Norbert
I became addicted to alcohol when I was 12. It was completely unspectacular. I grew up in the countryside, near Krefeld. We always drank beer at harvest time. For us kids, that was a sign of adulthood. It also meant I wasn't so shy. At 15, I was severely addicted, at 21 I was lying on the street. I was hospitalised in a delirious state. This was followed by one detox programme after another. I was finally sober in 1981. Now I had to learn responsibility. Previously, others had always acted on my behalf. After all, I was drunk.
After four years - at that time I had just moved to Baden-Württemberg because I had found work there as a machine fitter - I noticed a feeling of emptiness inside me. I met someone at Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) who became a good friend. He was a believer and told me: „There is a God, and he loves people like you.“ He was also the one who gave me my first Bible. I read it because I thought I could find some help in it, but I didn't understand anything. One day, I asked a pastor to explain the story of the centurion of Capernaum to me. „If you think about it, you'll figure it out,“ he just said and left me standing there.
I then prayed intensely to God: „If You exist, then send someone to explain this to me.“ I knew that I couldn't stay sober without God's help. Three months later, I met Angelica. I invited her to go to the weekly market with me the following Saturday as usual. But she didn't want to. Instead, she invited me to the church service. She was an Adventist. I remember going to church for the first time - and smelling terribly of smoke. But somehow I had the feeling that I was coming home - like the prodigal son. I knew it was okay that I was here - no matter what was behind me.
There were then many in the congregation who explained my countless questions about the Bible with angelic patience. Nobody said: „Leave me alone.“ The Sabbath School classes in particular helped me a lot. That was in 1991/92, and a year later I managed to stop smoking. Every time I felt the urge to smoke again, I prayed: „Lord, please give me the strength to stop smoking.‚ And every time he did indeed give me the strength.
After that, I received Bible lessons. That was a hard time. I remember kneeling on the floor of our living room with him and Angelica - we had got married in the meantime - and begging God: „Lord, accept me!‚ Then I got up and knew that things would get better. In 1994, I decided to be baptised. Two years later, my wife and I were asked to take up addiction work in the association alongside my work in the administration of the Esslingen police force. And we have been doing this for 11 years now. God has been gracious to me. He answered my prayers, sent me my wife and led me to his church.
