The dictionary defines recovery as “the regaining of or possibility of regaining something lost or taken away.” But the journey of healing truly doesn’t fall into a defined box, because every person has a different story. We see recovery happen before our eyes in so many different ways:
We see recovery through laughter. The students are not just learning to cut and style hair, they are learning to be okay with making mistakes and to be persistent. Nobody’s perfect, and laughter is truly one of the best medicines.
We see recovery through tears. Sometimes the hardest step is knowing where you’ve been hurt. The same way a doctor must diagnose a problem to fix it, we must know where we’ve been wounded to truly heal. But diagnosis can be one of the most painful parts of the healing process.
We see recovery through faith. We work with people who have no reason to trust us. But we’ve seen God profoundly change their lives and hearts- He is doing “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.” (Ephesians 3:20)
We see recovery through fellowship. The survivors are learning to build healthy relationships where they can trust and encourage each other. They are learning that they are not alone in their healing journey, that others are standing beside them and know what they’re going through.
We see recovery through service. Our staff and former students have used their past experiences to teach and encourage others that they can have hope for the future, because God cares for them.
Ultimately we seek to prove the dictionary definition wrong- there is no “possibility” of regaining what has been lost or taken away. There will be healing and reconciliation through Jesus. He is making all things new.