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This modern day plague, “this feel-good monster”, this tool of the enemy that kills, steals and destroys, this equal opportunity destroyer, called addiction claims the lives of thousands every year in these United States alone. Addiction’s hideous vice-like grip can actually be broken. Research confirms Teen Challenge’s remarkable record of success. According to Time magazine, “studies have found that Teen Challenge has a 70 percent success rate for those who finish the program, far better than secular treatments.” A recent study at Northwestern University found that “ex-abusers seem to lead normal lives after Teen Challenge, holding down full-time jobs and apparently very rarely needing to return to treatment.”
“Cami’s” Story “Cami” began using drugs at the age of 12. After violent fights with her parents, she ran away from her small, hometown, and was eventually lured into prostitution. Cami witnessed gang rapes, and held her best friend in her arms as the girl died from a drug overdose. At 19, despite having attended 22 drug-related funerals in six months, Cami began shooting IV drugs. Her sojourn at a drug treatment facility ended in failure. After her release, Cami hit bottom. In desperation, she made her way to Minneapolis and checked into Teen Challenge, a year-long residential drug treatment program. Nine months later, Cami’s transformation seems almost miraculous. She is buoyant, self-possessed and full of hope. Recently, singing before a cheering college audience with the Teen Challenge choir, she peered from the stage with one wish: “I want to be sitting where they are.” Teen Challenge has helped thousands of Camis across the country since 1960 when it was founded by David Wilkerson. It is the world’s largest drug and alcohol treatment program, with more than 200 locations worldwide. The program’s extraordinary success with society’s hard-core “losers” has caught the attention of news media from ABC News to Time magazine. Addicts come to Teen Challenge from hospitals, detox centers and jails. Some are high school football stars; others are pimps or gang members. Like Cami, many have tried a variety of treatment programs without success. Research confirms Teen Challenge’s remarkable record of success. According to Time magazine, “studies have found that Teen Challenge has a 70 percent success rate for those who finish the program, far better than secular treatments.” A recent study at Northwestern University found that “ex-abusers seem to lead normal lives after Teen Challenge, holding down full-time jobs and apparently very rarely needing to return to treatment.” We’ve seen it displayed in the media for decades in movies and television programs, like Silence of the Lambs, The Haunting of Sharon Tate, and The Wolf of Wall Street, but we ignore wickedness when it is evident and in plain view. Corrupt government officials committing heinous crimes witnessed by the public are not held to any form of accountability. Mobs of anarchists coming from near and wide like blood-sniffing animals to destroy, steal, and wreak senseless havoc on personal property and businesses. Yet, those in authority seem unwilling to step up and condemn these destroyers of peace and property. The officers of the law who risk their lives to protect law-abiding citizens do so with little support from their city’s mayors and governors. They are attacked, molested, and sometimes killed. Actions not words speak volumes. We need to ask ourselves, which government leaders are making a difference to support and preserve the American way, and which ones are just promoting fear, lies, and a future America moving rapidly towards anarchy, confusion, and apathy?
May God heal our land and continue to bless America. |
Lord, You are sovereign.
You decide when, and where, and how. You are the Holy One, Who dwells in the midst of the praises of Your people. Let us bless the Lord, Who is worthy to receive all glory, and thank Him for His goodness! |