Recovery Church Conway SC

I was introduced to God as a child, but after years of childhood abuse and unanswered prayers, I stopped praying. By the age of 12, I found relief in a bottle, believing alcohol could quiet the mental anguish I carried inside.

After a suicide attempt at 29 years old, God led me to Alcoholics Anonymous, the fellowship that helped save my life. Angry, bitter, defiant, and agnostic, I made “G.O.D.” (“Group of Drunks”) my higher power. For thirteen years, life was manageable, until it wasn’t. As paraphrased from the AA Big Book, there comes a time when the only thing standing between an alcoholic and a drink is their spiritual condition. I had no spiritual foundation, and eventually I drank again.

For five years, I was consumed with grief, depression, hopelessness, and emptiness. Once again, I attempted to end my life. But through what I can only describe as divine intervention, God carried me back to recovery. Life became stable again, but something was still missing.

Eleven years sober, active in AA, surrounded by friends, fellowship, and a home where my needs were met, I still woke up every morning asking myself: What is the point? Why am I alive? What is the purpose of my life?

Then God showed up again.

In July 2021, an AA friend invited me to church, a place I had refused to enter for over 30 years. That day, sitting in a pew, desperate for answers, I encountered the same God my mother had told me about when I was seven years old. For decades, I had blamed Him, denied Him, cursed His name, and judged His people, yet He met me there anyway.

That day, Jesus Christ revealed Himself to me, and my life was changed forever. Today, God uses my story to minister to and mentor women in recovery through Christian twelve-step recovery programs. I have watched Him transform atheists, agnostics, lukewarm believers, and broken women into what I lovingly call “recovery disciples.”

Jesus and the Twelve Steps became the solution that finally healed both my addiction and my spirit. The AA Big Book says, “God is either everything, or He is nothing.” Today, each morning when I wake, I ask Him, “Lord, what is my purpose today?” And He answers every time.

Darrin “Rev” Reed is a recovered alcoholic and addict who has been in 12 step recovery for over 40 years, and in Christ centered recovery for over 20 years. Just like (Roman’s 7:15), he lived in the struggle of trying to do the right thing without the right power to do it. He always had a belief that there was a God, but he figured that he had been “written off” of God's list by theway he had been living. His recovery journey pushed him to improve his conscious contact with God as he understood him. And through that journey, he found out the God of His understanding has a name….Jesus Christ. He had given his life to Jesus at 20 yrs old, but it was through a lot of continued bad decisions and consequences that Darrin finally surrendered everything to Jesus' Lordship several years later. Darrin’s faith journey led him to Bible college and he is an ordained minister through Christian Leaders Alliance . Today, he has a passion for seeing people not only recover, but to truly find their relationship with the One True God who will solve all their problems. Jesus Christ!

After years of seeking peace, acceptance, and fulfillment through alcohol and many other things, Jimmy found himself in total despair. It was a place of helplessness and hopelessness, and he did not want to live anymore. Through a series of events, he cried out to God to help him or let him die. He wanted and expected the latter, BUT GOD had other plans. He ended up in a treatment facility and started down the road to recovery in the rooms of AA. He had fully committed to this program of recovery and had a "Spiritual awakening as the result of these steps" but had not fully surrendered to the God who had delivered him from that hopeless state. When he fully surrendered and allowed the Lord to have His way with him, he began to experience a freedom that he'd never experienced before.

For the last 15+ years, God has allowed him to work with hundreds of folks in Christ Centered recovery settings. Further testament to His Grace is his amazing wife of 30+ years, Julie, and his two beautiful daughters, Keli and Karis.

Matthew Smith is a Youth Pastor at Myrtle Beach Christian Church and leads Life Recovery, where he walks with people seeking freedom from addiction and life-controlling struggles. He believes true healing is found in Jesus Christ alone, and that real, lasting change comes through surrender to Him. Matthew teaches a Scripture-centered approach to recovery while also leading people through the 12 Steps, seeing them as a practical, biblical path toward repentance, accountability, and spiritual growth when rooted in Christ. His heart is to create a space where people can be honest about their struggles, take responsibility, and begin rebuilding their lives on the foundation of God’s truth. Through both youth ministry and recovery, he is committed to helping others grow in their faith and walk in the freedom Christ offers.