Larry Winter

Today is a reflection challenging us to examine our consciousness highlighting Steps #8 and #11 (see below). Read these steps of spiritual development. Where do we stand in knowing ourselves? Then, conquer ourselves and finally give ourselves to Recovery. To know ourselves we need to examine our conscious. In religious circles, there are 4 ways […]

James and John were compassionately known as sons of thunder maybe to highlight their impulsiveness. James suffered from a mental health condition and John struggled with addiction. They were denied hospitality by some family members. They wished that fire from heaven came down on select family members because of their lack of compassion and kindness.

The parable of the peer in Recovery and those people who receive support from their peer, helps us recognize the healing in the words of Recovery in our lives. The parable is familiar to us since we can never tire of reflecting on what it means for our spiritual life. The peer goes out to

Where were we 23 years ago when one of the worst tragedies occurred on American soil? I was a juvenile justice social worker in La Crosse, Wisconsin. I looked out the window on the third floor of the Human Service building. I could not believe what I was hearing and watching. Hate, anger, and uncontrolled

Ten years ago I suffered through a difficult depression, anxiety, and trauma. I met with the Deacon from my church. I expressed feeling numb, sad, and fearful. He listened attentively to me, without judgment, and full of compassion. As our time together was closing, he said, “Look at the cross with Jesus on it. Remember

There is a story that goes something like this…One summer I was the Recreation Director in my hometown while attending college. We gathered the children each Thursday onto a bus to ride to an indoor swimming pool five miles from our community. As the director, I’ve chaperoned the children to a Milwaukee Brewer game and

Let’s focus on the twelfth step of Recovery, “We gain insight into our Recovery through our Higher Power as we model these steps, and share our journey toward hope, healing, and health with people”. You may wonder why I capitalize the letter ‘R’ in Recovery. This recognizes the role of the Higher Power (for me

Today I want us to focus on the following steps: #8 We acknowledge our behaviors have impacted our relationships. We list those affected by our behavior and whenever possible become willing to reconcile or thank them for their support during a relapse or mental health crisis. #9 We seek mutual reconciliation for a harmful action

I recently watched a reflection video and found the speaker’s message fitting for each of us in Recovery. “A long time ago when suitcases did not have wheels I was walking in an airport with too many things in my hands. As you can imagine, I was struggling and complaining that I had no one

Knowing and implementing the 12-steps of healing offers us hope. We are invited into the loving care and closeness of our brokenness, not fitting in with people, and the stigma that exists in our communities. The 12-steps call-out to those who support people with a mental health condition, addiction, and trauma to remember us who