Missed Opportunity, I fear

As a career substance abuse counselor, one of my biggest struggles here has been to see how the "church" responds to issues of alcoholism and addiction. Because leaving behind a life of alcohol, smoking and/or drugs is such a huge expression of faith and expectation of the church, church leaders seem to have little compassion for the "burrachos" that sometimes stagger into our services. And yet....the 12-step ministry that is Alcoholics Anonymous is alive and well in Mexico!
In this picture, you can see a stick building (and I mean, literally, built from sticks) for an AA meeting in the middle of nowhere in Mexico! The sign was clear and visible from the road. It did enough to attract my attention and remind me again how this is a missed opportunity for the church.

Churches across the world provide homes for AA meetings...locations for people to come together in the interests of seeking sobriety and recovery from the disease of addiction. These churches serve the recovering community and those not yet in recovery by simply providing a place to meet. In these meetings, members share experience, strength and hope with each other through a program that has proven time and time again that "it works if you work it!" Perhaps there's even a subtle form of evangelism by offering space because, by helping them grow comfortable walking in a church facility and knowing that "this is a place where I'm safe, where I'm supported, where I have a chance to get healthier," maybe one day they'll be walking in for Sunday worship. Pastors last summer heard a wonderful story shared by a woman in recovery who was here on a mission trip. She shared how, after months of coming to AA meetings, she decided to come back to the same church on a Sunday morning. She became a member, continued to grow in her recovery, and became an important part of an active church ministry.

It is truly marvelous that the AA community in this small town is vibrant enough, industrious enough and determined enough to have a place to meet that they were able to build this facility. But it also suggests that perhaps they couldn't find a home for their meetings without having to build it themselves.

Please join me in praying for some tiny crack in the resolve of the church here...a crack that yields to the opportunity to serve people in a whole new way. Please pray that the Presbyterian church in Mexico recognizes that, by offering their facilities for AA meetings, they can show the love of Jesus Christ in much the same way as Jesus himself.

Amen.