Church's Impressive Growth Has Link to Celebrate Recovery Ministry

Darrell and Kristen Yarbrough had only been leading The Assembly church in Warner Robins, Georgia, for about six months, when an acquaintance, Terry Theus, approached Darrell.

Theus, then 57, was hoping The Assembly could offer some financial support for the Celebrate Recovery ministry he was leading (at a non-AG church) as the pastor no longer wanted the ministry there. Instead, Yarbrough, stirred by the Holy Spirit, surprised Theus by offering him and the ministry a new home with The Assembly.

Since that offer five years ago, The Assembly has grown from 600 on Sundays to a robust 1,500 attending Sunday services on its main campus each week.

A DAMASCUS ROAD EXPERIENCE

Theus, who began using drugs when he was 12, admits he never dreamed God would ever have a use for him, much less become a minister.

But he clearly remembers his “Damascus Road” experience — the day when he encountered Christ. It began with the then-24-year-old Theus sitting on a park bench waiting for his “drug of choice,” meth, to be delivered.

“I was drinking a beer and smoking pot when this guy walks past me, but then turns around and says, ‘Hey, can I ask you a question? Are you a Christian?’ I told him I was, even though I didn’t know anything about God or being a Christian,” Theus recounts. “The guy responds, ‘Good. We all need to serve God’ and walked away.”

Those words stuck in Theus’ heart. God? God wouldn’t want me — even my own father called me a mistake . . .

When Theus’ friends arrived, he refused the offer of drugs, and asked them to take him home.

“I got home and asked my mom if we had a Bible. She told me there was one by her bedside — I picked it up and thought, How in the world can anybody do all this?” Theus says. “So, I cut a deal with God. I told Him, if You show me what I can do to be saved, I’ll become a Christian.”

God responded. Theus opened the Bible up and it fell to Romans 10, with his eyes moving to verse 13: “for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’”

“I thought, No way it’s that easy, but I got down on my knees and asked Jesus to come into my life,” Theus says. “He did! Instantaneously God saved me, delivered me, and set me free from even the desire for drugs!”

CELEBRATE RECOVERY

The Celebrate Recovery program is designed to help people overcome “hurts, hang-ups, and habits.” Theus refers to it as a “safe place for people also struggling to find acceptance, love, and recovery.”

Theus first got involved in a relatively new, local Celebrate Recovery program when he agreed to give his testimony during one of the evening meetings. Shortly after that, the leader asked if Theus could fill in for him one night.

“There were only 10 or 20 people attending at the time, so I agreed,” Theus. “The guy calls me back and tells me he would not be able to come back at all – his daughter was really sick. He wanted me to stay to do the ministry.”

Despite great self-doubt, Theus agreed to do it until someone else could lead . . . that was eight years ago.

“After three months, I said, ‘Ok, God. This is where you must have wanted me,’” Theus says with a laugh.

COMING TO THE ASSEMBLY

When the non-AG church Theus was originally leading Celebrate Recovery meetings in got a new pastor who wasn’t Spirit-filled, there was a problem. The new pastor couldn’t square his beliefs with what was taking place in this Pentecostal version of Celebrate Recovery services, which had now grown to averaging about 60 people.

“So, he cut our funding, which was a nice way of saying ‘you’re fired,’” Theus says. “At the time, I thought it could be the end of the ministry.”

“Terry came by and started talking about the situation and how he didn’t know what he could do,” Yarbrough recalls. “I knew this was a ministry we could use, so I asked him about bringing it here, to The Assembly.”

Before a stunned Theus could respond, Yarbrough added two conditions: Theus would need to become a staff minister at The Assembly and Celebrate Recovery would be a ministry of the church — if Theus leaves, the ministry stays with the church. Then he advised Theus to pray about it and come back with his decision.

“I look back at that day, and I can see how God was working everything out,” Theus says. “At the old church, it was pretty small and we were running out of space, but what I thought was potentially the end of a ministry was just God closing one door and opening a better one. We now regularly run anywhere from 150 to 400, with some of events seeing as many as 800 attend — we could have never done that at the old church.”

And Yarbrough has become one of Theus’ greatest fans.

