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by Jeff Curnow –
General JOHN Larsson addresses the crowd at the Recovery Breakfast. |
A full meal—eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, hash browns, biscuits and copious amounts of coffee—greeted all who traveled to the Pasadena First Church of the Nazarene for the 2004 Recovery Breakfast.
More than 400 officers, employees and beneficiaries from Adult Rehabilitation Centers (ARC) and recovery programs in the Southern California and Sierra Del Mar Divisions joined General John Larsson and Commissioner Frieda Larsson for this commissioning weekend first.
Breakfast was served following an invocation by Major Ron Strickland, ARC commander. Unreserved enthusiasm marked special music by the Los Angeles Harbor Light Choir. In a video presentation describing their journey to recovery, seven residents of the L.A. Harbor Light Shelter talked openly about the problems of the past, the challenges of the present and their hope for the future
Commissioner W. Todd Bassett, national commander, introduced Larsson, noting that the Recovery Breakfast was being held, “in the shadow of Hollywood.” Stating that while Hollywood has thousands audition—and hundreds of hours of video are shot for a few hours of so-called “reality TV”—these TV shows are based on “characters that are fake.” Bassett asserted that the real-life stories presented in the video, combined with hundreds of thousands of stories written each year at more than 150 Army substance abuse recovery programs nationwide, give a true picture of reality.
The General congratulated those present for their commitment to the hard work of recovery. Larsson further encouraged that in any endeavor involving real change—be it recovery from addiction or growth in a personal relationship with Christ—it is essential to “remember to forget.”
Continuing, Larsson briefly recounted the biblical story of Joseph. Sold into slavery by his brothers, Joseph refused to cling to the pain of the past and was able to save his family from starvation. Concluding, the General assured those present that God wants us to “stop dredging up the sins and forget the regrets of the past,” and live each day in His power.
