Weekly gatherings are being held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Thursdays at Houghton Wesleyan Church, 9712 State Route 19 - South Entrance,
across from Houghton College.
Additional groups meet at the same times Thursday at Yorks
Corners Mennonite Church, 3350 County Road 29, Wellsville; Saturday at Knights
Creek Church, 2987 Knights Creek Road (County Road 9), Scio; and Tuesday at
Allegany County Jail for inmates only, one of just six groups in jails and prisons
in the state.
Celebrate Recovery started over 25 years ago at Saddleback
Church in California, pastored by Rick Warren, author of the long-running bestselling
book, Purpose Driven Life. It now is
hosted by more than 29,000 churches world-wide and is conducted in over 370
United States jails and prisons.
The year-around ministry focuses on the traditional 12 Steps
of recovery, but reflects Biblical principles for each step, eight additional
parallel Principles that are based on the Beatitudes from Jesus' Sermon on the
Mount found in Matthew Chapter 5 of the Bible, and expansion to any type of
personal hurt, hangup or habit.
Sessions are designed to be conducted in a warm,
non-judgmental environment that addresses issues such as angst, isolation,
depression, anger, marital or family strife including separation or divorce,
grief due to the death of a loved one, even years later, prodigal kids, aging,
loss of an unborn child, food, alcohol, drugs, gambling or sexual addictions
and more.
Music, alternating weeks of lessons and personal testimonies
from individuals who have found victory through Celebrate Recovery, community
resources, refreshments and gender-specific small groups in which participants
can share struggles if they desire, highlight meeting formats.
Individuals with family members or friends who are
incarcerated are encouraged to make the Celebrate Recovery Inside ministry
known to those in jail while those on the outside learn how to best assist them
through area sites.
Group facilitators are seeking to add locations in
significant population centers in Allegany County to help resolve individual
transportation issues and for persons seeking more than one support meeting a
week.
Further information and technical support for churches
seeking to start a group is available from Casey Jones, Celebrate Recovery
facilitator at Knights Creek Church and Allegany County Jail, at bps461@msn.com
or (484) 435-0503. Information on the
Houghton group is available at catmo57@hotmail.com or (585) 567-8162, and Yorks
Corners/Wellsville at gene@yorkscorners.org, (585) 593-3287 or
www.facebook.com/CelebrateRecoveryYorksCorners. Additional information on Celebrate Recovery
at Knights Creek also is available at www.facebook.com/KnightsCreekChurch.