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A DAILY STRUGGLE
Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until
daybreak ... Then the man said, "You shall no longer be called
Jacob, but Israel, for you have struggled with God and with
humans and have prevailed.
My first
client was given to me by a senior partner. He was a very good
client - he had lots of legal problems and promptly paid his
bills. He had no job but plenty of everything material. He never
got caught for anything big, just a succession of legal
situations that usually involved intoxication of some variety.
He tried, but failed, treatment after treatment. Then, with no
explanation I could see, after years of wrestling addiction and
destructive compulsion, he seemed to succeed. That's not to say
his sobriety came easily. He struggled continually to keep his
problems in remission - AA and NA meetings daily, sometimes more
than one meeting in a day. He was always quick to acknowledge
God as his higher power.
Over the
years he referred many clients whose drug and alcohol problems
resulted in legal difficulties. Most were eager to tell me about
the encouragement and support they received from my first
client. He seemed to know just when pressures put them on the
brink of relapse. Eventually, he started a treatment facility
and seemed to specialize in helping people who couldn't pay.
Years of helping others fulfilled him much more than his old
"fast life." Instead of burning out from their never-ending
self-inflicted problems, he seemed to gain the energy he needed
to stay ahead of his own deficiencies. I thought he proved that
effort and dedication can defeat the worst affliction.
His funeral was a couple months ago. He OD'ed at barely 50 years
old. A fatal stumble after almost 30 years of wrestling with
sobriety. Struggled but lost; lost, but won.
Heavenly Father, grant
me the fortitude to strive daily and wrestle for your glory
through the final round. Amen.
Keith Martin
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