The Cup of Joe Show

More than Adequate: Garrett W.’s Sobriety, Service and Spiritual Awakening

Maybe I can hear one thing to help me not drink today.
Garrett W. grew up in a small cotton mill town in West Georgia with a stable family, loving parents, and every opportunity to succeed. Alcohol was normal in his world, but once he found it in college, it quickly became the solution to restlessness, discomfort, and belonging.
What followed was a slow progression through consequences, geographic moves, career success that masked inner turmoil, and a marriage that unraveled alongside his drinking and opioid use. From teaching Spanish and traveling the world to losing everything he worked for, Garrett shares how alcohol quietly took control of his life.
The turning point came after a relapse in treatment and a simple question from a roommate that led to a spiritual awakening on Father’s Day June 19, 2016. That day Garrett became willing to hear one thing that would help him not drink for just one day.
Today Garrett lives a life rooted in recovery, service, and spiritual growth. As a trusted member of his home group and current DCM, he shares how sponsorship, prayer, and community transformed his life from surviving to living with purpose.
This episode is for anyone who feels hopeless, lost and wondering if it is truly possible to change.
📌 If you or someone you love is struggling, call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline for 24/7 support.
🙏 Please like, share, and subscribe to The Cup of Joe Show so more people can hear stories of hope and transformation.
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

Jeff W. Gets in the Recovery Wheelbarrow

What does real trust look like in recovery? Not just believing it might work, but climbing in and letting it carry you forward
In this powerful episode of The Cup of Joe Show, Jeff W. shares his journey from a childhood shaped by anxiety and alcohol to a life grounded in trust, service, and sobriety. What began as a spiritual experience with drinking slowly turned into daily use, legal consequences, and a dangerous mix of substances that nearly cost him everything.
Jeff opens up about lowering his standards to match his behavior, searching for solutions in church, relationships, and geography, and eventually reaching a point of deep emotional darkness. The turning point came when he finally asked for help and trusted someone else to guide him through recovery.
Jeff explains the difference between hope and trust, and how getting in the wheelbarrow changed his life. Today, sobriety has allowed him to rebuild his relationship with his son, be present during his mother’s passing, serve others in recovery, and create a strong blended family with his wife Anna.
This episode is a reminder that recovery is not about certainty. It is about trust, community, and the courage to climb in even when the ground feels far below.
📌 If you or someone you love is struggling, call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline for 24/7 support.
🙏 Please like, share, and subscribe to The Cup of Joe Show so more people can hear stories of hope and transformation.
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

Terminally Unique: David T. Soldiers On to Peace and Purpose

He thought he was different. Turns out he was just sick and once he stopped drinking his life finally started.
David T. has been sober since July 2, 2018, but his road to recovery took him through isolation, secrecy, military discipline, and ultimately incarceration. A shy kid who felt like an outsider after moving to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, David discovered alcohol early and immediately remembered how it made him feel inside. By adulthood, drinking had become something he hid, something that followed him into marriage, the Army, and eventually into serious consequences.
Stationed in Alaska and later Fort Bliss, Texas, David’s drinking escalated without accountability. Rehab, seizures, divorce, homelessness, and a DUI on a military base followed. Faced with a choice to get sober and deploy or leave the military, David chose what alcohol demanded. It was not until extradition, jail time, and eventually serving a sentence in a New Mexico prison that the illusion finally broke.
David describes suffering from terminal uniqueness until recovery showed him, he was not alone. Through working a program and committing to service, especially bringing recovery into prisons, his life began to change. Today he is sober, married, a proud bonus dad, and grounded in a life filled with creativity, service, and purpose.
This is a raw and hopeful conversation about surrender, accountability, and what real freedom looks like.
🙏 Please like, share, and subscribe to The Cup of Joe Show.
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

