The Twelve Steps of recovery and the sacraments of the Catholic Church work in a very similar way. While some of the steps and each of the sacraments have great ritual and reverence around them regarding initiation, each are to be continually practiced. Finding a...
“You and I are going on a journey together, and neither one of us is coming back,” Michael said as I gazed back at him, utterly confused yet somewhat understanding at the same time. Then he started to wash my feet. I was bearing witness to the practice set...
A few weeks ago my wife and I went to see the hit movie Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The film was a joy to watch, and had us interested in revisiting some of the older Star Wars movies, starting with episodes four through six. I should note, I am far from a Star Wars...
I remember my first stretch of Christmas and New Year’s while in recovery quite well. I had about two and a half months free from alcohol and drug use (which seemed miraculous at the time, as it still does today), and I was preparing for what I knew would be a test of...
If you are wrestling with the idea that you need help overcoming your addiction—either from drugs, alcoholism, pornography, gambling, an eating disorder, or other psychological dependency—it is likely that this is not a new idea to you. I had enough evidence to be...
I wrote the outline for this post about two weeks ago following a vacation, in a moment when I felt myself diving into a spiritual “trough”, or low point in one’s spiritual life where God’s presence seems to withdraw. I plotted out the following points, mostly...
I work at a restaurant, serving delightful meals and memorable experiences to guests of all kinds. A few weeks ago I was in the midst of a shift when I could sense my attitude running amuck. Making comparisons to the woman working next to me, my mind began racing...
“Rarely have we seen a person fail who has thoroughly followed our path.”[1] I hear these words read aloud nearly every day, to the point that it sometimes hums through my ears unnoticed like the sound of the wind. When I first got sober and was realizing how...
It’s that decisive moment when your internal temperature raises a few degrees. Maybe it’s that moment when you feel like you’ve lost all freedom and your reaction is completely out of your control. It’s the moment when reaching for your “drug” of choice becomes...
There was once a day when the best prayer I had in my arsenal was more or less a negotiation tactic. A bargaining with God, you could say. “God, if you get me out of this mess, I promise to be a good boy,” was more or less the deal I was willing to make when I found...