“Terry is a great leader, he’s the heartbeat of it (Celebrate Recovery) — God has gifted him for that ministry, and it has blossomed under him,” Yarbrough says. “It was a need in our community and honestly, I did not know how big of an epidemic it (addiction) was . . . it touches so many families’ lives.”

Yarbrough says not only was the church board 100% in agreement with adding the Celebrate Recovery ministry to their church’s outreach efforts, but when he gave the congregation an opportunity to give to help establish the ministry that following Sunday, $10,000 was given.

GROWTH

In addition to Celebrate Recovery, Theus created a 90-day course for those struggling with addiction, but who can’t take off from work for an extended time period to attend a program such as Adult & Teen Challenge.

“It’s called Recovery Way,” Theus says. “We have about 60 people in this group, and every day of the 90 days the booklet gives them something specific to do. Often within a month, there’s an amazing difference in individuals. About 60% of those who attend have already graduated, but they attend because they recognize it’s vital to their recovery to keep showing up, keep doing the work . . . they have a real love for God, love for the Word, and love for His people — most say they’ll never stop coming.”

Although not all the growth of The Assembly can be attributed to the Celebration Recovery or Recovery Way programs, as the church has many other outreaches, Yarbrough points out that the programs have brought a real awareness and sensitivity to the congregation.

“It sure has opened our eyes to a need that we just can’t ignore,” Yarbrough says. “With drugs and all of that so prevalent today along with the desperation people feel, the economy, and life in general, the Church has to be aware of and acknowledge these are real problems, but we can’t just sit on the sideline, we have to be a participator in the solution — we have to get involved and make real change.”

Theus believes that through the program, a greater openness for people to talk about their struggles and be more aware of other families’ struggles has been created — outside and inside of the church.

“Almost every family knows someone or has someone in their family who struggles with addictions, and not just drugs,” Yarbrough agrees.

“We regularly have people from other recovery ministries that meet on other nights come to our meetings,” Theus adds. “And just through word of mouth, the numbers who come keep on growing.”

TESTIMONIES

Theus says at nearly every Celebrate Recovery service there are people coming forward to accept Christ, which has led to hundreds giving their lives to Christ every year.

“We have seen hundreds and hundreds of people saved,” Theus says. “Up to this point, this year, we have close to 400 people who have given their lives to Christ.”

And every service, those in attendance repeat the mission statement: “We are getting up when we fall; We are taking back what has been stolen; We are giving God the glory; and We are reaching back for our brother and sister.”

Theus tells of a young woman named Heidi he found lying in the parking lot two years ago, curled into a fetal position, holding a baby doll, and in the midst of a panic attack. A friend was trying to convince her to go into the service, but told Theus the girl was “scared to death” about being around people.

Theus prayed over the girl, gave her a hug, and convinced her to walk with him into the service, promising to seat her on the back row.

“The next week, she sat a little closer and the next week she raised her hand for salvation,” Theus says. “Then two weeks ago, I’m standing at the altar, and a lady taps me on the shoulder. She says, ‘Do you remember me? I’m Heidi, and this is my daughter. I’m here to get my two-year (sober) chip.’ God had restored all that the devil had stolen from her — her family was restored, she was clothed in her right mind . . . I see stuff like that happening week after week!”

Tillman Coleman is another miracle that Theus loves to share about.

“Tillman and his wife were both trapped in addiction, he was in jail, and they had lost custody of their children,” Theus says. “Today, Coleman has been seven years clean, he’s leading a recovery ministry, his wife has been clean for six years, they have their kids back, and both are in ministry!”

WHAT NEXT?

For The Assembly, what comes next is really up to God — whatever He’s preparing to do, The Assembly is ready to follow.

However, Yarbrough says, any church, no matter the size, could be hosting a Celebrate Recovery program. In fact, Theus has been helping numerous churches in Georgia launch their own Celebrate Recovery programs, with the blessing of The Assembly.

“This is a crucial opportunity if the Church can take advantage of it,” Yarbrough says. “Everywhere these problems exist, and we’ve got to give people an answer and the Answer is Christ! Let’s go seek and save those who are lost!”