The Power of Powerlessness: Scott S. on Letting Go

God didn’t wake up this morning and think He was me… so maybe I don’t need to wake up thinking I’m God.
Scott S. has been sober since April 16, 2012, but his journey to recovery was anything but straightforward. Growing up with low self-esteem, ADHD, and a household where drinking felt normal, Scott learned early that alcohol gave him something he didn’t have on his own. By his teens, blackouts and excess were already part of the picture, and as adulthood unfolded, pills, vodka, broken relationships, and a familiar pattern of self-destruction followed.
After returning to Knoxville, Tennessee, Scott’s drinking escalated until coworkers stepped in and encouraged him to seek help. Early sobriety found him spending long days at the Park 40 Clubhouse, learning how to live without alcohol and wrestle with the hardest part of recovery for him, fitting in without drinking.
What finally stuck was a simple but profound truth: he wasn’t in charge. Letting go, letting God, and embracing the power of powerlessness reshaped his life. In sobriety, Scott became a father again, remarried, rediscovered creativity through designing and fixing things, and learned that service doesn’t have to be complicated. Sometimes it looks like holding a door, returning a cart, or showing up for someone else.
This episode is an honest conversation about control, humility, slowing down, and finding meaning beyond the chaos.
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

Teaching Them How to Fish: Dave S. on Service and Emotional Sobriety

This is a powerful conversation about emotional sobriety, the healing power of service, and what happens when we finally become willing to learn who we are.
Dave S. has been sober since January 1, 1987, but his recovery journey didn’t begin with confidence or clarity. It began with loneliness, despair, and a deep belief that alcohol was the solution.
Growing up in Connecticut as the son of an alcoholic, Dave learned early how to stay busy so he wouldn’t have to feel. Bullied, isolated, and emotionally overwhelmed, his first drink as a teenager felt like relief. That sense of ease followed him into the Navy, marriage, and adulthood, but the loneliness never left. Jobs were lost, relationships unraveled, and eventually his first wife told him she didn’t want to be married to a drunk.
Dave’s turning point came in a bar, glass raised, when he looked up and said, “God, if this is all there is, I don’t want it anymore.” What followed was an awakening that sobriety alone wasn’t enough. He lacked emotional sobriety and the tools to live life on life’s terms.
His early recovery began in Al-Anon and Adult Children of Alcoholics meetings, until a “little old lady” lovingly told him he was in the wrong rooms. That nudge led Dave to Alcoholics Anonymous, where everything changed. He found a sponsor, a community, a future wife, and people who showed him how to grow up emotionally, not just stop drinking.
Service became the foundation of his sobriety. From making coffee to chairing meetings to co-chairing the New England Conference of Young People, Dave learned that service is not about status, but about involvement. Today, he serves as District Chair for Corrections, bringing hope into prisons and jails and helping people who feel forgotten find a way forward.
Dave remains teachable, grounded, and deeply committed to helping others learn how to live. As he puts it, recovery isn’t about giving fish, it’s about teaching people how to fish.
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

Fix, Manage, Control: Christina H.’s Path to Al-Anon

It’s ok to care for people as long as you continue to care for yourself.
Christina H. grew up loving the wide-open outdoors of Wyoming, always playing the role of the helper, the fixer, the one who held everything together. That instinct followed her into adulthood and eventually into a marriage affected by alcoholism, where love slowly turned into chaos, confusion, and an exhausting illusion of control.
In this deeply honest episode of The Cup of Joe Show, Christina shares how trying to fix her husband’s drinking by drinking alongside him only deepened the pain. Fertility struggles, unanswered prayers, and nights of waiting for someone who didn’t come home left her feeling broken and punished. Everything changed when a simple question cracked the door open: Has your life been affected by someone else’s drinking?
After scoring 100% on the Al-Anon questionnaire, Christina walked into her first meeting and found something she had been searching for her entire life: calm. With the help of a sponsor, the first three steps, and a higher power found in nature, she began learning how to let go without giving up, how to care without controlling, and how to choose peace over being right.
Christina talks openly about divorce, starting over, and the powerful tools that guide her recovery today: pausing before reacting, practicing H.A.L.T., using a God Box to let go, daily readings from Courage to Change, and the life-saving practice of connection through sponsorship and service.
Now married to her best friend, Pete M., and living a life grounded in honesty and spiritual growth, Christina shows what’s possible when we stop fixing others and start caring for ourselves.
This episode is for anyone who has loved an alcoholic, lost themselves trying to help, or wondered if peace was ever possible.
🙏 Please like, share, and subscribe to The Cup of Joe Show.
📌 Mentioned in this episode:
🔗 Has your life been affected by someone else’s drinking?Take the Al-Anon self-quiz for newcomers.
🔗 Illusion of Control: Pete M. Goes All-InThe Cup of Joe Show episode featuring Pete M.
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

