2021: A Year of Unexpected Fruit
Friends, as I reflect back on the year that was 2021 I cannot help but stand in awe of God’s Faithfulness. In so many ways this year has not at all been what we thought it would be, and yet through it all God has continued to sustain the ministry of TTR and even strengthened us in a time where many ministries have ceased to exist.
We could not have envisioned a year ago that the entire year of 2021 would be impacted again by COVID-19. But by the grace of God, he hasn't stopped being faithful in using the ministry of TTR to help people in the darkness of addiction. In 2021 TTR increased the meeting participation rate by 25% mostly due to the convenience of adding video meetings. Now at the end of 2021, we have slowly moved back to in person meetings with the hybrid option of video. This has allowed us as a ministry to hold on to the additional friends who attended the meetings via zoom, many of which are now able to join us in person.
Trying to fundraise in 2021 was a difficult barrier, but once again we experienced God’s grace in surprising ways! February is usually when we have our Annual Benefit Dinner (which is back on in 2022!), but that was not possible this year due to the pandemic. God raised up Luke Heisinger, our Director of Development, to design a video that presented the real story of struggle. Through Luke’s hard work in making the video and organizing a virtual fundraiser, our wonderfully compassionate partners gave more than double the amount we raised at our 2020 benefit dinner. Praise God! This year we also have had a number of new Ministry Partners join in giving to the mission of bringing the light of the gospel to the darkness of addiction. This year has been hard in so many ways, but God has continued to sustain us financially through the generosity of so many, and we are incredibly grateful!
Another way that God moved this year was to enable us as an organization to hire Caleb McCurley part time as our Executive Administrator. This strategic move was a homerun providing the necessary help needed to take the administration workload off of my desk as Executive Director. We found out that Caleb McCurley, who is a pastoral resident at Christ Church South Philly, also had an extreme talent and gift to lead our organization in administrative duties. Praise God for this gift that produces more room for me to focus on specific roles that God has called me to in this ministry.
This brings us to the disciple program. The disciple program continues to grow in spite of and because of the affliction of addiction with COVID barriers. COVID required many to have to isolate in difficult ways over the last two years and that is one of the biggest ways people fall into addiction. COVID isolation has caused addiction and overdose numbers to be at record heights, which makes what we do all the more important. Praise God that we continue to record large numbers of participants joining the TTR meetings due to the availability of a hybrid option. We are now assembled in person for most of the meetings which has been great to be able to be together, encouraging one another in person.
In 2021, we were able to roll out new classes and formats to the program. Some of the additional meetings and new formats include a Biblical addiction meeting added to the afternoon, which draws on the spiritual power of fellowship. Our financial literacy class has a new format working with the power of God’s Word for our financial needs facilitated by a Christian financial planner. Life Skills class has a new agenda that teaches people skills through Christianity. Last but definitely not least, we now have a Culinary Arts class! This class is offered at our Hope House and our first lesson was the fine art of kitchen knife skills which the men used to make a delicious vegetable soup. We are excited to host more Culinary Arts classes as we go into 2022!
The men of Hope House have not ceased to amaze us! By the grace of God, they continue to walk in the light of Christ. When talking to the men at the house, I often think of Romans 8:29-30:
“For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”
It is an extreme blessing to witness the men faithfully submitting to the program. A few of the men have advanced to facilitating and leading the meetings, taking an important step of not just being discipled, but also investing in the discipleship of others. This year has seen the Hope House function in unity and love in even deeper ways. One might think that with the pandemic and even more time together than normal that this would cause chaos in a recovery house. But by God’s grace, this year has been a year where we have seen the men press in and invest in one another relationally more deeply than ever before! The fruits are visible as they journey through the Disciple Phase, patiently growing towards their restoration. We praise God for the work that he has done in the lives of the men at Hope House and ask that you continue to pray for them as many of them look to graduate from the program in the coming year.
I am honored to share that in 2021 I applied and now am in a class towards becoming a CBAC (Commissioned Biblical Addictions Counselor). In November, I was invited to go to the TACS (The Addiction Connection Summit) led by Mark Shaw who is the author of our AV and TTR text book “The Heart of Addiction.” I attended the three-day summit located in Kentucky where the TACS focused on commissioned biblical addiction counseling. This summit was so valuable as it allowed me to bring back critical biblical counseling skills to share and implement. I have enrolled in the CBAC course with a hope of completing the certification in February 2022.
Finally, as I close this message, I reflect back to the beginning of 2021 and honestly could never have imagined all that God was going to do this year. Many of the ways we were able to grow as an organization were not even on our radar at the beginning of this year. We are so grateful for Proverbs 16:9 which reminds us “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.” We can do nothing but praise God for all the ways he has blessed this ministry over the last year. He is completely sovereign and truly faithful to this ministry and the role it plays in his mission to awaken dead hearts to the light of the gospel.
I would like to thank all of you who have prayed and supported our mission this year. Without people like you, this ministry would not be in existence. We are extremely grateful and encouraged that God has called you to be the part of the vessel that supports the TTR mission. Through your generosity, we are able to continue bringing the light of the gospel to the darkness of addiction. I praise God for how he continues to sustain this ministry through people like you. We humbly ask that you continue praying for us as we continue in the work to which God has called us.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
John K Carlson
Executive Director, Transformation to Recovery