By Brandon Sutton
On April 11th of this year, The Journey Church started a new ministry called Recovery and Redemption. This ministry was birthed out of the 2019 Hope Multiplied Vision/initiative. One of Pastor Erik Reed’s great desires was for the church to begin launching mercy ministries such as recovery, jail, foster care, adoption and hope beyond abortion. So, in the fall of 2020, I began talking with Pastor Erik about coming on staff and helping fulfill this vision.
I am a pastor and preacher. But before I was either one of those things, I was also a drug addict and alcoholic. By God’s grace, I have been sober for 14 years and the Lord has used my life to serve Him and the cause of the gospel. One of the ways, God has called me into His service is by helping struggling addicts live in recovery and find redemption in Jesus Christ.
And that’s where the name of our ministry comes from. The name is the mission. Recovery and Redemption exists to help struggling addicts of all kinds live in recovery from their sin and find redemption through Jesus Christ.
I can honestly say, this ministry is unique. It’s not your typical Bible study or worship service. Don’t get me wrong, we are centered on the Word of God, and the gospel of Jesus Christ is what we’re all about. But this ministry really gets down to the issues of the heart. I am a firm believer that God’s Word has the power to change people’s lives. I believe the gospel is the power of God unto salvation and total life transformation. But I’ve also seen many professing believers sit in Bible studies and church services for years and show zero demonstrable change. They hear the word preached every week but fail to practice and live out what they learn.
I am not seeing that in Recovery and Redemption. True life change is happening in this ministry. Individuals are coming in and leaving different people. They’re being challenged by what they sing, hear and learn in our worship time. During small groups, men and women are discussing real life issues and sin struggles. Our leaders are forming real relationship. The secret sins our men and women have concealed for years are coming into the light (John 3:19-20). Bottom line, change and healing is taking place. People are coming to know Christ.
Which is why I commend this ministry and invite you to attend one Sunday night. Recovery and Redemption is not just for drug addicts and alcoholics. It’s for all people. Actually…correction, it’s for people who struggle with sin. If that’s you, then this ministry will help. At Recovery and Redemption, you will learn how to apply the power of the gospel to your life and overcome sin. Sin you’ve been struggling with for years can be defeated. Secret sins that no one knows but you and God can lose their power over you as you bring them into the light of Christ.
We meet every Sunday night from 6-7:30 pm. For the first 45 minutes, we enjoy a time of singing, preaching and prayer. After that, we break into small groups and discuss what we’re learning. Come give it a try. You are welcome here and believe me, we’re not just saying that. We live it out.