Happy and Sober: Steven C. Cradles the Quiet Moments

Recovery isn’t for people who want it, or even need it, but for people who DO it.
After growing up in the chaos of Chicago—surrounded by addiction, abuse, and heartbreak—Steven C. learned to “cradle the quiet moments.” His father’s suicide when he was just ten years old left a wound that alcohol seemed to fill… at least for a while. By the time he joined the Navy at 17, self-destruction had become second nature.
For years, Steven drew lines in the sand—promises to stop drinking if—but each one was crossed. Even the birth of his first child couldn’t keep him sober. Fifteen years, countless relapses, and several geographics later, he hit bottom in Miami, broke and ready to end it all. Then came a divine moment: a halfway house, a man named Mike F., and a spark of hope that turned into a flame.
Today, more than a decade sober, Steven has rebuilt his life from the ground up. He’s married to the love of his life, reconciled with his children, and lives to serve others on the same journey. He’s proof that you can be happy and sober—and that recovery isn’t about wanting or needing it, but doing it.
🙏 Please like, share, and subscribe to The Cup of Joe Show so more people can hear stories of hope and transformation.
📌 Mentioned in this episode:
If you or someone you love is struggling, call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline for 24/7 support.
Easy Does It Men’s Retreat: easydoesitretreat.com
Soberfest, Lake Geneva: soberfest.org
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

Stay Willing: Robin G.’s Circle of Connection

You don’t know how sick you are until you start getting better.
Robin G., sober since June 17th, 2004, shares her powerful testament to survival, healing, and grace.
Robin grew up surrounded by instability, mental illness, and alcoholism. She spent her early years hiding secrets, full of fear, and living in fantasy. The moment she first drank, she felt like she could finally breathe. What followed was a long descent into addiction, including years of alcoholism, crack cocaine, mental hospitals, shelters, and homelessness. Her family feared she wouldn’t survive.
After one final relapse in May 2004, Robin hit a breaking point: “Either kill me or help me.” In rehab, a doctor finally addressed her untreated bipolar disorder, and for the first time, she began to heal. At 60 days sober, she got her first home since 1999, and her sponsor helped her take the Steps that would “put her hand in the hand of God.”
Through willingness, daily action, and the support of women in recovery, often reached by pay phones and burner phones, Robin rebuilt her life from the ground up. Her children eventually invited her to Knoxville, where she slowly repaired the relationships, which she once feared were lost forever.
Today, Robin speaks about service, spiritual growth, meditation, and the “language of the heart” that helped her go from isolated and afraid to deeply connected. Her story is raw, honest, and overflowing with the kind of grace that can only grow out of struggle.
This is an unforgettable journey from homelessness to hope, and a reminder that no one is too far gone for recovery.
🙏 Please like, share, and subscribe to The Cup of Joe Show.
📌 Helpful Resources:
National Mental Illness Helpline: 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or text “HelpLine” to 62640
👉 Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (Plum Village teachings)
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

