THE SLOW WORK
I used to think my drug of choice was pornography. Turns out my real addiction was speed — the desperate need to make bad feelings go away right now. Impatience, impulsiveness, a rock-bottom tolerance for discomfort: these weren’t side effects of my addiction, they were the engine of it.
Twenty-eight years into recovery, I’m still in remedial class on this one. Allie and I are older now, and aging and cancer have ways of putting a bullhorn to a lesson I thought I’d learned. Like it or not, there’s no hack for a body that heals on its own schedule and not one minute sooner, no matter how many YouTube videos I watch at 2 a.m. convinced I’ve found the one weird trick doctors don’t want you to know.
The same was true, on a much deeper level, for Allie’s healing from my betrayal. I wanted it finished. I wanted her to feel safe again by Tuesday. Every time I tried to hurry that process along — with the right words, the right gesture, the right grand romantic overture — I only slowed it down. Real trust doesn’t arrive faster because you knock on the door harder.
What recovery actually gave me wasn’t a cure for impatience. It gave me a practice: one day at a time, trusting that whatever I feel — dread, grief, even joy — will pass, and that healing that comes slowly is still healing. Some things simply cannot be rushed. Least of all, apparently, me.
— Nate Larkin
Hey guys,
I am getting amped up about our summit in October. I’ve had some great conversations with John Lynch, our main speaker, and he is putting some great effort into our time. John has always been so good at articulating how the gospel gives us the opportunity to discover a transformative identity in Christ. But at the summit this year we are going to tie that importance into the recovery walk and story work. In other words, we are going to be building bridges between what we believe in the pews and Bible studies and what we believe when guilt, shame, and condemnation come gnawing at our souls in the darkest hours of the night.
Basically, we’ve all got a narrative running in our heads about who we are and what we are worth. Those stories are generally rooted in and anchored to our past experiences. It may be in childhood experiences, wounds, betrayals, loneliness, perceived failure, or struggles with sin and utter failures. All of those voices are so loud, demanding our attention and capturing our identities. How we tie our faith into our recovery and community walks is not just important; it’s vital. That’s what we are going to be working through in Michigan this fall. I can’t wait.
If you haven’t signed up yet, the details are below. Do the planning team a solid and make your arrangements today so we know who all is coming and how to get ready for you. And remember, if you want to come a day early for some time with your brothers and a little heart preparation, that is available to you as well.
Hoping to get to hang with you all in the fall (yes, I know, it rhymed, and was awesome).
Aaron
COME TO THE SAMSON SUMMIT
What if you gave yourself a weekend to step away from the noise and remember what matters most?
The 2026 Samson Summit is October 23–25 at Faholo Conference Center in Grass Lake, Michigan. It’s a weekend of truth, grace, and brotherhood—a place to drop the masks, tell the truth, laugh with other men, and experience the freedom that comes from not having to do this alone.
This year, we’re honored to welcome John Lynch as our keynote speaker, along with teaching, small groups, conversations, walks, fun activities, and plenty of time gathered around the campfire. Come for the teaching. Come for the brotherhood. Come because sometimes you need to get out of your normal environment to see your story—and yourself—differently.
And if you can’t make it to Michigan, you can JOIN US VIRTUALLY for the Summit from wherever you are.
Come as you are. Bring the parts of your story you’ve learned to hide. See them through the lens of grace.
Register Today!
Want to help a brother attend? Click here to donate to our Summit scholarship fund!
NO BULL ABOUT THE MONEY
A few guys have told us recently that they’d like more transparency about Samson House finances. I think they’re right. Samson House exists to serve the Samson Society, and the guys who support this work deserve to know where the money comes from and where it goes.
So here are the numbers: Through September 2, Samson House has received about $212,000 and spent about $226,000. That puts us roughly $14,000 in the red for the year so far.
Our biggest expense is people: about $118,600 in salaries and wages, a little over half of everything we spent. After that, about $21,000 on the Harbor, $15,000 on office, technology and website costs, and $9,600 on travel.
Samson House also handles Sarah Society funds, and those run through our books on both sides. Counted as a whole program rather than a calendar year, that retreat is running about $13,700 short of its registrations.
As of August 31, we had about $56,000 in the bank. Of that sum, $35,000 is held in reserve to pay for the Summit and $21,000 to cover upcoming fees for the website and app. We also own the Harbor, carried on our books at $690,000 with about $343,000 remaining on the loan. It brought in $28,000 in rent this year.
There’s considerably more detail behind those numbers, and we’ve put it on the app for anybody who wants to look under the hood. But we’re also going to make this kind of report a regular feature. You shouldn’t need a finance degree — or an invitation to a board meeting — to have a reasonable idea of how Samson House is doing.
--Nate
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