Weekly group helps husbands, wives heal
By Hamilton Richardson
Progress Weeklies
 

Those who've gone through a divorce know firsthand how difficult the situation can be, but thanks to the Church of Living Water in Prattville and its partnership with a divorce recovery organization, some of the pain of a marital break-up can be dealt with in a healthy way.

The church, in an effort to assist those families within and outside of the congregation that have been impacted by divorce, is allowing a weekly support group that addresses divorce-related issues to meet in its building.

Some of the issues that the meetings will address are healing, anger, depression, loneliness, and how to handle children who have been caught up in the chaos.

Cindy Thompson, who leads the group with Lois Wilson, said that the meeting is a place where people who are separated or divorced can be around others who understand their situation.

"You can also learn ways to begin healing from the hurt of divorce," Thompson said. "We have had approximately 20 people go through the DivorceCare class so far."

Thompson has been through the pain of a divorce herself and understands the need for the group. That's why she went to the church's leadership to get permission to hold the meetings.

"Lois Wilson and I both felt called to start a group like this because we believe that God doesn't want us to waste our experiences. We believe that we are to minister to others through the pain and devastation that comes with the divorce process," Thompson said. "When we went to the church to discuss starting this type of group, the church was completely behind us on it. The Church of Living Water believes in glorifying God by helping others and knew that this was a much-needed ministry."

According to the DivorceCare Web site, a typical meeting consists of the group watching a video on a wide range of divorce-related subjects, then having a discussion about the topic of the night.
The organization also offers books and audio resources to help those in the group such as "Breaking Free from Anger & Unforgiveness: A Biblical Strategy to Conquer Destructive Reactions," by Linda Mintle, and "How to Forgive When You Don't Feel Like It," by June Hunt.

Thompson said that being able to lead the DivorceCare group has been as much help to her as it's been to those she meets with every week.

"Lois and I both feel that we have been so blessed in getting to know others and being able to minister to them. It has been a privilege to serve God in this way," said Thompson. "Leading this group has also helped us with the healing process in our own lives."

The DivorceCare group meets at the Church of Living Water at 435 Sheila Blvd. in Prattville on Monday nights at 6:30 p.m., and those interested can join at any time. For information about the group, call 358-3300.

There are currently other DivorceCare groups around the area. To find out where they are located, go online to www.divorcecare.com.