Dick B.
interviews Christian Recovery leader Bryce H. of Sober By Grace Ministries on
the April 18, 2013, episode of the "Christian Recovery Radio with Dick
B." show
On
Dick B.
© 2013 Anonymous. All rights reserved
You May Hear Today’s Show Right Now!
_____________________________________________________________________________
You
may listen to Dick B. interview Bryce H. of Sober by Grace Ministries on the
April 18, 2013, episode of the "Christian Recovery Radio with Dick
B." show here:
or here:
Episodes of the "Christian Recovery Radio with Dick B." show are archived at:
Introduction
Today’s guest is Bryce H. from the Fort Worth, Texas, area. He and his wife
are strong Christian recovery leaders in that area and are planning a major,
unique, nationwide Alcoholics Anonymous history conference there very soon.
First, though, Bryce will tell us a little about his upbringing,
educational and religious background, family, marriage, present work, and
something of his bouts with addiction. He will also prepare you with some
details about his wife--who will be interviewed in just a few days.
Second, when last we talked, Bryce was gung ho about a major nationwide
A.A. history conference he and his wife are planning for this summer or early
fall in the Fort Worth area. And this will be our first opportunity to talk there
with and to A.A. friends, Christian leaders and workers, newcomers, churches,
and the public about our history and its Christian origins.
Third, we look for an audience from all over Fort Worth and Texas; from
nearby New Mexico, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama,
and other locations where A.A. history and enthusiasm are hot.
Fourth, the Fort Worth conference will bring in speakers who know their
stuff, probably from Florida and Hawaii and Texas. It will have music and food;
and it will feature three much-needed workshops: (1) Sponsorship. (2) Newcomer
focus. (3) Applying “old-school” A.A. principles and practices in 12 Step
programs today.
Bryce will tell us as much as he wishes
about all these subjects. And now we are ready for his talk. Take it away,
Bryce
Contacting Bryce and His Wife Jennifer
To
contact Bryce or his wife, Jennifer, go to their Sober By Grace website: http://soberbygrace.org
Synopsis of Interview of Bryce H. by
Dick B.
Appropriately, Bryce
called for prayers and assistance for those just involved in the West Texas
explosion and resulting disaster.
Bryce grew up in
Texas, went to school there, played football, and drank beer—though he excelled
much more in beer drinking. All the activities got him attention from the
opposite sex—the goal of an adept people-pleaser. However, there were
constraints by his community. His mom and dad were there. There was church. The
unvarying schedule involved practice on Monday, the game on Friday, and church
on Sunday. He liked God. And, as he pointed out, knowing about God was no chore
because of seminaries, radio, TV, churches, and schools. He had a solid upbringing,
but was easily influenced.
He joined the Navy,
married his high school sweetheart, and did his part—something of which he was
proud. However, if high school provided under-graduate drinking training, the
Navy offered graduate training. And then came the computer industry which, he
said, was filled with alkies. Nonetheless he convinced his wife of 22 years (or
thought he convinced her) that he was not an alcoholic. Then came the
all-too-common view that if you mixed alcohol with other substances, you could
drink longer. And a major mix involved both booze and cocaine. It also produced
bottom after bottom after bottom until he was down.
Though his wife had
counseling degrees and did rehab work, he developed the cover-up technique of
getting off the couch, going to the bathroom, washing, and providing no clue for his wife of the drink
and drug situation in the bathroom.
Soon, the elephant
was out of the closet. Bryce didn’t care. But one day, he was lying on a hotel
bed. He prayed to God. He knew little about God and now says he was like Adam
in the Garden. He asked God to give him a 1976 Cadillac, but that did not produce
deliverance. His wife proclaimed: “You are not the man I married” (the type of
comment that is more frequent than not in the lives of many a married
alcoholic.) However, Bryce was done! He was free, and he held to these words in
Isaiah 61:1-3:
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed
me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that
are bound.
To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance
of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for
ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the
garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the
planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified/
Bryce was then involved
with church. He believed NA provided his introduction to God. He hated just
sitting in meetings. He found healthy meetings in church. For five years of
sobriety, he was involved in Lighthouse Fellowship. There were other local
prayer meetings.
He knew he was free.
He also saw that there were Pharisees. They condemned. They called recovery
ideas scandalous. But he held to Christ’s sacrifice that produced the spirit—and
grace.
He believed the
fruit of the Spirit included the 12 Steps and meetings. It emphasized the
Gospel Message in A.A. and the 12 Steps. He believed both were focused on hope
and redemption.
In Fort Worth, Bryce
saw health in Celebrate Recovery. He saw a growing understanding of what Jesus
Christ had accomplished and showed us. He found that dozens of leaders showed
up understanding that alkies and the church were failing to help the hurting.
People recovered, but. .
Bryce closed today’s
talk by expressing his enthusiasm for the upcoming Fort Worth Nationwide A.A.
History Conference and its planned major workshops: (1) Sponsorship training
where sponsors didn’t gather with sponsees to watch football, but knew their
Big Book, Steps, and A.A. roots and how to apply them. (2) Focus on the
newcomer and what he or she needed to know about the recovery program, its
roots, and the rules of the road—striking from the language “Meeting makers
make it.” Not if that is all there is, said Bryce. (3) Recognizing that walking
by the spirit is a never-ending challenge.
For information
about the Fort Worth Nationwide A.A. History Conference, to become a candidate,
and to make a donation, he invited listeners to go to http://soberbygrace.org.
For further
information, contact dickb@dickb.com; 808 874 4876
Gloria Deo
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