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Tony
Tony was born at the Dover, Delaware Air Force Base. He lived in England for three years, then San Antonio for six years. He entered our STAR program in July 2008 and in his words, this was his life before coming to Hope Ministries:
“My life before cocaine: nice place, cars, clothes, full-time job. But I had a drug problem. I had been married, but drugs kicked it. July 4, 2008, I was in Salisbury, Maryland, under a bridge, smoking crack, and here came Celeste. She was looking for another guy, but came up to me. I was real toasted.” [Celeste Savage of Salisbury, Maryland, along with others in her area with a heart for the homeless, has spent the past years establishing a ministry for the homeless and hungry in Salisbury using Hope Ministries as a model. Prior to getting the Salisbury program off the ground, Celeste routinely made it possible for men in Salisbury to come to Hope Ministries for help. Tony is one of those men.]
Here are Tony’s thoughts from throughout his months in our program:
July '08: I was scared to pick up a Bible because I didn’t understand it. But Pastor Bill [Bill Primrose, case manager at our Bethel Mission facility] explained it so well. This is the first time I’ve ever opened a Bible.
August '08: I’m leaning toward being a Christian 100%.
September '08: God is the one I love the most.
October '08: I’ve learned to be at peace. I can feel things moving in me.
December '08: I wish my grandmother had seen this side of me. I wish she could have seen this. I see change in myself. I’m going to live my life for Jesus. I’m going to build a strong support group around myself. I want to be a productive part of society. I was an unbeliever once in my life, but I want people to know there is a better future if you put Christ first!
Tony is employed at a local events center and is moving into his own apartment, the same building as another STAR graduate. He attends Vineyard Church.
Brad
Brad grew up in Phoenix, Arizona and entered our STAR program in October 2008. These were his thoughts upon entering our program:
“I’ve been living like a nut for most of my life. I began drinking alcohol at 15, doing pot at 17 and meth at 18. Now I’ve been homeless for two years. I can dedicate one year of my life to do the right thing.”
And here are his thoughts from throughout his months in our recovery program:
October '08: Continuing strong relationship with Rock Power Church. I’ve started tithing. I really miss my children in Utah. I lost them due to my alcohol abuse. I was selfish. I didn’t care about my kids...but now I love them.
November '08: Happiness gives me energy. I can hardly contain it. Worried that some family still may hold things against me, but I have a lot more peace.
December '08: I talked with both of my sons and my daughter by phone!
March '09: I’m more at ease. Everything is better with my family, kids, even my ex-wife. My family has been more receptive than I believed I could expect. My children are back in my life. They are my motivation. A month ago I wasn’t going to stay to the end of the program, but now I am.
Brad is enrolling in school this fall and currently works as a painter. He attends Rock Power Church and will soon be moving to his own apartment.
Johnnie
Johnnie was born in England and has dual citizenship. His father was in the Air Force and his parents are both Christians. Like Brad, Johnnie came to Hope Ministries from Maryland. He is married to his wife Angelique, whom he met at a Christian camp, and during the weeks leading up to his graduation from our program, he counted the seconds to his flight home.
Before coming to Hope Ministries, Johnnie says his Christian life was merely a show for others. Johnnie drank to forget things he had done. His life took a downward spiral one evening when he was high on drugs and arrested: “I always thought I was a failure, and I was always looking for failure.” But while reaching out for help, something in Johnnie began to change. This is what he wrote on his third day at our Bethel Mission facility: “I’m here to get back on track with my walk with God, to learn the Bible and to never return to drugs and alcohol. I want to learn new ways to say ‘no.’ I want to better my marriage and reconnect with my family…mostly God. I DESPERATELY NEED YOUR HELP.”
And here’s what he wrote throughout his months at Hope Ministries:
March '09: Wife flew in...“You’ve changed. I feel secure around you.” Monday she packed up, we ate sandwiches, her plane left. It was extremely hard to say goodbye.
