When I wrote my memoirs, I focused on what worked and didn’t work in the mental health system. There was a lot of hardship, a lot of failure, and an abundance of frustration. In my anger at religion, spirituality, and the false promises of AA, I completely overlooked ten crucial years of my life. During those years, I experienced more prosperity and success than ever before. I had love, money, success in my art, I wasn’t smoking, I was exercising, and I was deeply devoted to the Word of God and prayer. Looking back, the coincidence is just too hard to ignore.
Back then, I didn’t want to see it. Religious people and the old-timers in AA could be so mean and judgmental that I rejected everything they stood for. I was so well-educated, I thought I knew better, so I dismissed God and grew bitter. And when I did, I slipped back into old habits. I drank again, smoked pot, ended up in jail, and went completely off the rails.
Not too long ago, I noticed my clinic was near a Rock Church office. I thought about visiting a pastor I kind of knew, just to say hello and see if he remembered me. But when I showed up—transient and unkempt—they wouldn’t let me in. It was a real blow. Still, I decided to email him, as I’d been receiving his newsletters for years. Eventually, I went back to church and began forming a relationship again. Desperate, I prayed and started discussing Bible passages with my new friend. I was ashamed to tell him what I had become—a homeless bum.
But when he found out, he didn’t judge me. Instead, he sent another pastor to see me. That pastor brought food, helped find me shelter, and even talked to me about job opportunities. It was an act of kindness I wasn’t expecting. But here’s the thing—it worked.
I got the highest grades in science and logic in college. And the only way I can explain this to anyone of intellect or education is simple: Test your theory. Test your hypothesis. Run the experiment for yourself. Do it, and watch the results.
You may not believe it at first, it might not fit into your worldview, and it may be hard to explain. But if you do it—if you take that step and watch the results—you will see. Put yourself in the monkey cage. Be that laboratory rat. Test it, and watch what happens. There may be a better explanation out there, but from everything I’ve seen and tested, I can tell you this: It works.
Pray, love, share, and grow in God. You will see wonders! I have a new life again, given by the One who created me, and it begins today—and every day.
Do it, and watch the results.
by Dan and Bonkers
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