In 1992, I was in the U.S. Air Force and had drunk alcoholically the first seventeen years of my service. The philosophy was “Work hard – Play hard.” I never really wanted to believe there was a problem with my drinking; every one of my coworkers and friends drank. Besides, there was always someone else who was much worse than me.

What I failed to see was the damage that alcohol had cause throughout the years. I was two years into my third marriage, declared bankruptcy (1982), had a son from my first marriage whom I had not seen in 13 years, was involved in a near fatal auto incident (1975), and was forced into a 10-day treatment program in 1980. There were also many incidents of infidelity and dysfunctionality in my previous two marriages over the years. I was able to remain in the military and perform my job well, believing everything was OK because everyone else had problems.

Things started to change early in 1992. I became well aware of the fact that I could not go a day without drinking and making it to the end of the duty day became more of a struggle. I began to isolate because I did not want people to see how much I really was drinking. By July of 1992, I had definitely hit bottom and daily thoughts of suicide were common. I hoped I would just die in my sleep to end the pain. Then one day I had to make the decision to pick up the telephone and ask for help or pick up the gun and end it. Through the grace of God, I picked up the telephone and asked for help. I took my last drink on August 28, 1992, and entered treatment on August, 29, 1992.

I spent five weeks in that treatment facility and left with a thorough knowledge of my alcoholism. However, I realized that the treatment center would not keep me sober. The treatment center took the patients to different Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings each evening. So upon my discharge from the treatment program, I began attending AA and followed their guidance. I committed to regularly attending meetings with some “old-timers” and followed their instructions. I found a sponsor, worked the twelve steps of AA and began to help others.

The 12th step of AA states that we will have a “spiritual awakening,” and in time I had mine. I worked the program of AA “religiously” for nearly two years but began to feel something was missing. Through the blessing of Anchorage’s only Christian radio station at the time, I discovered what I was missing, Jesus Christ. I followed the Holy Spirit’s direction and began attending church. I was saved and baptized on Easter Sunday in 1994.

I attended all three of the worship services at church plus Sunday School and continued to attend AA. I replaced the majority of my AA attendance with church services. As time went by, I felt less connected with AA and began looking for a Christ-centered group to attend with other alcoholics. There were no Christ-centered groups available in the Anchorage at the time, so that became my prayer request. Through the grace of God, the plans for Recovery Alaska were announced in the fall of 1996 and the program began in January 1997.

Mountain City Church’s Recovery Alaska program was an answer to my prayers and filled a void that was in my life. Even though I know my faith in Jesus Christ seals my eternal destiny and all my past sins are forgiven, it is essential to my continued sobriety to fellowship with other alcoholics and addicts. I believe all alcoholics and addicts, even though they are saved, forgiven, and cleansed by the Blood of Jesus Christ, need to work the 12 steps in order to help forgive themselves. The Recovery Alaska Ministry is a blessing to me in many ways. It offers the opportunity for me to be ministered to by fellow believers who “have been there”; lets me minister to others; and most importantly, is another tool to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Keith G.