Unusually Fine Interview of Christian Recovery Leader Today

Synopsis of the Doug Nunes Radio Interview by Dick B. Today on www.ChristianRadio.com

By Dick B. Copyright 2012 Anonymous. All rights reserved

Calvary Church in Los Gatos, California is truly a remarkable, effective, forward-looking, full-platter Christian recovery host. And today we heard the exciting facts in our interview with its Director of Recovery Ministries, Doug  Nunes. The facts make clear that Doug initiated and has directed a full-bore Christian recovery ministry since a time before our International Christian Recovery Coalition was organized in July of 2009, and yet containing so many of the parallels to First Century Christian Fellowship of the kind the Apostles describe in the Book of Acts, and the kind that earliest AA in Akron’s Christian Fellowship incorporated in its highly successful program. Moreover, it excels under Doug’s leadership, in the features of bringing people to God through Jesus Christ, involving them in daily prayer and study of the Word of God, and carrying the powerful message to others of what God can do for the alcoholic, alcoholic, and affected others who still suffer.

As we said in the course of today’s interview, Calvary Church and Doug’s many recovery principles and practices are not unique. Many other Christian individuals and churches are rising up to adopt and implement First Century Christianity—old school A.A. recovery groups and practices. They are doing it all over the United States and in other countries. That is what International Christian Recovery Coalition advocates. www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com. That is what Doug humbly acknowledged is happening in our Coalition fellowship. But Calvary Church, located more or less in Central California as well as the San Francisco Bay Area, presents a first class exhibit of what we would like other churches, recovery pastors, Christian recovery leaders, purveyors of intervention and detox and treatment, and those concerned for family members to do: To enhance their own work. To tell each other about their approach. To swap can-do ideas. And to give a major push to the growing Christian Recovery Movement today.

Here are just a few of the great strides that Doug Noonan said his people are making in the recovery arena: (1) Conducting a “God and Big Book AA Meeting.”  (2) Using early A.A. Bible study tools like The Runner’s Bible and Henry Drummond’s The Greatest Thing in the World. (3) Studying the early Akron A.A. “absolutely essential” Bible segments—Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, the Book of James, and 1 Corinthians 13. (4) Regularly working in the Men’s Small Group Recovery where men seek to grow in the Word of God through Bible teachings.  (5) Mirror 12 Step Workshop which walks participants through the 12 Steps and some of the “Good Book” (the Bible) to bring it alive in one’s heart. (6) The just organized 12 Step “Women of Wisdom Group. (7) Educating alcoholics and addicts, as well as others, about regular “Morning Meditation.” (8) Maintaining a “Laugh” Group—adopting A.A.’s “We are not a glum lot” expression and going out together to comedy shows. (9) Maintaining a Great Outdoors Group. (10) Educating others in keeping what Doug calls “Balance” in recovery—meaning placing greater and greater emphasis on the power of God and less and less dependence upon A.A. and its meetings. (11) Conducting a real 12 Step recovery program along the successful lines of early A.A.—(a) Intervention which is not a one shot affair but involves several weeks of prayer, counseling, and preparation. (b) Detox and hospitalization to get the newcomer started in a life-saving way. (c) Conducting a six month recovery program emphasizing some fifty-eight spiritual recovery sessions. (d) Emphasizing work with families and kids—as more and more full-fledged recovery programs like Betty Ford are now doing. (e) Assuring outreach to treatment  programs with appropriate teachings about the Big Book and the Bible.

The successes are documented.  More than 200 have given their lives to Christ. Half of those have been baptized, whether in Calvary or in some other church of choice. 95% of those who stick with the full recovery effort do not relapse. And all this closely resembles the 93% success rate A.A.’s Cleveland group founder Clarence Snyder documented as to early Cleveland A.A. And Doug seems more than ready to participate in the mission of International Christian Recovery Coalition, collaborate with others wanting or using similar programs, and welcome onto their own campus those who want to exchange views and/or learn.

As I commented in the interview, we are seeing similar stellar old school A.A. Friendly, Bible Friendly, Recovery Friendly, Newcomer Friendly, and Outreach Friendly that others in California are making great progress with. For example Dale Marsh at Oroville Church of the Nazarene, Dominic D. and Greg Polk at Cornerstone Church in Livermore, Matt Pierce and David Sadler in Golden Hills Community Church in Brentwood, Wade Hess in CityTeam International at San Jose, Joe Furey and Roger McDiarmid at His Place Church in Westminster, Dr. Robert Tucker and his wife Stephanie at New Life Spirit Recovery, Inc. in Huntington Beach, Randy Moraitis at Lifelines Recovery Program at The Crossing in Costa Mesa, David Powers at Rock Church in San Diego, the Whites at Ex-Cons, and still other Californians in the wings right now. And the examples extend to Arizona, Texas, Florida, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Oahu, Maui, British Columbia, Toronto, Ontario, Pittsburgh, Connecticut, Vermont, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Utah, and more. All are moving forward, glorifying God, and serving others.

In the interview, Doug tells of his own bottom, of his successful battle with 4 stage cancer, of the effective prayers of many AAs for him, and how the pastor Bob Thomas has been very helpful in the efforts.

dickb@dickb.com, www.ChristianRecoveryRadio.com, www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com, www.dickb.com

Gloria Deo