Witness Wednesday #99 PopWe Stories
Website where I found these witnesses: https://popwe.org/category/addiction-deliverance/
Katie: So it’s Sobriety Awareness Month, and I feel led to share a testimony. My drug of choice was methadone. I thought it was okay because it was prescribed. I got on it to get off opioids but ended up being on it for almost 6 years. So me, and my mother were in addiction together. A very toxic relationship. When the methadone got too expensive, she turned me to meth. I lost everything within two months…
On December 31, 2020, me and my mom were going through withdrawals pretty bad so she begged me to find something. I ended up getting some and split it with her and the last words I remember her saying was, “if this doesn’t help I’m going to sleep.” Two days later, I called 911 and they rushed her to the hospital and I had to make the hardest decision I ever made. I called and told my sister about my addiction and begged her to take my daughter so she would be happy and safe and I could get help. The hardest thing in my life was watching my baby girl get in that car with all her toys and clothes and drive away.
Fast forward to January 4, 2021. I was put in St. Bernard’s Behavioral Health and found out over the phone that my mom was on life support and wasn’t gonna make it. I would have to sign to remove care. The dope had cut the oxygen off to her brain. I was taken to see her. She had wires in her head, her hand was cold and stiff, her feet were purple and molded. I couldn’t stay 15 minutes with her. As soon as I got back to SBBH, they faxed me a paper to sign and on January 6, 2021 they removed care. She took one breath and died. Two days later I went to Restoration House Ministries and not only got sober but encountered God and I’ve never been the same. September 17th I’ll be 17 months clean from the bondage I thought I could never escape. This is so hard for me to share but I pray it opens someone’s eyes. I handed my mom her death sentence just for one more high. It ain’t worth it. The guilt, shame, self hatred you feel ain’t worth it. We do recover and it’s through Jesus.
“We do recover and it's through Jesus.”
Christopher: I was blessed to see you in Beaumont, Texas recently. I live in a town called Lumberton and my youngest daughter was my plus one that night. We got to be part of the blue couch and the meet and greet. The thing is, it never should have happened because I honestly shouldn’t be alive today.
For 37 years, I had a severe alcohol problem. I was drinking no less than 2 fifths of vodka a day. I sit here and cry because I can’t remember most of the childhood days of my kids. I have 3 daughters and one son that are all grown today. I got to the point that I could drink what is called Everclear (95% alcohol) straight from the bottle. Only by God’s grace I don’t have any issues or side effects today.
The day He turned me around, I had flown into New Orleans, Louisiana for work and landed around 11:00 AM. I bought a bottle of vodka in the airport and finished it before I had walked the 200 feet to the rental car location. At the rental car outlet they told me all they had left for me was a Dodge Challenger called a Hellcat, so I took it. Now here I am in a ridiculously fast car, drunk, and headed for a bad day. I was on the interstate and decided to see how fast this car was. I was driving in excess of 140 MPH and I lost control of the car. It went into a spin. After it came to a stop, I crawled out of the car without a scratch and a voice in my head said, “how much more proof do you need that I have plans for you?”
After that I called my wife and poured everything out to her. I was an alcoholic when we got married, so my wife and kids had never seen me sober. Now, today (4 years later) I have 3 beautiful daughters, 2 grandchildren and a son who is an amazing man and a decorated US Marine. I am an ordained minister and I love nothing more than talking to people about my life. If God could take a wasted case like me and do what He has done, there is nothing we can’t overcome with Him.
At your recent concert in Beaumont, Texas during the blue couch session I asked you to sing “Broken Things” and you did. You have no idea what that meant to me and my daughter that night. So much of your music centers around how God takes the broken and makes something amazing and you are such an inspiration to me. Sure, I have tough days and it would be so easy to slip back into those old ways, but then I remember my God uses broken things!
“God takes the broken and makes something amazing.”
Adrienne: In 2014, I began praying to God to remove these addictions from me. My life was a mess and all I cared about was my cigarettes and alcohol. God led me to the right resources, and I did manage to quit smoking and drinking (although not at the same time and I experienced some slips.)
In 2018, with the help of God and a stop smoking community, I gave up cigarettes for good. Then on June 23rd, 2020, God helped me once again and both my husband and I stopped drinking. The freedom and joy I feel from having both of these substances out of my life is amazing and like nothing I’ve ever known. The “buzz” I get now from a life well lived is so much better than any buzz I received from cigarettes or alcohol. I am so incredibly grateful to be free of those chains. If you are struggling with overcoming an addiction, my advice to you is don’t give up on yourself and trust God. You may not break free immediately but with patience, perseverance and the love and help of our Savior, you can overcome even the toughest addiction.
With God, ALL things are possible!
Cindy: I was molested as a young child. My way of coping was to self harm, which became an addiction for me. If I was stressed, anxious, sad, or mad I would hurt myself. The self harming behaviors escalated to cutting and burning myself. It was something I could control. I decided how often I cut, how deep the cut would be, and how many marks I would make. I believed that my control was stolen from me as a child and this was my way of taking control back. What I needed was to give that control over to God.
In 2012, I finally gave God control and surrendered my addiction to Him. I had given my life to Christ as a child, but I finally realized He never intended for me to carry that load all by myself. He didn’t need my scars, I needed His.
I am so thankful that God placed people in my life who supported me through that difficult time period of healing, but mental illness is still somewhat of a taboo subject. We aren’t supposed to show signs of weakness. I’m here today to share His-story for me. I am only here because of God’s mercy and grace. I tried multiple times to end my life, but today I try to offer hope to those who are struggling with self harm, depression, and mental illness. I want to share how great our God is. He can take a misfit like me and use my story to show He can take a mess and turn it into a message. My story isn’t over, it’s only the beginning.
“He can take a mess and turn it into a message.”
