“A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones” (Proverbs 17:22).
When clients first enter the program at the Christian Care Center Men’s Residence, they come broken and crushed. They are disappointed in themselves, often full of regrets, shame and guilt. As they go through the classes in our program, they are reintroduced to some of their old hurts and pains. Like the scripture says, it can get to a point where one can feel the pain all the way in his bones. This is good and needed for recovery, but it’s not the only thing needed. As the scripture also says, a joyful heart is good medicine.
Recently, we were blessed with a volunteer named Dale Thomason who was thinking outside the box. He wanted to be able to bring the men some medicine away from the center by getting them outside in the sun, enjoying life. So, every week he piles the men into our van and takes them down to Pear Park to walk some of the many trails and to play pickleball.
Being outside, away from the center, allows the men to relax and focus more on the blessings God has given us rather than just the hurts we have experienced. It reminds the men of what it felt like to just enjoy the moment. Where many might see a trip to the park as just that, a trip to the park, for our men it is good medicine.
A joyful heart brings healing, it brings confidence, and it brings a sense of gratitude which is exactly what our hearts need to recover from not only our addictions but our pains and hurts that brought us there. It took one volunteer thinking outside the box to bring joy to these men’s hearts – what can you bring to offer healing? If you would like to partner with the Men’s Residence by prayer, financially, or by volunteering please email Jamie@christiancarecenter.org to find out how.