Scott T. Recovers His Way Up to Servant

I took a drink, the drink took a drink, then the drink took the man.
When Scott T. looks in the mirror, he sees a man transformed, but the reflection wasn’t always so clear. Growing up south of Boston in the 1960s, he was raised in the chaos of alcoholism and violence. By thirteen, he was already in handcuffs, defiant and angry at the world. The pain of his childhood turned into a spring of rage and fear that alcohol temporarily eased, until it almost took his life.
Scott’s journey spiraled through addiction, crime, and a literal jump from a 196-foot bridge that left him clinically dead for 13 minutes. In another incident, Scott was sentenced to 22 years in prison. It was there that he met Eddie Miracle, who helped him understand that his real problem wasn’t alcohol, it was perception. After his release, he went all in for recovery and even became a circuit speaker.
But Ego crept back in. “We work the steps to get sober,” Scott says, “but we can also work them in reverse.” His spiritual life unraveled, insanity returned, and he relapsed. In 1996, overwhelmed by guilt and shame, he attempted suicide again, this time with a gun. Surviving the attempt, Scott was charged as an ex-felon with a firearm and, under California’s Three Strikes law, faced 25 years to life in prison.
Then another miracle came. His wife began a letter-writing campaign, gathering testimonies from across the world about the lives Scott had touched. On October 7, 1997, a judge pulled him out of prison, dropping two strikes against him. That moment of grace gave him a new lease on life and sobriety.
Scott surrendered, not in defeat, but in freedom. “Our ego has to deflate enough for us to experience a psychic change,” he says. “The entire program is designed for one purpose, not to take the first drink.”
Scott has since built a life filled with purpose and service. He’s been married for over 40 years, raised five children, and has nine grandchildren. He’s written seven cookbooks, set three world records for omelets, hosted a TV show, and spoken at the Vatican. But his greatest joy still comes from carrying the message into jails, rehabs, and recovery rooms, helping others find their way out of the cave.
As he says, “We come into the rooms a big shot, and we work our way up to servant, the highest honor in recovery.”
🙏 Please like, share, and subscribe to The Cup of Joe Show so more people can hear stories of hope and transformation.
📌 Mentioned in this episode:
If you or someone you love is struggling, call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline for 24/7 support.
Easy Does It Men’s Retreat: easydoesitretreat.com
🌟 For daily encouragement, visit Daily Ponderables — your source for inspiration 365 days a year.
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.

Joey E. Finds a Peaceful Place to Call Home

God wasn’t my last resort. He became my first option.
In this raw and redemptive episode of The Cup of Joe Show, Joey E. shares the remarkable story of how he went from chaos and addiction to peace and purpose. Growing up in Forrest City, Arkansas, with parents in active addiction, Joey and his identical twin brother learned early how to survive in instability. With no structure and a deep sense of inferiority, Joey sought escape through skateboarding, BMX, and eventually alcohol and meth.
By 21, prison had become a revolving door, each time swearing he’d never go back to using. But the disease always pulled him under. His addiction destroyed businesses, nearly cost him his marriage, and turned him into someone he no longer recognized.
The turning point came when, facing serious prison time, Joey entered rehab and reached out to his twin brother, now two years sober. “I feel like I’m going to die,” he told him. His brother’s response changed everything: “Ask God for help.” From that moment, Joey’s life began to shift. He found the willingness he’d never had before and discovered that “God is not my last resort; He is my first option.”
Through fellowship, sponsorship, and service, Joey rebuilt his life from the ground up. He made living amends to his wife and family through consistent action, not words. Today, he runs a thriving business alongside others in recovery, sponsors men in the program, and carries the message that “service is the only reason we stay here.”
Joey’s story is proof that no matter what you’ve been through—even childhood trauma or repeated relapse—healing and peace are possible. As he says, “You can’t tell people how recovery works; you have to show them.”
If you or someone you love is struggling, you’re not alone.💛 Help for child sexual abuse: childhelplineinternational.org📞 AA Helpline (Arkansas): 1-501-664-7303📞 NA Helpline: 1-800-951-6135
🙏 Explore daily inspiration at dailyponderables.com
The Cup of Joe Show explores the journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction—one story, one conversation, and one step at a time. New Episode Every Thursday at Noon.