“Now, I’m a disciple of Christ.”
Matthew grew up in a loving, Christian home and taught Sunday school for 18 years, sharing his faith with others. But he felt like a fraud. “I was wearing a mask. I said that I had my priorities right – Jesus, then family, then church – but I didn’t live that way,” he says. “I never put God first and I didn’t love my wife well.”
Instead, his work as a pipefitter became his number one priority. “I worked seven days a week, 12 hours a day and my wife and I grew apart, but I was in denial.”
After nearly 30 years, Matthew’s marriage finally ended and his world came crashing down around him. “It ripped my heart out,” he says. “I fell into a deep depression and wound up living in the woods, isolated, wallowing in shame, bitterness, and resentment.”
Thankfully, his brother found him and brought him to their sister’s home. Then she referred him to the Mission. “When I came in the doors, I didn’t trust anyone, but they started loving me right where I was and it made me feel safe.”
Matthew entered our Life-Recovery Program, where chapel services, Bible studies, and Christ-centered classes helped him put God first in his life and heal from his trauma. “Now, I’m a disciple of Christ,” he says. “And I don’t live in shame anymore. I’ve learned how to love myself and let go of my bitterness and resentment.”
“God is doing a mighty work here.”
Matthew is a Resident Manager now, ministering to other men in our program. And after he goes back to work and is settled in a place of his own, he plans to share God’s love wherever he goes. “I want to be a warrior for Christ, reaching lost souls.”
Matthew now has strength for his future because of your heart of compassion for him and other neighbors in need. Because you chose to share God’s love, he has a path forward in life. “Now, I’m letting God direct my steps.”
Click here to download the June 2024 issue of The Mission Bell..
