Grace in Recovery: A Biblical Walk through the 12 Steps (Pt. 2 Ep. 182)

Tune in for a tender but truth-telling journey into how God meets us right in the middle of addiction, trauma, and everyday mess—and slowly, patiently, makes us new. In this episode I talk with author, counselor, and cancer survivor David Zailer as we walk through all 12 steps, showing how they rise straight out of Scripture and how they become a practical path for real people who are hurting, angry, ashamed, and scared to hope again.​

This conversation is deeply personal. David shares how alcohol once felt like his only solution, the thing that quieted a lifetime of pain, and what it was like to have that “solution” stripped away, leaving a raw sadness and shame that nothing could numb anymore. He talks about learning, one shaky day at a time, that addiction is more than bad choices—it is neurological enslavement rooted in trauma and family history—and how honest community, recovery rooms, and the steps gave him language, tools, and companions to walk out of that bondage.​

Together, we move from Step One’s powerless confession to Step Twelve’s call to give it all away, weaving in Romans, James, the Gospels, and the Serenity Prayer. We sit in the hard questions: Why didn’t prayer alone “fix” it? What does it mean to let God define sanity? How do you face inventories, amends, and old anger without collapsing back into shame?​

Grace in Recovery is for anyone who has white-knuckled their way through church, treatment, or life and secretly wondered, “What’s wrong with me that I can’t get this right?” We offers a fiercely compassionate reminder that your addiction grew out of pain, not defectiveness—and that by walking the steps with Jesus and with others, you can learn to live sober, honest, and deeply loved, one surrendered day at a time.​

Learn more about David Zailer and check out his compelling books and curriculum here.