What does 'Adullam' mean?
The name 'Adullam' comes from the story of David (1 Samuel 22 and various psalms). Before becoming king, David was forced to run from people who wanted to kill him, and ended up in hiding in the cave of Adullam. Whilst there, people flocked to him for help, and David was changed from someone who was defeated into a great leader. Although the cave was a pretty unpleasant place to be, God worked in David whilst he was there, and he returned to Israel a changed man.
Adullam is Hebrew for "refuge".
Knowing that all scripture is God-breathed and useful to us (2 Timothy 3v16) I believe that we can translate David's story into our culture and learn from it. I think we all have 'Adullam experiences' in our lives, where a seemingly impossible circumstance turns out to be the thing that God uses to transform us.
Self-harm is one of these circumstances. Being caught up in a cycle of self-abuse is a dark and often unbearable place to be, and yet God uses these experiences in our lives to mould us into the character he wants us to be.
We also need to remember that God is as close to us when we are in our caves as when we feel full of life and vision, even if things aren't happening like we thought they would and it feels as if God isn't keeping his promises.
I think the Adullam experience in David's life gives us hope that God works through all things, and this is why we chose to name our organisation after it.