Dwelling Place offers support & recovery

Aiming to help people “put their lives back together,” the Dwelling Place Church in Hemet hosts a program that aids people in recovery for everything from drugs to relationships.

Pastor Deborah Baker said lives are being transformed as former gamblers, drug addicts, and alcoholics seek to stay straight through the program, called “Celebrate Recovery.”

Baker called Celebrate Recovery a support group for “overcoming hurts, habits, and hang-ups” of all kinds. It is a Christ-centered version of the 12-step program of Alcoholics Anonymous.

People gather Thursday and Friday evenings at the church to share stories on their recovery and give testimonies. Baker, a facilitator for Celebrate Recovery, says the program also can help with issues such as anger, food, depression, and co-dependence. She called the support group an outreach program of the church, adding they've been offering it for about three years.

On Thursdays, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., Celebrate Recovery offers “step” classes, or study sessions in which participants go through workbooks.

Friday nights kick off with a barbecue from 6 to 7 p.m., followed by a general session from 7 to 8, and ending with men's and women's share groups from 8 to 9.

“We used to party on Friday night. Now we party in a different way,” said trainer and coach Sharelyn Ross with a laugh.

Baker said the purpose for the barbecues, are twofold: It allows people to see that they are not alone, and it “brings people (out) who are isolated. It's a way of bringing people back into the community.”

Baker, Ross, and Olivia Lopez, all Hemet residents, are among the many volunteers for the program. All have firsthand knowledge of the program, since all have gone through it.

The three stressed they're neither psychologists nor psychiatrists.

“Our job is not to fix people. ... What we do do is offer people support,” said Lopez, a group leader.

Many Celebrate Recovery participants also attend regular Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, Baker said. The program was started by Pastor Rick Warren and John Baker of Saddleback Community Church in Lake Forest, and the program uses workbooks developed by Baker and Warren, who is the author of the best-selling “The Purpose-Driven Life.”

Besides the Dwelling Place, San Jacinto Assembly of God also hosts a Celebrate Recovery program. San Jacinto's group meets Fridays. It begins with a 6 p.m. dinner, followed by a worship meeting at 7. The program breaks up into smaller groups at 8:15, and the evening ends with dessert and fellowship at 9:15.

The program is successful, Baker said. She said she has seen “parents get their children back, (and) get their jobs back” after going through recovery.

Celebrate Recovery, Baker said, “helps them to put their pieces back together.”

Added Lopez: “We've seen the evidence that it works.”

Once one member of a family makes the change, it has a ripple effect, says Lopez, because, soon, participants start “bringing in their whole family.”

“A lot of people have issues because of their families,” Lopez said. “That's where the church comes in,” she added.

Baker said if people want to change their lives, it can be done - though it isn't easy.

“We gave our lives to Christ once. Our will is a daily decision,” Baker said.

“It's a power greater than ourselves,” she added.

The Valley Chronicle