In The Arena

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is married by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms , the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows that in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory or defeat.                                                      Theodore Roosevelt

I love being in the arena, it's where God has me. And I love being there with our team at ATB and the rehabs and sober living facilities who are also in that same arena with us.  In the addiction recovery arena it is an extremely dysfunctional place to begin with.  It is often kindergarten on steroids dealing with folks that have failed to master basic living skills and are constantly in need of finding hope.

All of us together are imperfect but in the perfect place to make a difference and show people the way to live and find that hope. Whether people love us or hate us collectively, we have saved thousands of lives and turned them toward heaven. If you think about it, it's what Jesus did, and he too, being in the arena, was often criticized for his methods.

This blog is not aimed at anyone in particular except at the modern day Pharisees who have failed to grasp the Biblical concept that "love covers over a multitude of sins". So all of us in this arena will continue to help and love on you, your sons and daughters, despite our imperfections by pointing them to the one who is perfect.

As the theme from the successful series of Wide World of Sports said, we experience ​the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. One thing we, or our partners will never do is throw in the towel and quit!

Happy New Year, may God bless you always!