this beautiful process for the past twelve months has shown me many things of course, but one thing which stands out to me as I write this; the information evolves as the group participants change and evolve each and every month.
Although the basis is a spiritual approach to the twelve step model of recovery, the practical application is far more complex, holistic, and ever changing. The result has been extraordinary and all due to God’s presence at every step of the way.
Through the twelve months of groups; the participants have ranged from individuals struggling with their own recoveries, family members of people in addiction, and colleagues wanting to learn more about the disease of alcoholism and addiction from a wide range of human services departments.
The participants report to me that they are pushed in ways that whether happy or sad, joyful or angry, they each recognize that nothing will ever be the same again once they leave.
They have identified that it is truly faith, which pushes them through the long days of emotional and intellectual upheaval. The faith they speak of is not always a faith in God, but it becomes a faith in the process… the process that they begin to inherently understand as an opportunity to a different life; one free of their individual prisons.
This recognition the members of the groups discuss is not isolated to those struggling with addictions; the truth is, many of us are hurting and wanting answers to grow beyond and with the pain. For those members, who come free of addiction, they’ve identified the wonderfully open nature of not only the twelve steps but of the very practical application of spiritual principles in their own lives.
I will say that each group takes its toll on me as well; I find that I am touched in all areas of my being by the end of the weekend and that I am better off for the opportunity to be in the presence of such amazing spirits.
Watching people become more like the people they want to be has convinced me we are on the right path; not only in the Pathway groups, but at Central United Church as a whole.
Thank you God for the opportunities to minister in whatever way You choose.
And of course witnessing the light of hope return to people’s eyes, as we sit close together for three days is an incredible sight; one that I would not trade for anything else I have experienced. It is the reminder to me that God is constantly at work and one hundred percent in control of everything.
If there was ever a way in which I could bear witness to the unending love, power, and transforming energy of God it is through the glimmering hope in the eyes of my brothers and sisters.
May God bless you all on whichever path you choose… when in doubt, act in love, for there seems no better way to live.
Thank you,
David Lewry