The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Church of the Open Door to start ministries
Church of the Open Door in Elyria will begin three care ministries this fall.
The three ministries are Celebrate Recovery, Divorcecare and Griefshare.
Bob Wickens, pastor of adult ministries at the Elyria campus, 43275 Telegraph Road, said the national ministries attract people from around the region.
“There’s people who come to these programs from the Westlake and Cleveland area,” Wickens said.
There is no requirement to attend or be a member of the church to take part in the ministries.
“There’s no pressure and no encouragement there at all,” Wickens said. “We want to help people and that’s the business we’re in.”
The church has held these ministries for almost five years, he said.
The ministries
Celebrate Recovery is a Christian 12-step program that is not just limited to those suffering from addiction, Wickens said.
“Basically, it’s for anyone with a hurt, hang-up or habit,” he said. “It is not just for alcohol or drug
addiction, though, maybe half of the people come for that.
“Other people come with hurts, childhood abuse, nutrition problems, they need help with weight loss and we take them through this 12-step program.”
The program has helped many people, he said.
Celebrate Recovery meets at 7 p.m., Thursdays, in the church’s Power Zone.
Divorcecare and Griefshare are both 13-week programs.
Beginning Sept. 9, Divorcecare starts at 7 p.m., Mondays, in room 200 at the church and is open to anyone who is dealing with divorce.
According to divorcecare. org, it is a series of seminars and support groups which teaches people how to deal with the pain of a broken marriage.
It offers practical information and have a chance to talk about the experience with others who have been there and understand.
Beginning Sept. 11, Griefshare will meet at 6:30 p.m., Wednesdays, in room 200 at the church.
It is open to anyone dealing with the loss of a loved one.
According to griefshare. org, the program runs in much the same way as divorcecare.
Both are part of Church Initiatives, a nondenominational and nonprofit ministry based in Wake Forest, N.C., and are available at churches across the nation,
according to their websites.
Wickens said that each of the ministries include print materials to help participants to continue their healing between the meetings.
The origin
The care ministries got their starts with people calling the church, Wickens said.
“Back six, seven years ago, people would call and say ‘Do you have anything to help my son, he’s dealing with trying to go dry, he’s been drinking, he’s gone to (Alcoholics Anonymous) hasn’t had any help there, he keeps slipping back, do you have anything at your church?’” he said.
The church would have to tell people they couldn’t help them, Wickens said.
“You can’t just give someone a booklet,” he said. “They like to be in a group that’s led and people who’ve gone through the same kind of experiences they have.
“Our ultimate solution is to turn to God and open our hearts to his love and healing power, and these are all structured programs to
help people.
“And we get results, it’s amazing.”
There is a deep need for these kind of programs in the county because many residents are hurting, Wickens said.
While the programs have shown positive results, the church is not trying to take the place of professional counseling, he said.
“But there’s some people who can’t afford to go to a counselor for $150 dollars an hour, and they find support in these type of groups with other people,” Wickens said. “Each one of these groups have a leader, and the leader presents a program that has a time for discussion every week and people are being helped.”