Better Life in Recovery Rocking in June

This past Saturday BLiR (Better Life in Recovery, Inc.) was scheduled to bring in a group of people and paint the Sunshine Elementary playground. There were soccer goals, basketball goals, swings, slides, monkey bars and a few pieces of playground equipment I could not identify. We came, we saw, we conquered………or painted, whatever. We conquered at painting!!

BLiR is an organization with a mission oftransforming lives by sharing recovery. We do this by dealing hope and decimating the stigma that people face everyday who struggle with addictions and mental health issues through community education and community awareness events that celebrate people in long-term recovery. Part of that education piece is engaging in community service events that show one thing, “In recovery, you are a resource.”

BLiR partners with local businesses, organizations, groups and individuals to insure each event is not only successful but fun. This Saturday, we had people come out and help from Alternative Opportunities Treatment Services, Higher Ground, New Beginnings Sanctuary, the Peer Recovery Network, Glendale Christian Church’s Celebrate Recovery, Church at the Center, Jericho Commission and Narcotic’s Anonymous.

All told we had a couple dozen people come out and help us get the painting done. Church at the Center actually supplied and prepared the food and McDonalds supplied the beverages for all who came out. We also got media coverage from:

 KTTS reporter Austin Roberston athttp://www.jrn.com/ktts/news/Playground-Cleanup-Helps-Recovery-Group-Give-Back-To-Springfield-Community-263167471.html

KY3 reporter Jehan Sheikh’s write up athttp://www.ky3.com/news/local/recovering-addicts-give-back-to-springfield-school-district/21048998_26497006

KY3 reporter Jehan Sheikh’s news clip athttp://www.ky3.com/news/local/Recovering-Addicts-help-Springfield-School-District/21048998_26497182

So we have now done 2 community service events, and we have been covered twice by KY3 and KTTS and once by KOLR 10 and KMSU. Great media coverage is getting the message of recovering people giving back out to our communities! Here is a Facebook comment from the KY3 write up someone left, “Now this is a great story! For those who step out to talk about addiction and then do something positive for the community, thanks! Good call KY3! Thanks for showcasing the positive.”

How amazing is that comment?  

The more we do in the community, the more frequent the positive feedback from our community will become. It will be slow at first, but the more we accomplish the greater our momentum will become. We are fighting an uphill battle, but by now we should be used to it. I doubt we would want it any other way!

5,000 Views and Better Life in Recovery

Yesterday I hit 5,000 views on Spiritual Spackle. That means that 5,000 pages have been read on here. To me that is amazing, considering I just started the site in  several months ago. I wanted a site that would be able to speak to both addicts, those in recovery and Christians. Due to that I have written mostly about my Christian experiences and the things that have kept me sober. I have also shared rough drafts of some of the chapters that will eventually make up the book with the same name as the website, Spiritual Spackle.

One of the most exciting statistics for my site is that I have had visitors to it from 42 different countries. Some of them I expected since they are English speaking, and some of them I had to look up to see where they were. I have been blessed to be able to share the power of Christ and the hope of recovery to people on the opposite side of the globe. That is such an amazing feeling, to know that what you have written is interesting to people who live in places you have never even heard of.

Over the course of the past few months, I have been shown what it is that the Holy Spirit is leading me to do. That mission is to bring the dangers of addiction to our countries youth and hopefully, based on my website, to the youth of many countries around the world. It all starts with the documentary that will hopefully be funded by the Pepsi Refresh grant that voting starts on November 1st. I would like to refer everyone to the site http://www.betterlifeinrecovery.com/page3.php to find out how you can help us win the grant and complete the documentary.

For more if you would like to help and live in the southwest Missouri area we are having a kicking off party at the KY3 community room on November 1st from 6-9. Please let me know if you are coming by email or facebook and I hope to see you there. Wow, I have had 5,000 people interested in reading what God is leading me to write. That is awesome!!