For years, this pastor would not reveal his opioid addiction for fear that people would turn away. Now more than ever, he sees why he must share his story
I SAT IN MY OFFICE AT A CHRISTIAN camp west of Seattle. Outside, rain dripped from fir trees. The day was dark and gloomy. Through the window, I could see the fields and woods where I’d worked and lived with my wife, Deb, and four kids for the past three years. I was the camp director, leading a year-round program of camps and retreats for church groups. It was a dream job for me and my family. What could be better for kids than growing up in the woods surrounded by good people?
I was about to lose it all.
In a few minutes, two executives from the camp’s parent company would be sitting on the other side of my desk. They’d requested a meeting earlier that day. They didn’t give a reason, but I knew. I’d been using the camp’s credit card to buy prescription pain pills online. Thousands of pills. Pills to feed my 30-a-day habit. The habit I’d been battling—and hiding—for more than a decade. The habit that had drained my bank account and nearly ruined my marriage.
Up to now, I’d managed to hide my addiction from all but a few people. I prayed I was wrong, that the executives wanted to meet for some other reason. In my gut, I knew I was caught.
The executives arrived and calmly took out a notebook filled with credit card records. They read off pill purchase after pill purchase. There was nothing I could say. They told me that what I had done amounted to a crime. I would have to resign immediately and move out of the camp in two weeks.
This story is from the January 2018 edition of Guideposts.
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This story is from the January 2018 edition of Guideposts.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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