Stories of Hope

““BEAR ONE ANOTHER’S BURDENS, AND SO FULFILL THE LAW OF CHRIST.” GALATIANS 6:2 My name is Amy, and I was born in Syracuse, New York, and at the age of 10, my mother moved us to Opelika, Alabama where I was raised. My father passed away from cirrhosis of the

“I lost everything I’d worked for…” From an early age, Johnny struggled to feel loved and accepted. His mother left when he was only 5 years old, and her absence created a hole in his life. “I missed my mom, and I couldn’t understand why she would leave,” he says.

“My name is James Williams, and this is my testimony.” I was eight years old when my mother and father went through a divorce. It broke our family up. My father was very abusive to my mother, so my mom ran with my siblings and me to keep us safe. There

“The rest of my life is not mine, it belongs to the Creator.” It’s a strange thing to not remember your childhood. To literally have less than a handful of memories from before your early teens. But that’s how it is for Alicia.  Her mother was in the army and

“I am not my past!” It’s a strange thing to not remember your childhood. To literally have less than a handful of memories from before your early teens. But that’s how it is for Alicia.  Her mother was in the army and would sometimes have to travel so she and

“I’ve learned to give it all to God.” “Like a lot of teenagers, I started using drugs when I was 14 just for fun!  At the time, my friends and I were just doing drugs to have a good time.  You know that’s how it starts a lot of times. 

“They helped me become a better man.” Because of his family’s history Rudy grew up thinking he’d eventually wind up in a gang and go to prison for gang activity.  His dad, who died before Rudy was born, and most of his uncles were all gang bangers so Rudy thought

I’m finally able to look at myself with the eyes of grace… Chaos and pain found Stephanie early in life when she was sexually abused by a close relative at the age of five.  The abuse went on for five years.  When she confided in her mother, she didn’t believe

Thank you for loving your neighbor, Steven, and giving him hope for the future! Steven was born into a world of chaos. “I’ve seen a lot of violence from an early age,” he says. “Fighting and using drugs and alcohol… In my family, it became a normal way of life.”

Megan is thankful for the grace everyone has extended her! We can all heal together! If you had asked me to describe my life eight months ago, I would have said something like, “My dad killed himself. My mother never recovered from her addictions. I was bounced between homes and