Jan D Thomas

Born at the edge of an open-pit copper mine in NewMexico, Jan Thomas comes from a background ofworking-class people, cultural Christians, but notcommitted believers. Growing up, he had influencesand experiences causing doubts about himself and hisability to become more than his environment wouldhave predicted. Influenced by teachers, Air Forcebuddies, and others, he began to trust God to do in him what he could not dofor himself. As a youngster he thought he had no academic ability, but got...See more

Born at the edge of an open-pit copper mine in NewMexico, Jan Thomas comes from a background ofworking-class people, cultural Christians, but notcommitted believers. Growing up, he had influencesand experiences causing doubts about himself and hisability to become more than his environment wouldhave predicted. Influenced by teachers, Air Forcebuddies, and others, he began to trust God to do in him what he could not dofor himself. As a youngster he thought he had no academic ability, but got BAand MDiv degrees. As a pastor he felt like a failure and began a career workingin prisons. Struggling with life, he continued to try to serve. He married Fern, awidow with two children, and they had another child together. He became anadministrator after only a few years; but his codependent nature, the desire to fitin, and to be liked at any cost nearly cost him his life. An old alcohol issue cameback, at a time he was involved in two of the most amazing ministries of the twenty-first century, Celebrate Recovery and Kairos. Retiring in 1997, he began using CR in the prison he retired from. He was asked to help get the program into jails and prisons and became the first national director of Celebrate Recovery Inside. Celebrate Recovery Inside stretches across the United States and Canada as well as in many nations elsewhere. His own struggles have helped him become dedicated to the purpose God intended for him from the beginning. His ministry was not as a pastor but to those, like him, who struggled with life's issues. When he stopped teaching and started the healing process for himself, God helped him to stop blundering and begin to see more of God's blessing. He also used material from a course he taught at the New Mexico Corrections Academy to develop a curriculum for Christian communication to be used in the program called: Howto Say What You Mean: Without Being Mean. His life has been one of service to people who struggle and find real help and meaning from a relationship with Jesus Christ. His autobiography is called: From Blunder to Blessing. See less