Episode 1129: The Dangers of Breaking FellowshipEpisode 1129: The Dangers of Breaking Fellowship
Take 12 Recovery Radio
THE DANGERS OF BREAKING FELLOWSHIP. Have you ever gotten angry and walked out of your support gro...
1:07:24•7 Sept 2026
The Dangers of Breaking Fellowship in Recovery and Faith
Episode Overview
- Breaking fellowship rarely happens overnight; prayer, scripture reading, meetings, and relationships often fade one by one before someone fully pulls away.
- Isolation strengthens old thinking and temptation, while accountability in fellowship makes deception and self-justification harder to maintain.
- Healthy connection doesn’t mean staying in abusive or toxic groups; the key question is whether someone is leaving unhealthy people or abandoning fellowship entirely.
- Churches and recovery groups have a responsibility to notice absences, welcome newcomers, and build genuine relationships rather than staying in closed social circles.
- AA’s historical roots in passages like the sermon on the mount, James, and 1 Corinthians 13 challenge claims that it has no place alongside Christian faith.
“A man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with an opinion.”
What can we learn from those who have battled addiction? This round-table chat on Take 12 Recovery Radio takes a hard look at what happens when people walk away from their support systems—whether that's church, 12‑step meetings, or close-knit recovery groups.
Host Monty Dale Meyer (the Monty'man) sits with Roger McDermott, Pastor Rob Gary, and Monty’s wife, Marsha Diane Meyer, to talk honestly about “the dangers of breaking fellowship.” The tone is light and jokey at first—complete with quirky true-or-false icebreakers and plenty of banter—but the conversation soon shifts into serious territory about isolation, resentment, and spiritual drift.
Roger, who came through addiction into recovery, strongly challenges a church movement that claims Alcoholics Anonymous has “absolutely no place in the church.” He points out that the early AA founders read “the sermon on the mount, the book of James and 1 Corinthians 13” and insists, “The God of the Big Book is the God of the Bible, whether they like it or not.” Across the conversation, they keep circling back to the same recovery truth: isolation gives “stinking thinking” space to grow, while healthy fellowship brings accountability, encouragement, and growth.
Marsha shares how growing up as a pastor’s kid didn’t stop her from suddenly deciding one Sunday, “I don’t want to go to church,” and then staying away for a year and a half, only later realising she’d lost vital Christian fellowship. Pastor Rob talks about people who become “too hooked on the church and the system” instead of finding God Himself, yet warns that long-term isolation leads to “spiritual coldness” and drifting away.
If you’ve ever thought “I’m fine on my own” or quietly slipped away from meetings or church, this one may hit close to home. Are you stepping away from unhealthy people, or stepping away from fellowship altogether?
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