New Reality, a recent church plant in northern Kentucky, meets on Friday nights, not Sundays. Even more atypical New Reality is part of a Life Recovery Center in Erlanger, Kentucky, providing Christ-centered answers to those who are struggling with addictions.
The church plant has grown quickly — from 20 people in May to almost 100 by the end of 2018.
Chris Hamilton, who leads New Reality, is a recovering alcoholic who has been sober for 10 years. After coming to Christ he felt called to preach “the recovery gospel.”
“I didn’t know what that meant at the time,” Hamilton said.
A key part of a recovery ministry, Hamilton said, “is to create a safe place where people with addictions can come and just be” and where they can find the resources, housing, assistance and support they need.
“To get to know Jesus, we want them to come to us,” he added.
New Reality meets on Friday nights because a large percentage of the people the center wants to draw are not necessarily churchgoers, Hamilton noted. New Reality also doesn’t want to conflict with other church services “because the whole idea here is to be that jumping off point into knowing Jesus,” he said. “As people come in and we disciple them, we want them to be able to connect with their local church.”
Many of those attending are residents of the men’s and women’s treatment centers in the area.
‘Choosing to come’
“The beautiful thing is, it’s all voluntary,” Hamilton said. “These folks are choosing to come here.”
The vision is to take the Life Recovery Center model and plant other centers in communities that need the ministry across the region.
“We want to create a model that we can replicate,” Hamilton said. “The idea is to partner with the local church. We want to be a helping hand.”
Most churches don’t have the resources, the funds or the people who are experienced in dealing with addictions, he said.
“So the people in their church who are suffering with addictions may not be getting what they need,” Hamilton said. “If we can provide that and help them get healthy and whole again, and send them back to their own church, they can then be ministers in helping identify folks who need help.” (BP)
How to pray:
- Pray for addiction counselors like those at Life Recovery Center and for their clients.
- Pray for the leaders and members of New Reality to grow in their faith and to reach others with the gospel.
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