The Heart of Recovery - by Deborah Beddoe & David Beddoe (Paperback)

About the Book

Wife of a recovering prescription painkiller addict invites you into the story of a marriage devastated by addiction and the role of community in recovery, offering tools of hope and help to friends and family members of an addict.

Book Synopsis

The United States is the most medicated country in the world. More than 1.7 million Americans are struggling with addiction to prescription painkillers, fueling the opioid crisis that claims more than 140 lives every day. The trouble isn't just the drugs--it's that we don't know what to do with the people addicted to them. Not as a country, not as the church. Is tough love called for? Or would Christ have us take a different approach to addiction recovery?

Drawn from the personal experience of the authors and current research, The Heart of Recovery calls us to set aside judgment and mend recovering addicts and their families with the stuff God uses to heal: compassion and community. It's a call to serve the ones who cannot repay, to forgive 70 times 7, to fling the door wide-open to the prodigal, and to remember the purpose of grace. A supportive community--family, friends, the church, and more--encourages and sustains long-term recovery. Through compassion, we bring hope for healing.

From the Back Cover

"If you or someone you love is caught in addiction or is in the process of recovery, this is a must-read book!"--Carol Kent, speaker and author of Staying Power

The United States is the most medicated country in the world. More than 1.7 million Americans are struggling with addiction to prescription painkillers, fueling the opioid crisis that claims more than 140 lives every day. The trouble isn't just the drugs--it's that we don't know what to do with the people addicted to them. Not as a country, not as the church, not as a community. The opioid crisis reaches into our homes and challenges everything we thought we knew about the roots of addiction and what it means to be in recovery.

Drawn from current research and the personal experience of the authors, The Heart of Recovery calls us to set aside judgment and to mend recovering addicts and their families with the stuff God uses to heal: compassion and community. It's a call to serve the ones who cannot repay, to continue to forgive, to fling the door wide open to the prodigal, and to remember the purpose of grace.

A supportive community--family, friends, the church, and more--encourages and sustains long-term recovery. Learn how, through deep compassion, we can bring hope for healing.


"As a recovering addict myself, I know that healing and restoration for the addict and everyone around them can seem impossible. Deb and Dave's life is a picture of the impossible becoming possible. They've turned their experience into a manual for what real compassion and grace look like in an addict's recovery."--Gary Morland, author of A Family Shaped by Grace


Deborah Beddoe has been a writer for numerous nonprofit recovery ministries, including rescue missions and Prison Fellowship. David Beddoe, now a pastor, has worked in recovery ministry for nearly a decade, following his own fifteen-year battle with prescription drug addiction. Their story has been featured in Guideposts and Christianity Today. The Beddoes have four grown and nearly grown children and live in the Pacific Northwest.

About the Author

Deborah Beddoe has been a writer for numerous nonprofit recovery ministries including rescue missions and Prison Fellowship. David Beddoe, now a pastor, has worked in recovery ministry for nearly a decade following his own fifteen-year battle with prescription drug addiction. Their story has been featured in Guideposts and Christianity Today. The Beddoes have four grown and nearly grown children and live in Poulsbo, Washington, across the Puget Sound from Seattle.