Year-End Letter Summary
of Publications Under Way
Dick B.
Copyright
2012 Anonymous. All rights reserved
Dear Steve: Thanks very much for hooking up with
Dominic on his question.
A word or two about Dominic, Cornerstone Church, and
the strength of the Northern and Central California Christian Recovery Movement
of which Dominic is a part:
1. In
May of 2009, when we had our first major conference of Christian recovery
leaders from all over the US and Canada, it was held in a huge Fellowship Hall
at Mariners Church in Irvine, California.
2. Dominic
knew Larry Webb, one of our Orange County leaders. And Dominic – who lives in
far away Pleasanton CA – attended. He then contacted Ken and me and said the
Cornerstone Fellowship in Livermore would fly us up to conduct a large
conference at their church. And it did; and Ken and I did just that.
3. We
found that Livermore was buzzing with 12 Step recovery interest. Greg Pope was and is their recovery pastor, and he and
Dominic conduct some very important history-oriented and 12-Step based recovery
groups at the church. The auditorium was packed. The church stocked our books—particularly
the Good Book and the Big Book; and we have been back again for other talks and
conferences.
4. Dominic
is a hands-on 12th-Stepper and knows his Big Book, Bible, and Christian links.
As time went on, we had some excellent contacts with nearby Golden Hills
Community Church in Brentwood where Matt Pierce is recovery pastor, and David
Sadler assists in a substantial way. We’ve had several conferences and meetings
there. And we have worked hard to help build a network of International Christian
Recovery Coalition leaders who know each other, exchange speaking engagements,
and (in the case of Cornerstone and Golden Hills) contribute funds to our Agape
Circle to help finance our trips and dissemination expenses.
5. New
South Bay Christian recovery leaders are sprouting up all over the San
Francisco South Bay area. Recovery Pastor Doug Nunes and others centered around
Calvary Church of Los Gatos; Eddie G. of Higher Power Celebration Ministry;
Darryl Pearson of Seven Hills Baptist Church of San Jose; Ken Small –recovery
leader; Chris Mullen’s Mercy and Grace Ministries and his large prison
ministry; and others now in the wings.
6. But
that’s not the end. Dale Marsh is now recovery pastor of Oroville Church of the
Nazarene. He is on our speaker’s bureau. He is constantly on the march in the
whole area locating new churches,
pastors, and groups and helping build the working group network that is so important. He has probably put us
in touch with half a dozen strong Christian church leaders. And the group has
now spread to some strong Christian and church leaders in San Jose, Los Gatos,
Foster City, Foster City, and other spots in South Bay. These latter groups are
just getting rolling, and we had two conferences in San Jose when we came to your retreat. We also are planning a large
one somewhere in the South Bay or Central California area this coming spring.
7. I
wanted you to have this background because it bespeaks a need and the
fulfillment of the need right now. At first, we thought Orange County,
Escondido, and San Diego were going to be the hot spots. And they are.
David Powers in San Diego, Roger
McDiarmid and Pastor Joe Furey, Calvary Ranch, Danny Simmons, Bob Noonan, Larry
Webb, Overcomers Outreach Inc., Thomas Thorne, Gary Seymour, Randy Moraitis,
Dr. Robert Tucker, Jerry Liversage, Dr. Mike Belzman, Gary Martin, and Mario
Zamorano are just a few of the dedicated people spreading the Christian
Recovery-Twelfth Step message in the huge Southern California area. We have had
many meetings there. In fact, we have a Southern California office in
Huntington Beach at New Life Spirit
Recovery – thanks to Dr. Tucker.
More and more we are spreading the word of the
important Our Legacy book. And those who see it, want to use it.
Now we have done at least three important things: (1) Our Christian Recovery Radio.com presentations and
interviews had to take a back seat as we conducted research in Vermont,
Cleveland, and Akron. But we have a host
of new shows scheduled; and Monty Meyer of Take 12 Radio.com is going great
guns with his supportive radio work from Oregon. (2) The back seat also had to
be used again during the two months where I was dealing with heart and bladder
problems; but God is restoring health there swiftly. (3) We are now working on
some important new books—being published in print on demand and ebook as we
speak. The first is “Stick with the Winners” which shows how to use old school today. The second is Pioneer
Stories in Alcoholics Anonymous. It
shows how important and unique the
long-forgotten personal stories in the First Edition (though removed for years)
provide full testimony of how the Akron
program worked. This book is coming out
today. I have just completed a final draft of “Carry this Message. . .”
which shows how to bring newcomers and sponsors up to date by having beginner’s
meetings and emphasis on messages for beginners so that today’s A.A. will not
be so bereft of healing information based on the power of God. We are also
working on the 4th edition of “The Dick B. Christian Recovery Guide” and our
Vermont book on A.A., Bob, Bill, Ebby, and
the others—based largely on our recent research. And sandwiched in will
be an appendix in “Carry This Message” which depicts the result of our recent Cleveland-Akron research t rip.
Finally, we are working with Greg Pope on a
play about the original meetings; and we
are working with Rick S. on his planned sponsor’s guide that will cover every
aspect of the Big Book front matter,
Dr.’s opinion, Bill’s chapters, and three personal stories from the 1st
edition.
2013 is a promising year for Christian recovery
leaders, workers, and newcomers. And, depending on how things go, we hope to be
invited to do a brief talk and two workshops at the February Conference (CROSS
Florida) being put together primarily by Russell Spatz for the Miami area.
Other than
these items, things are really lethargic right now on Maui?!
God bless,
Dick B.
Author, 46 titles & over 1,200 articles on A.A.
History and the Christian Recovery Movement
Exec. Dir., International Christian Recovery
Coalition
Christian Recovery Resource Centers - Worldwide
Christian Recovery Radio
www.DickB.com
DickB@DickB.com
(808) 874-4876
PO Box 837, Kihei, HI 96753-0837
Ps 118:17 (NJB):
I shall not die, I shall live to recount the great
deeds of Yahweh.
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From: Steve F.
Sent: Friday, December 14, 2012 9:30 AM
To: 'Dominic D.
Cc: Dick B. (dickb@dickb.com)
Subject: Question Re: The Christian Version of the
Step 3 Prayer
Dominic:
Thanks for your communication and question.
The prayer as written in the AA Legacy Guide came as
a combination of three separate sources, and as it is now written was not a
part of the pre-publishing of the Big Book being used by Clarence Snyder in the
late 1930s.
Three (total of 6 people) sources are: (1) Clarence
and Grace Snyder; (2) Harold Hill (now deceased and author of “How To Live Like
A King’s Kid” and other great books); and the three male authors of the AA
Legacy Guide: Dale Morfitt (now deceased), Jack Rapp, and myself. This was a
collaborative effort and the final result is as printed in the Guide.
Where are you located? Perhaps we could meet up at
one of the Came To Believe retreats. The dates and locations as well as other
information about our mission can be found on our website:
www.cametobelieve.org.
Happy Holidays and God Bless,
Steve F.
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