Posted: 03/15/2025
I never thought I'd be the person writing a testimony about recovery. For years, I was convinced that methamphetamine was the only thing keeping me going. It started innocently enough—just trying to keep up with work demands, then using to cope with stress,...
I never thought I'd be the person writing a testimony about recovery. For years, I was convinced that methamphetamine was the only thing keeping me going. It started innocently enough—just trying to keep up with work demands, then using to cope with stress, and before I knew it, I couldn't function without it. My marriage fell apart, my kids stopped calling, and I lost three jobs in two years. By the time I hit thirty-five, I was living in my car, stealing from the people who still cared about me, and telling myself I had it under control.
The night I called Ascent Rehabilitation, I was sitting in a gas station parking lot at 2 AM with twenty dollars to my name and nowhere to go. I had burned every bridge, exhausted every favor, and was seriously considering whether life was worth living anymore. Something inside me—I now know it was the Holy Spirit—made me search for help one more time. When the person on the other end of the line at Ascent didn't judge me, didn't make me feel like the failure I thought I was, I broke down crying. They told me there was hope, that I wasn't beyond saving, and that God still had a plan for my life. I didn't believe them, but I was desperate enough to try.
The first few weeks at Ascent were the hardest of my life. Detox was brutal, and facing the reality of what I'd done to myself and my family without the numbness of drugs was overwhelming. But the staff at Ascent didn't give up on me. They prayed with me when I couldn't pray for myself. They sat with me during the dark nights when withdrawal made me want to run. They reminded me daily that I was worthy of redemption, even when I couldn't see it. The Bible studies weren't just religious routine—they were lifelines. Scriptures like Jeremiah 29:11 started to mean something real: God really did have plans to prosper me and not to harm me, plans to give me hope and a future.
What really changed everything was the community at Ascent. I wasn't just another case number or statistic. The other residents became like family, and we held each other accountable. The job training program gave me practical skills and, more importantly, gave me purpose again. When I got my first real paycheck in three years from the placement they helped me secure, I cried in the parking lot. Not because of the money, but because I finally felt human again.
Six months into the program, something miraculous happened—my daughter reached out. She'd heard through family that I was in treatment and actually trying this time. Our first conversation was awkward and painful, but it was a start. The counselors at Ascent helped me work through the guilt and shame, teaching me that while I couldn't change the past, I could commit to being different in the future. They helped me write letters of apology, taught me how to rebuild trust, and showed me what it meant to live with integrity.
Today, I've been clean for fourteen months. I have a full-time job in construction, I'm renting a small apartment, and I see my daughter every other weekend. It's not perfect, and some days are still hard, but I'm living proof that God can restore what the locusts have eaten. The Scripture in Joel 2:25 has become my personal promise. Every morning, I thank God for the people at Ascent Rehabilitation who saw value in me when I couldn't see it in myself.
If you're reading this and you're where I was—hopeless, addicted, and convinced it's too late—I'm here to tell you it's not. God hasn't given up on you, and neither will the people at Ascent. They gave me more than sobriety; they gave me my life back. They showed me that redemption isn't just a religious concept; it's a real, tangible experience available to anyone willing to reach out and accept help.
Rehab, Renewal, Redemption—those aren't just words on a slogan. They're the three stages of my miracle. And if God can do it for someone like me, He can do it for you too. Call Ascent. Take the first step. Your future is waiting, and it's brighter than you can imagine.
