Tom, Old and New

Tom was at Helping Up Mission before.  Just 25 years old, he has spent most of the last 7 years going from one rehab to another.  Today, talking about the last time he was here, he says he just gave lip-service to his recovery.  He was in a hurry to go back to work and at the end began “dipping and dabbing” with some chemical use.

While still here, he got a job, left here using and continued to struggle.  Tom came back a few months ago…and it looks like we have a “new Tom” here today.  During this last run he found himself doing things he had never done before and Tom did not like the guy he had become. 

So he decided he needed to come back to Helping Up Mission and do something different this time.  And he knew exactly what that was.  This time Tom committed himself to being honest about what he is thinking and doing.  Tom is going to church and 12 Step meetings.  He’s not just attending, but getting involved.

Tom is developing a positive network of recovery and spiritual support, as well as reconnecting with his family.  It feels good today and Tom will tell you that it’s working.

In church, when someone stops doing their spiritual walk, we say they are “backsliding.”  When we stop practicing recovery we call it “relapse.”  It’s all really the same thing.  Recovery and spirituality are both one-day-at-a-time choices.  Tom is making those daily choices and it is working just fine for him. 

One Guy at a Time,
Pastor Gary Byers
Spiritual Life Director