Alpha, heavenly Papa, no whisky

Elim member Peter Lindahl says he’s no longer an old soak after turning to God left him happier than he ever could have imagined.

A 99p Christian paperback helped rescue Peter Lindahl from alcoholism after a desperate prayer brought his overwhelming craving for drink to an abrupt end.

Twenty-four years later, Peter says the desire has never returned.

Peter’s remarkable story resurfaced when he spotted So What Next? featured as Book of the Month in Direction’s June edition.

For a moment, he thought the book that had transformed his life was back in print.

It was an understandable mistake.

The book that helped Peter was Tom Bathgate’s So What’s Next? – a similarly titled guide for young people beginning their Christian journey.

But the confusion revived powerful memories of the day in 2002 when a prayer printed in Bathgate’s book became Peter’s lifeline.

“At the age of 55, I became a born-again Christian after attending an Alpha course,” he explains.

Although Peter regarded himself as a Christian, he had not attended a Sunday church service for more than 40 years and admits he knew very little about Christianity.

Alpha changed that.

“The course completely changed my mind about Christianity,” he says.

“I discovered that there is meaning to life, and it is found in a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.”

As Peter’s faith grew, so did an uncomfortable awareness that he could no longer ignore his dependence on alcohol.

By his sixth weekly Alpha meeting, he felt compelled to admit to the group that he had a serious drink problem.

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