FROM PULPIT TO PRESENCE
A Memoir of Losing Faith, Finding Recovery, and Learning How to Stay
by Don Phelps
Now Available
From Pulpit to Presence is a
memoir about addiction, loss of faith,
and rebuilding a life grounded in
mindfulness and presence.
It speaks to anyone
navigating recovery, uncertainty,
and the challenge of
learning how to stay.
What Early Readers Are Saying
As a social worker, this is one I would recommend to clients. There is something here for anyone exploring faith, struggling with substance use, or trying to live more honestly.
— Jordan R.
This isn’t just another addiction memoir. It’s a gut-wrenching look at alcohol use disorder interwoven with an existential crisis of faith. I highly recommend it inside and outside of the recovery community.
— JC
Raw, honest, and zero BS. Don doesn’t preach at you, he walks you straight through the wreckage and into something real. This isn’t a recovery story with easy answers… it’s one that actually tells the truth.
— Rob K.
A courageous and heartfelt memoir of real-world struggle and inner turmoil on the way toward healing and inner peace. What stood out most was how mindfulness shows up in everyday situations we can all relate to.
— Lisa W.
A Moment in From Pulpit to Presence
My first thought wasn’t about myself.
It was about my son.
I scrambled up, heart pounding, calling his name into the chaos.
“Dad, I’m over here! I’m all right!”
Only then did my body release the breath it had been holding.
Firefighters rushed toward me asking if I was injured. I brushed off the dust and insisted I was fine. Those two words — I’m fine — had become the quiet refrain of my life. The rallying cry of someone who didn’t yet know how to admit fear, confusion, or pain.
What took me longer to understand was that the explosion that threw me backward wasn’t the only backdraft building in my life.
Another had been quietly gathering pressure for years.
If I’m honest, the fire didn’t break me.
It revealed the breaking that was already underway.
From Pulpit to Presence is a memoir about addiction, identity, and the difficult work of beginning again.
