My name is Adam and I’m on the cusp of transformation. This story is not unique. I didn’t have the most ideal childhood. There weren’t any rose lined picket fences. By the time I reached high school, I had moved 14 times. The constant state of transition caused me to internalize my fears and resentments. And eventually, alcohol became my release. Drinking left me exempt from the burden of becoming a real man.
One night while I was wildly intoxicated, staying in a seedy hotel, I received a message from my cousin. By the grace of God, she struck the perfect balance between being gentle, yet firm enough to give me a sense of urgency about the true spiritual crisis that I was in. (I had been an atheist for about fifteen years.) Three or four days later I was brought to my knees on a filthy liquor stained carpet admitting to Jesus Christ that I was a broken sinner and that I wanted to give myself over to Him.
I turned myself in for a bench warrant and after spending nine days locked up in a county jail, sobering up, I was released. This is when I had a friend drop me off at The Rescue Mission.
What I found at Restoration House was exactly what I needed to begin the process of healing. A professional and kind-spirited staff who didn’t want to baby me, enable me or allow me to continue feeling the self-loathing that I’d experienced for my entire life. But rather, they quietly encouraged me and nurtured me. They taught me, through example, what it is to be a real man and what it is to walk with dignity.
The Mission allowed me to die to my old ways, be made new and be rebirthed into a life where I live sober. It has given me the spiritual pair of glasses that I desperately needed to be able to see that I am loved. I am important. I have potential and I am capable of realizing that potential.
This might all sound very romantic however, there’s still no picket fence in my front yard. I still struggle. I still have many days where I want to give in to my old self. My life is still a financial wreck and I don’t know quite how to fix it. But I do know how to see the step in front of me and I know when I take that step, the next step will reveal itself.
To donors I say thank you. Your money goes to a good cause. I’m not just a number. There are a lot of faces… real people, that you help.
Adam was recently baptized! Today, he has a full time job, and is saving for an apartment. He continues to go to recovery meetings, and walk with the Lord… one step at a time.
The name and photo have been changed for for privacy considerations.