Discover the power of recovery ministry for your church.Churchgoers who experience painful family issues, addictions, abuse, loss, mental illnesses, and other secret sorrows begin to believe they live beyond the grip of God’s redemptive hand. Pastors often feel ill equipped to help with such problems and refer people to resources outside the church. People badly need Christ-centered counsel and encouragement, but few church leaders even know where to start.Bridges to Grace is an inspiring introduction highlighting the stories of churches across the country that are thinking systematically and organizationally about the ministry of recovery. The authors share how this ministry is bringing God’s grace to hurting individuals. They relate both success and failure, and best of all, they demonstrate how God uses recovery ministry powerfully for his kingdom purposes. Liz Swanson is the Project Director for Tango Family Initiative, an organization committed to helping build healthy families and marriages through changed lives. Before coming to Tango, Liz served for five years with Leadership Network as the National Leadership Community Director for Recovery Ministry.  As a result of her research into recovery, Liz lead and convened 55 churches who are leading the charge for recovery in the church. Liz taught Communications at Colorado State University and Front Range Community College. Before embarking on her teaching career she served for 22 years  with Campus Crusade for Christ.  She resides in Louisville, Colorado with her husband Eric. Teresa McBean is the Executive Director of the National Association for Christian Recovery, an organization providing resources, training, and hope to Christian organizations and individuals serving addicts and their families. Her passion for recovery is expressed through her service as minister of NorthStar Community (NSC), a position she has held since 1999. NSC is a recovery ministry of Bon Air Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia. She and her husband, Peter, have three children. Bridges to Grace Innovative approaches to recovery ministry By Liz Swanson Teresa McBean Zondervan Copyright © 2011 Liz Swanson and Teresa McBean All right reserved. ISBN: 978-0-310-32967-1 Contents PREFACE..........................................................................................1IN APPRECIATION..................................................................................7INTRODUCTION: The Tattoos Tell the Story.........................................................111. IT ALL BEGINS WITH YOU: Christian Assemblies Church...........................................212. WHAT THE MRI REVEALED: Woodcrest Chapel.......................................................313. CANCER, ADDICTION, AND A MEXICAN DUMP: Henderson Hills Baptist Church.........................494. THE CHURCH, A PLACE OF HOPE AND HELP: Salem Alliance Church...................................635. IT'S ALL ABOUT THEM, NOT ABOUT US: Bon Air Baptist Church.....................................776. CRISIS IN A SMALL TOWN: Caveland Baptist Church...............................................937. THE PEOPLE EVERY CHURCH WANTS: Grace United Methodist Church..................................1058. A FAMILY OF TRUST: Golden Gate Missionary Baptist Church......................................1199. A CHURCH WITHIN A CHURCH: Mercy Street Church.................................................131CONCLUSION: Where We Go from Here................................................................145APPENDIX A Alcoholics Anonymous's Twelve Steps..................................................159APPENDIX B Celebrate Recovery's Twelve Steps and Biblical Comparisons...........................161APPENDIX C Celebrate Recovery's Eight Recovery Principles.......................................163APPENDIX D Understanding the Twelve Steps.......................................................165APPENDIX E Henderson Hills' Theology of Christian Recovery......................................181APPENDIX F Recovery Ministry Leadership Communities: Participating Churches.....................185HELPFUL BOOKS....................................................................................191NOTES............................................................................................193 Chapter One IT ALL BEGINS WITH YOU Christian Assemblies Church I became more desperate to follow Christ than to pastor a church, so I began to preach from my own broken life as I taught the Scriptures.... I had learned to do church but had forgotten how to do Christ. — Pastor Mark Pickerel WHEN YOU LOOK AT IT FROM THE OUTSIDE, the church building that houses the congregation of Christian Assemblies Church in Eagle Rock, California, is really nothing to brag about, but as I (Liz) entered the sanctuary that morning for worship, it was packed out. Those in the gathered body, standing and sitting, reflected the surrounding neighbo