I am the Reverend Johnny Dragon. What’s a Reverend Johnny Dragon you may ask? Simple, I am a college educated, father, husband, recovered alcoholic/drug addict, who is fascinated by dragons and always wanted to be Johnny somebody.

The Reverend thing…well that was an unfortunate internet accident. Apparently by entering a limited amount of information and hitting submit you are instantly ordained by the Universal Life Church and Monastery. I can now perform marriages, baptisms, funerals, and absolve you of all your sins…for a nominal fee. It will also come in handy when I start my own cult, but I digress.

One thing is for sure, I am on a spiritual journey. I discovered something through my struggles with alcohol and drugs. I needed to connect with something bigger than myself. I came to the realization that if I am the biggest thing out their then we as a society are totally screwed. I never had a problem with believing in God. I was smart enough to understand that I could not hate something that did not exist. At my darkest moment, He and I made peace. I know that making deals with the Creator of the Universe is usually frowned upon, but that day that is what went down. The terms are simple, He allows me to look at myself squarely in the mirror each day, and in return all I have to do is absolutely everything He tells me to do…for the rest of my life. This is not as hard as it sounds, and the benefits package is awesome.

I am not sure what I hope to accomplish with this site, but I know it is suppose to exist. So if you got nothing better to do, then why don’t we figure it out together. I welcome your questions and your feedback.

J.D.

Drawing from his own experiences with substance abuse, rehabilitation, and recovery, Griffin looks at the various ways that meditation and spiritual practices helped deepen his experience of sobriety. His personal story of addiction is not only raw, honest and engrossing, but guides readers to an inquiry of their own spirituality. In doing so, he poses profound questions, including:

• How can I understand God from a Buddhist perspective?
• How can I “turn my will and my life over” as a Buddhist?
• How can this idea of God “remove my shortcomings”?
• How do I “improve my conscious contact” with this God?
• How do I learn this God’s “will”?

About the Author

Kevin Griffin is the author of One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps, the breakthrough book that established him as a leader in the mindful recovery movement. Since its publication, Kevin has toured extensively, giving workshops and lectures at places as diverse as Harlem, the Colorado Rockies, and Hawaii. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, he teaches “Dharma and Recovery” at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. In addition, Kevin is co-founder and board member of the Buddhist Recovery Network an international organization that serves people in the recovery community through training, treatment, and research. He continues to offer workshops, lectures, and retreats around the country. For more information about him and his teaching schedule, see his website: www.kevingriffin.net.

Improve Our Conscious Contact

Writings And Discussions About Step Eleven From Varied Religious Views

Take the IOCC Challenge! In the chapter “Into Action” of Alcoholics Anonymous it says on page 87 “Be quick to see where religious people are right. Make use of what they offer.” In our case the writers are not all religious people but believers. So the challenge is to go back over the 2009 year and see how we can “Make use of what they offer.”

Recovery Threads™ is dedicated to providing the highest quality T-shirts and clothing to the recovering community. All of our shirts are printed with the highest quality inks, multiple screens, and precision dryers. Each Recovery Threads™ T-shirt is constructed from premium 6.1 ounce, preshrunk, heavyweight 100% cotton. All T-shirts are fully taped shoulder to shoulder, and double needle hemmed for long-lasting durability.
We offer clothing with attitude and all of our items offer messages to other recovering people without breaking anonymity.
We currently employ a staff of artists, representing many different 12-step programs. It is this special mix that has produced the first designs in our product line which are currently enjoying a wildly popular reception among the recovering community throughout the nation! We recognize that the recovering community is ever-changing, yet MUST be strongly rooted in tradition. It is this philosophy that charged the formation of Recovery Threads™. We truly believe that recovering people are “not a glum lot” and we absolutely insist on having fun. This belief is strongly evident in all of our designs. We think you’ll agree!

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What I learned from Kevin Griffin by Gwen R~

Messages from a gay man in recovery, to god

Understanding Intervention Services

Interventions explained
There is some misconception about intervention services. Interventions are often portrayed in the media as highly conflictual meetings in which friends and family members air out their grievances towards one person. Certainly, interventions are confrontational, and they usually involve close family members. With a trained interventionist, however, an intervention session will be well run and contained.

An intervention is generally defined as an attempt to disrupt a person’s pattern of negative and addictive behaviors. Some individuals are unable to see how the disease of addiction has affected their lives and the lives of those around them. While some friends and family may have expressed anger, worry and frustration, their message does not get through. Addiction is so powerful and insidious because it causes the mind to rationalize compulsive and destructive behaviors to maintain the addiction. A trained interventionist can break through an individual’s false sense of reality. The objectivity that a professional interventionist brings to the intervention dissipates some of the intensity of the emotions that surface, preventing blaming, shaming and other defeating communication.

Only a trained clinician can assess whether an intervention would be appropriate for your friend or loved one.

The New Hope Recovery intervention difference
New Hope Recovery Center offers professional intervention services when needed. If you contact us, we can give you more detailed information on the intervention process and how it can help your loved one take the first step to recovery from addiction. Intervention services are tailored towards the needs of your family member or loved one. After speaking with you, we can get a better idea of the friends and family members to be present at an intervention, the format for the session and the most effective addiction treatment for the individual in need. Please contact us with your questions or concerns about interventions. We are here to help.

New Hope Recovery Center

Interventions Page

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