You live in a neighborhood and a group home is planned for one of the houses down the street. The “recovery house” is run by a Christian group helping eight recovering addicts from drug and alcohol abuse. You have children. Are you concerned for their safety? Are you worried about your property values?
Nearly 100 people met at a local library in Tulsa to protest such a house. Two of their concerns were children safety and property values. No one denied the right of people to have a second chance . . . just not in my neighborhood, some said.
Buddy Davis, the chairman Abba Ministries that runs the home, addressed these concerns. “Drug addicts don’t boil children. They don’t automatically become pedophiles.”
One of the group home residents reversed some of the conventional wisdom and said, after seeing the vehement voices of the community, that he fears how he’ll be treated now. “I’m sorry that you feel this way,” Jared LaBelle, a resident of the group home, told the crowd of more than 100 people gathered at the Hardesty Regional Library. “It makes me afraid for my safety.”
Is there an irony here that of 100 people attending such a meeting, a good percentage of those people are addicted to something lethal, threatening the well-being of the neighborhood, but they just haven’t admitted it yet? Seems those recovering admit what they’re dealing with and are on a narrow path to recovery.
Read the story in the Tulsa World
What would you do?
Greg,
Let’s take it a step further. Would you be willing to adopt a drug addict (with whom you don’t have a relationship) and allow them to live in your home? I’m not.
Some families are, and may God bless them generously. After my children are grown, I might be. But I’d at least like to be given an option, which these residents aren’t.
Drug addicts (and pedophiles) have been known to exhibit behavior that is frightening and even damaging to those around them. I’m not willing to risk my families safety and security for them.
It’s a tough question, not just for drug addicts, but also for pedophiles and other types of criminals for which opportunities for healing are needed, especially when there are no other options. But, I’m not convinced there are no other options.
What’s your opinion?
Glenn
I’m lacking to see where God has ever spoken about protecting his people from danger, persecution, etc. I only know that the American God is the one who is concerned with people’s safety.
Living in God’s way is dangerous. Period. It should and will risk the lives of you, your children, and those who join in this walk. If it’s not then we aren’t living out the life Christ called us to. Look at what they did to our leader, why wouldn’t they want to do that to us if we’re living JUST LIKE HIM.
Yes, I would be fine having a group recovery home in a neighborhood. Yes, I would be fine- with proper training for my entire family- to take in a past drug addict. Yes, I’m fine with bringing in a child molester to my dinner table- as long as we can talk about their sin and what God can or is doing in their life. I will be responsible enough to teach my kids why we still must be careful while we love this man/woman. I WILL SHARE WITH THEM that we must continue to love them, care for them and show them what a normal, Godly family is all about so that we can be the hands and feet of Jesus to them.
If we love & the world/Satan chooses to kill or harm our children… then we have nothing to worry about because our God is mighty to save & one day Satan and the world will answer for their destruction. I must simply love & trust that God has got everything in His control.
First of all , there are drug addicts everywhere. Only they are not trying to recover. Recovering drug addicts in your neighborhood could be sent their by God to influence your child not to do drugs. Whatever His reason, my son and I are going to be on board. I am more afraid of what I teach my son by protesting.
I’m challenged by this, and one way I’ve chosen to continue being challenged to do what Christ would want me to do is to take the discussion to the very people who want to be hosted or in need or recovering. For example, a few of us recently helped a homeless man on a long vodka slide to get de-toxed at a local hospital program. He then entered a recovery house (not in my neighborhood, by the way). I’ve stayed in touch with him, and recently he’s left for another state, but only after a group of good men have befriended him, given him a good job, and taken him to CR or AA meetings. What I mean by the open dialogue is that I say openly to people like this friend that my wife and children don’t know you and it would be difficult for me to just bring him home and have him sleep in our house the way we have it currently set up. I wish I had a place where there is a garage apartment, like Fonzy had. Maybe someday I’ll get a Fonzy apartment for people in need. On a larger social justice level, I’m working toward the justice issue of how Tulsa can provide more affordable housing, particularly for those coming out of addictions or healing or recovering in some way. Even those not going through acute problems, there is not enough affordable housing. Nowhere in the U.S. can someone making minimum wage walk down the street and get an affordable apartment.
I agree it is a challenge. There are at least a couple of different points here. One is how I deal with this. The other is how we expect others to deal with it.
This situation described in the paper has more to do with how the situation was imposed on folks that apparently weren’t given an opportunity for feedback before the amendment was passed. The representatives might not have done their due diligence before agreeing to the amendment.
It’s also an education issue. Like the guy said in article… “This is an unknown risk being brought into our neighborhood”. We distrust what we don’t know to some degree (and many times for good reason.)… Read More
There’s also a big difference in someone putting my family in a dangerous situation without my choice, and being persecuted for the cause of Christ due to my own choosing.
Again, I’m very thankful for people like Buddy Davis and others who are willing to help anyone dealing with addiction… whether in the name of Christ or not.
Depending on our gifts and our life situations, we’re all able to help many people in different ways. That’s not a cop-out, nor does it gives us the right to impose our sense of moral obligations on others.