Gayton Baptist Church’s Faith & Recovery Ministry shares the love of Christ with individuals working to overcome substance addiction. Since beginning in the spring of 2020, the ministry has had the opportunity to connect with and serve thousands of people participating in recovery programs.
Recovery is complex, often involving physiological, environmental, mental health, and other factors. Rather than judging or oversimplifying the struggles of addiction, Faith & Recovery approaches the recovery community through the lens of Christ’s Great Commandment: to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Recognizing that we all experience struggles and need grace, the ministry seeks to meet people where they are with compassion, encouragement, practical support, and the hope found in Christ.
Faith & Recovery serves our recovery community in five key ways:
1. Weekly Recovery Home Visits
Each week, Faith & Recovery visits two local recovery homes—one for men and one for women—serving approximately 9–12 residents in each home. Volunteers bring a hot meal, pray together, watch a Christian-based video, and spend time in discussion and fellowship. The ministry also hosts special activities throughout the year, including holiday meals, movie outings, and other events. Through these regular visits, meaningful relationships are formed and nurtured.
2. Recovery Community Presentations
Twice a month, Faith & Recovery has the opportunity to share at larger gatherings through our partner organization, True Recovery. Presentations take place at True Recovery’s main center on Parham Road, typically with about 20 participants, and at their Community Meeting at Westminster Presbyterian, which brings together 100–120 participants. These gatherings provide a meaningful opportunity to share the hope and power of Christian faith with the recovery community.
We pick up recovery participants from multiple houses to join us every Sunday at different churches. Think of what a blessing it is to host these guests every at our local churches! Some of the best conversations happen during windshield time!
We have partnered with a community organization called Into the Neighborhood and some other Richmond churches to put on a day of fun activities one Saturday afternoon per month. It’s kind of like a field day for adults with cornhole, basketball, kickball, crafts, and a sponsored lunch. This is an opportunity for participants to get some time away from things and just relax and have fun, and learn alternative ways for healthy recreation. We usually have about 35-50 participants and can always use volunteers to help with set up & take down, interacting with participants, and serving lunch.
Many new participants in the True Recovery program show-up with only the clothes on their back and no money to get started. This is where we come in. We do several duffel bag packing events throughout the year to pack hundreds of duffel bags. Each bag is filled with life essentials for new participants in the recovery program, things like soap, deodorant, toothpaste, set of sheets & pillowcase, blanket, washcloth & bath towel, razors, comb/brush, shaving cream, nail kit, snacks, etc. Each bag also includes a Faith & Recovery devotional, a card with a and written note from members of Gayton Baptist Church, and a letter of encouragement with a prayer guide.
Whether you’re interested in volunteering with Faith & Recovery or simply want to learn more about the ministry, we’d love to hear from you! Contact us for more information and opportunities to serve.
