A father to the fatherless,
defender of widows,
is God in His holy dwelling.
-Psalm 68:5 NIV
In 1998, my life hit rock bottom.
An active member of a criminal organization, a drunk, a drug dealer, and an addict, I was a general menace to society.
I was arrested for a major crime and it looked like I would be spending the next seven years in prison. God's grace was with me even when I didn't believe in His Son. Since I had gone to seek help through the Addictions Foundation and Alcoholics Anonymous, the judge gave me a three-year conditional sentence to be served in the community.
For the next two years, I had periods of sobriety but I knew something was missing from my life. That something was faith in Jesus Christ.
As part of my sentence, I became a resident at Forward House, a Christian transitional home for men such as myself.
A grain of truth was planted when my girlfriend at the time went to the first ALPHA course offered through the Crisis Pregnancy Center of Winnipeg (CPC). She would come home and talk about the videos and awesome food. I wanted no part of it. But God used those small interactions to plant a seed that finally bloomed.
In December 2000, I gave my life to Christ. Since then I have been clean and sober. I've even quit smoking.
The first year of my Christian life was a mixture of Christian and secular lifestyles. I didn't know where one started and the other ended. Honestly, I was very rebellious against God and was unwilling to give up certain things. As a result of my rebellion, my girlfriend became pregnant.
Eventually, I started counseling sessions at the Crisis Pregnancy Center because of my own problems. My counselor and I did healing prayer sessions, which helped me immensely. They are a major reason for my growth as a Christian.
Because of my lifestyle before I became a Christian, the enemy didn't like that I had switched sides. I was under a great deal of spiritual attacks. My counselor was the one who told me that I could expel the attacks in Jesus' name. He told me the enemy would have no choice but to flee. That was one of the biggest lessons I received in my young Christian life.
A few months after these counseling sessions, my girlfriend and I began having real problems. We began to see a counselor together. This is how I met Sandy, a counselor at the CPC.
Unfortunately, the counseling with my girlfriend didn't work out. I continued to see the CPC counselor on a one-to-one basis. Through our sessions I grew spiritually and dealt with some of the internal issues that were brought out in the counseling sessions I took with my girlfriend.
I was led to believe that I would not be a part of the life of the baby my now ex-girlfriend was carrying. At 2:30 on a Sunday morning, I was tormenting myself with the circumstances of the pregnancy and my current situation. Suddenly, I thought I heard a voice say "let go and pray continually." I remember thinking, "I did too many chemicals when I was doing drugs and I must be imagining this." Then I heard the same voice call my name. I knew this was from God. Shortly after this, I began some grief counseling with Sandy, my counselor, and privately prayed for the baby. I asked God that if it was His will that I was not in the baby's life that He would send a godly man into his life to teach him the ways of the Lord.
At the time, I had little understanding of either the scope of my request or the magnitude of Gods power to answer prayer.
On March 22, 2002, while getting ready for school, I received a phone call from my ex-girlfriend. She told me that she was going to give the baby up because she felt unable to care for him the way he deserved to be taken care of. She asked if I wanted to take him. I said I would, yet I didn't have the slightest idea how I could. This was the start of convincing certain government agencies that I was able to care for a newborn and raise him on my own.
Men do not normally take newborns home from the hospital alone. On this emotional day, I phoned the CPC. I was in a state of shock. First the counselor calmed me down and reassured me that I could do this. After discussing this with the counselor, I felt supported and encouraged. After all, this was a huge deal for me because I was getting a lot of negative feedback from various government agencies that were involved in the decision-making process to determine whether or not I was going to get my son.
I also talked to Sandy that day and she encouraged and helped me view the situation calmly. The staff and volunteers at the CPC have become part of my family because they do the things families are supposed to do for each other when unexpected curves come on the path of life. They simply loved and supported me!
On March 25, I received the phone call informing me that I was going to be allowed to bring my son home from the hospital after he was born. Later that day, I learned that my ex-girlfriend was in labor.
On March 26, 2002, my son Eli was born and on March 28, I brought him home from the hospital. Sandy and Becky came by that day. They could sense that I was scared. They reassured me that it was perfectly normal to be afraid and yet again, they simply loved and supported me!
God answered my prayer in a way I never expected. His answer was a simple one. If you want a godly man in Eli's life to teach him about the Lord, then you are going to have to do it yourself.
Since Eli's birth, God has graced me with some great accomplishments. I graduated from Faith Learning Centre and earned my high school diploma. In September 2002, I started attending William and Catherine Booth College part-time in order to gain a bachelor's degree in social work.
The most important accomplishment of all is that because of God's love, I am able to love my son and care for him the way he deserves to be loved and cared for. God designed for Eli to be raised with a father who is seeking to live for Jesus.
Forward House has been a wonderful extended family that loves me as much as I love them. The staff and residents support and encourage me. By doing the things they have been teaching me, I'm able to support and encourage my son. I didn't get a lot of those things when I grew up, but Sandy and others have made the principles of the Bible come alive.
Yes, I was a criminal, a drunk, a drug dealer, an addict and a menace to society. Today, I'm trying to be the best father I can be. I'm part of a large, caring family and most important, I'm a follower of Jesus Christ. Only God has the power to change someone like me. For that I thank and praise Him and want to live for Him.
From The Conquering Indian, Vol. 2, personal stories of North America's First People who conquered obstacles and found hope, healing and honor.
Finding Your Father
Perhaps like David Glenn, you feel you’ve reached the bottom of your life. But you are not alone. Your Father in heaven is waiting for you to turn to Him through Jesus Christ. He is longing for you to enter a relationship with Him.
We all need to have a relationship with God. And that is not a thing we can achieve on our own.
Jesus Christ said in John 14:6 in God’s book, the Bible, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the father but through me.” Jesus is the Son of God and only by giving our life to Him, do we have access to God . . . and to the peace we all seek.
Do you need help dealing with the heartbreaking situations that have happened in your life?
You can find hope by opening your heart to God. Your prayer can be simple.
• Tell God that you want to accept His way to know true peace and joy.
• Tell Him that you know that without His help, you understand that you will be separated from God in life and death.
• Accept Jesus as God’s only provision to deal with your separation from Him.
• Invite Jesus, God’s Son, to take control of your life and place you in His care.
Your prayer might sound something like this:
Dear God, I accept Your way. I believe Your Son Jesus died for my sins so I can become part of the family of God. Because You raised Jesus from the dead, I can experience harmony of life with Your Son as my Shepherd. I’m sorry and turn from my sins and ask You, God, to take charge of my life. I ask your Holy Spirit to come and fill me now with Your presence and power that I will live each day walking on Your Path. I offer this prayer to You through Your Son, Jesus. Amen.
If you have prayed the above prayer, we would like to hear from you. Write to us and mail it to (In the U.S.) Indian Life Ministries, P.O. Box 32, Pembina, ND 58271; (In Canada) Indian Life Ministries, P.O. Box 3765, Redwood Post Office, Winnipeg, MB R2W 3R6. We will send you some helpful information on how to walk the Creator’s Path.
