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 A Family Reconciled
through Hope
As a child, John had suffered constant abuse and humiliation from cruel classmates. Over time, he learned to shut himself away, seldom revealing his true feelings even to his wife and children. Now, the counselors at Hope Ministries were asking him to open up and talk.
“In mid-January, I asked John about his lingering sadness,” Rev. Fred Lehman remembers. “He said, ‘I was married. I have a family and I walked out on them. I’m so ashamed and I think about them constantly.’”
Breathing hard, John continued to talk about how much he missed his family, now estranged for six years. “I told Pastor Fred about wanting to reconcile with them,” he notes. The counseling session closed as Fred prayed for reconciliation for John and his family.
Two hours later, John returned to Fred’s office and, says Fred, “His smile was bigger than his face!”
“I just talked to my children and they said, ‘We love you, Dad. Come home,’” John beamed. Still, the call bore bad news — John’s ex-wife, the mother of his children, had died.
Hope Ministries paid for bus fare so John could attend the funeral in Springfield, Mo., and reunite with his four children. While there, he learned their mother had given her heart to Christ just before her death.
Though his children wanted John to remain in Springfield, he knew he needed to complete the STAR program at Hope Ministries first. “This program is what I’ve always needed,” John shares. “I’ve always been codependent, relying on others for shelter and comfort. Now I’m learning to set boundaries instead of letting people walk all over me. I’m becoming self-sufficient.”
In May, John plans to graduate from the STAR program and move to Missouri. “I’ll get a job and be the father I haven’t been,” he says with determination. Fred Lehman anticipates that day, too! “John now has substance to his hope,” he says.
John has left behind years of shame, chemical abuse and estrangement from family. “He has replaced them with reconciliation, hope and a future filled with promise,” Pastor Fred concludes.
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