April '09: I have a good feeling about my future. It won’t be on the street but a Godly father in my home. My sister-in-law has stopped drinking. My dad has backed off from drinking. My brother has rededicated himself to the Lord. I never knew how my life was affecting my family before because I was always worried about me.
May '09: Angelique is going to church with my parents. She is going to women’s Celebrate Recovery. I’m getting better every day. Now I’m asking God what he wants as opposed to me telling Him what I want.
Johnnie is moving back home to Maryland to be reunited with his wife and will work full-time as an electrician.
We celebrated recently with two men who graduated from our Journey of Hope recovery
program at our Door of Faith facility. Please join us in prayer for David and Jeff! Their stories
are below...
David
David is 47 years old. He graduated from Ballard Community High School in 1981 and spend four and a half years in the Navy, repairing and operating radio and electronic systems on submarines.
Later, David worked alongside his father at a honey bee operation.
David’s family includes a legacy of faith. His grandmother ran a Christian orphanage in Mexico, and as a boy, he went to church, sitting in the front row, singing his heart out.
David has returned to the front row!
But not before years of struggle. David began using drugs and alcohol as a teenager. He eventually moved to meth, which he used for 22 years.
In February 2009, he came to our Bethel Mission. “I have decided to try to start living my life,” he said. “I want to do an about-face and bring Jesus back into my life. I want to get a job, start living as a part of society. I want to become a responsible human being. I want your help, because I don’t know how to do it on my own.”
When David entered the first phase of our recovery program, he had this to say: “I have found my way back to Jesus. I want to take the next step to stay on this path.” He began attending a local church and completed the first phase of recovery.
In December of 2009, David entered our STAR recovery program at the Door of Faith. And that same month, he went home for Christmas. “It’s the first time I’ve been clean for Christmas in 25 years. I didn’t go anywhere on New Year’s Eve. I stayed, and had a good night.”
He acknowledged that recovery isn’t easy: “I want everything now. I don’t want to do the work. I want the shortcut, the easy way.” But he didn’t take an easy out – he stayed, took the hard way, the right way. He remained faithful. He wrote one day, “I was offered drugs this week, but I refused. I lost $100, but I didn’t get mad. I stayed calm.”
Today, David is 19 months sober! He has been reunited with his son – he’d like to see him more than what he does, but is grateful for every moment he gets to spend with him. He recently moved into a rental house he is sharing with fellow recovery graduate Jeff!
Jeff
Jeff is 40 years old. He was born the day after Christmas in 1969, and graduated from SE Polk in 1988. Then he spent four years in the Navy.
Jeff entered the first phase in our recovery program in May of 2009, then moved to our Door of Faith facility.
“I was so mean, so selfish,” he said one day. “But since coming here, my family – including my kids – call me daily. They never have before. They want to be in my life!”
Jeff spent last Christmas with his children. “I blame myself for any troubles my kids have. I want to help them. I want to by like my aunt who lives her life with God every day.”
Jeff’s old troubles with anger have slipped away. “I used to be angry three times a day, but now I let it pass. Working in my dad’s garage, my mom thought we would be fighting but we were laughing and joking!”
During his time in our program, Jeff gave his testimony to a Celebrate Recovery group in Indianola. He has a driver’s license and a vehicle. “I’ve been reading my Bible a lot more. For 25 years, nothing worked. This is the only thing that has. Now I have something to say. I have friends, I’m no longer a loner. I long for more of this in my life.”
In April, he celebrated his parents 39th anniversary with them. “My father said, ‘Jeff, I want you to know that I’m proud of you.’ What do you mean? I asked. ‘You’re not drinking, drugging, gaining weight…You know you can come home. You always have a place here.”
Back when Jeff was first considering entering our recovery program, he said he wasn’t sure he was ready for the program. But the day before he graduated this is what he had to say: “This program gave me a lot of guidance in life. I now have unstoppable goals.”
Today Jeff is working full-time, and he moved into a rental house with fellow graduate David!
From left: Fred Lehman, case manager; recovery graduate David, recovery graduate Jeff; case manager Bart Logan. Congrats to David and Jeff!
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