New Book Deals with Addiction in Prisons, Elsewhere

Over two-thirds of American families today are affected by substance addictions. Even worse, these addictive behaviors often lead to crime, but only as few as 11 percent of these prisoners receive proper treatment to help them achieve recovery.

As president of the international prison ministry, Crossroad Bible Institute, Rev. David Schuringa is no stranger to the disastrous consequences of addiction.

In response to the growing need for recovery resources written for lay people, he has recently published Seven Secrets for Kicking the Habit: A Holistic Approach to Getting Your Addictions Under Control.

Over 15 years of prison ministry have made it clear to Schuringa, whose program is recommended for support by the Christian Reformed Church, of the need for a practical approach to addiction recovery.

Many prisoners do not have access to recovery programs, and since contraband drugs and alcohol are often readily available in prison, recovery strategies must be simple and highly effective.

Furthermore, Schuringa’s counseling experience as an ordained CRC minister has introduced him to people suffering from addictions of all kinds.

“Almost everyone is imprisoned by an addiction of some sort,” he said. “Maybe it’s not drugs or alcohol, but rather food, shopping, exercise or work.”

Seven Secrets for Kicking the Habit will serve as the foundation for a new course that will be offered to CBI students in prisons around the world.

CBI student Mark knows firsthand the importance of such a recovery resource in the face of addiction’s tragic cost. “My drug and alcohol abuse would have killed me,” he recalled of his early days in prison before coming to faith.

This course will be one more avenue for CBI to carry out its mission of transforming lives from the inside out. “God wants us to be healed and whole,” said Schuringa, “and part of that is addiction recovery. I hope that this book will be a practical, life-changing resource for many.”

CBI is a nonprofit prison ministry with over 44,000 students studying through satellite campuses on six continents. The program is provided at no cost to prisoners and their families.