The following steps are suggested for the family or friends of those who struggle from any kind of addiction. The very first thing to understand is that you can wash away the sins from the sinner through the Sacrament of  Reconciliation and Penance, but you cannot remove the inclination to sin from the sinner or the addict which Tradition calls Concupiscence. Those who struggle with addictions need our prayers and support and the best thing we can do is get as close to the Lord as we can through His Bride the Church and the Sacraments. Our Spiritual Continuity flows from the Sacraments. Our prayers are purified when we are justified by Sanctifying Grace by frequenting the Sacraments. These steps not only help those who suffer but also help us as well.

I have heard many Holy Priests and Moral Theologians share in their talks that quite often parents come to them asking them to pray for their loved one who has fallen away from the Church and always asks for help. The first response to the parents is "When was the last time you went to confession?" or "How often do you visit our Lord in the Sacrament at Adoration?" or "Are you a regular Communicant or attend Daily Mass offering up the Mass for your fallen loved one" and finally "Do you pray the Rosary?" The point is that we need to sacrifice everything of this world and focus on the Theological Virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity that belong only to God and God alone (read Romans 5:1-21). If we truly understand our Faith; we will absolutely believe in the miracles and mercy of Christ.

The first step is to read the following articles on this website: HUMAN SUFFERING & RECONCILIATION AND PENANCE by Pope John Paul the Great, WHY THE CATHOLIC CHURCH | HABIT OR DISEASE | SPIRITUAL COMBAT | JOHNNY’S TESTIMONY | WHAT TO DO KIT. These articles will help you better understand why our loved ones are inclined to evil and what we can do to help. This will require your love and support and pure vigilance on their part.

The Second step is to visit the CATHOLIC RESOURCES PAGE and search out a Catholic Therapist that can guide your loved one back to spiritual health. This step is crucial because some of those who suffer from addictions do so to mask pain that could be manifesting itself into addictions.

The third step is to attend our weekly Archbishop Sheen Support group which focuses on Fulton J. Sheens “Life is Worth Living Series.” You can visit the SHEEN SUPPORT GROUP for further information. Bring your loved one. There are 3 couples from the Riverside area that come to support a brother in Christ suffering from Gambling. We are all part of the Mystical Body of Christ and members of God’s Church. We are in this together. The best comment on this support group was “I learned more about our Catholic Faith in one night than I ever learned in a class from my Parish”

The fourth step is to get the Survival Kit for Addictions which includes:

NO TURNING BACK DVD by Father Calloway (This DVD illustrates how an atheist drug user and once Japanese Mafia came to the Church after his parents became devout Catholics. This is a must see for everyone in the family. This DVD truly show the mercy of our Lord Jesus) 

LIFE IS WORTH LIVING by Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen (This MP3 series has 50 Catechetical lessons and is over 24 hours of Church teachings. This is essential for the one who suffers to help them in their formation back to the Jesus Christ and His Bride the Church. I highly suggest taking 30 minutes a day for 50 days to learn all about our Catholic Church and learn how to live a life in Christ Jesus, a life that is worth living.)

OVERCOMING ADDICTIONS THROUGH CHRIST & WHAT TO DO KIT by Johnny Garcia (My testimony will educate all those suffer from addictions how to overcome addictions by learning the Bible and reading the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the importance of living a life in Christ by practicing Virtue and avoiding the Capital Sin of Pride. This CD will simply illustrate the miracles of Jesus in the Sacraments and the teachings of the Magisterium.)

This kit is worth over $100.00. You can purchase this kit for only $ 33.00 by clicking here to contact John.

The fifth step is to visit an adoration chapel and pray before our Eucharistic King for 40 days for your loved one. The following three stories illustrate the Divine Invasion from above:

Archbishop Sheen shares a powerful story of a man who had facial cancer and was dying. This man, William, protested the Catholic Church but that did not stop Fulton J. Sheen. Our Beloved Sheen visited William for 40 days and on the 40^th day he took our Blessed Lord in the Sacrament. Bishop Sheen told William he had the Lord with him and after about 15 minutes of prayer William ordered Sheen out of his hospital room, in fact he was yelling for the nurse. Sheen knew William would die that night and told him before he left with our Lord, he said “Before you die tonight; please say one thing for me; say MY JESUS MERCY.” Later that night Beloved Sheen received a call from the nurse that William had died but the nurse told Sheen that right after he left; he did not stop saying “MY JESUS MERCY” until he died. This is the power of Jesus in the Sacrament and this is why my family every night after the Rosary says “MY JESUS MERCY”.

Jeremy shared a powerful story of visiting the Blessed Sacrament for a colleague who was struggling in their faith. Jeremy went to Adoration in the early AM. The following day Jeremy asked that person if they had any kind of experience the pervious night and that individual said that at just the time Jeremy was I adoration; she felt the Lord calling her home to His Church in heart. Thanks be to God.

The third story I would like to share with you is about a man who lost his wife and two other relatives last year. I was contacted by a brother of Christ who asked for advice regarding his friend. I asked my brother to pray the Rosary for him everyday and go to visit our Lord at an Adoration Chapel. A week later, this person who was struggling with Alcohol and contemplating Suicide fell and broke his foot, thus he was unable to walk to the store and buy liquor. He came to our Sheen Support Group for the first time that night. One person told me that our Blessed Mother tripped him.

There are many more Divine Invasions and stories of God’s Mercy. Your loved one can be the next.

The sixth step is to pray the Rosary Daily. According to Saint Louis de Montfort, meditation on the mysteries of the Rosary brings about marvelous results:

It gradually gives is a perfect knowledge of Jesus Christ

It purifies our souls, washing away sin

It gives victory over our enemies

It makes it easy for us to practice virtue

It sets us on fire with love of Jesus

It enriches us with the graces and merits

Once when Saint Dominic preached the Rosary in Carcassone, devils who possessed a certain man, yelled out: “By preaching the Rosary, St. Dominic put fear and horror into the very depths of hell and that he was the man they hated most throughout the whole world, because of the souls which he snatched from them through devotion to the Rosary.

The family that prays together stays together.

The seventh step is to watch an Interview with and Exorcist. This is an interview with Fr. Fortea who is has a PHD in exorcism. As Catholics we recognize that Jesus Christ performed exorcisms during His public ministry. In my search for truth regarding this subject, I fully understand that possessions do exist and take place. This interview will educate you on the possibility of demonic possessions in those who suffer from severe psychiatric disorders and requires deliverance from and approved ordained priest.

The eighth step is to email me with any prayer intentions or questions at Johnny@saintjoe.com.

Saint Paul said “Bear the burdens of one another’s failings; then you will be fulfilling the law of Christ."

GOD LOVE YOU