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December 2004 – Jesus came to heal the broken-hearted, to set us free, and a community of support groups called The Refuge aims to provide a safe place where the broken can experience the healing power of grace and truth. “We have to be the safest place on earth because that is what the church was always intended to be,” said Associate Pastor of Support Ministries Ann Markovich. The Refuge community meets on Thursday nights for dinner, worship, and testimonies before dividing into small groups.
 Healing is approached differently as Care Group leaders encourage members to move from care to community by dividing the small groups into three phases: issue-specific groups, crisis support groups, and growth and healing groups. “We want them to be able to step out of recovery and not just sit in the same group,” said Markovich. “Our hope is for everybody that goes through The Refuge to eventually end up in a Covenant Group.”
“It’s neat to see people come in during dinner and sit down with people from other groups,” said Markovich. Various wounds, struggles, and behavioral patterns mark our lives, but as believers in Christ our true identity is that we are new creations in Christ. “It doesn’t matter what your issue is,” she said. “We are all loved by God, children of God, and forgiven and freed from every bondage because the Holy Spirit lives within us.” The Refuge community has Jesus Christ in common, and that is really all that matters.
Many have overcome their struggles at The Refuge. “I’ve seen life after life change,” said Markovich who told the story of a man who attended The Refuge because he was struggling with homosexuality, pornography, and his relationship with Christ. “He joined a year and a half ago and has found victory from his struggles,” she said, and he is currently training to become a counselor.
“We believe that in the Bible there is no ‘hierarchy of sins’ in which certain struggles are inherently more evil than others and therefore more shameful,” said Markovich. Jesus in his grace forgives and accepts people regardless of what they have done, and The Refuge community believes that we are called to do the same. “We are the hospital for all people no matter what your sin,” she said and added, “We are the MASH unit.”
However, adults are not the only ones who need healing. Divorce Group For Kids is a place for children dealing with their parents’ separation, and Just Me and The Kids is a group for both parents and children to experience support and encouragement as a single-parent family. “The kids love coming to both groups,” said Markovich.
 Another group, Discovery in Christ, deals with drug and alcohol addictions. A few weeks ago a forty-nine-year-old man met a God he had never known before. He started drinking at age thirteen, and although he accepted the Lord at age twenty-seven, he never truly felt free from that lifestyle until he came to The Refuge.
Even those struggling from unemployment can find support at The Refuge in a group called Work For People [this group no longer meets]. Christopher Stewart works with the State of Minnesota and helps the group members find jobs. “He is awesome! He can find a job for anybody,” said Markovich. Currently, Stewart is pooling resources. He has a passion for African American men coming out of prison, as hardly any programs exist to help them. “He is an African American man himself, and he says that with a church as big as Woodland Hills we should be able to find some contacts,” said Markovich.
 In addition to unconditional acceptance and support, broken people must be challenged to actively break old patterns. with this in mind, members sign relationship covenants expressing their cooperation with God throughout the healing process.
The Refuge has grown tremendously since the 2002 Fall kick-off. “We’ve been adding 3-5 groups every year,” said Markovich, who came on board almost three years ago. Now there are thirteen different support groups with two leaders each. “We need leaders for non-specific transition groups whose members are done with their issue part of the process,” said Markovich, and volunteers are needed to help with set-up and cleaning.
If you are interested in joining a small group or would like to volunteer your help, please contact Mary at 651-287-2702.
article by Mary McKeague
email her at mckmart@bethel.edu
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