Chad’s Testimony
A testimony isn’t just what happened to you, but what God’s done for you. For Chad, his testimony began in 2014.
Previously, Chad’s mom had tried to convince him to join different programs and quit his partying lifestyle, but he wasn’t open to it. He was living a life of monotony – get up, go to work, party, repeat – there was no real meaning. Until one day, Chad heard about Justin’s Place through a coworker who had previously graduated from the program. Chad was intrigued by this man’s life so much that he decided to enroll in Justin’s Place to see if it could help him.
Like anyone in the program, Chad faced an adjustment period, but he remembers the first time he felt God. It was June 15, the birthday of his little brother who had died a few years earlier. Chad was sitting in a church service, his mind wandering thinking how he’d rather be anywhere else than in the program when his gaze fell to the open Bible in his lap, and he started to read the passage: 2 Corinthians 4:16-18.
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4: 16-18 (NIV)
“God spoke to me,” Chad said. “I felt a peace that I couldn’t even explain, so I kind of looked around [wondering] did someone else see that or hear that or feel it? He [God] gave me hope that this is temporary. ‘You got bigger and better things to be thinking about than just feeling down on yourself.’”
From then on, Chad’s outlook changed. He began a relationship with God, which he says is a key factor in finding freedom.
“The 12 steps and sobriety, I feel it’s just surface-level. You have to find something bigger than yourself,” Chad said. “Anybody can get sober, but if they find a personal relationship with Jesus, that’s eternal.”
Chad graduated from Justin’s Place in the spring of 2015, but his testimony continues as God keeps working in his life.
“God said, ‘I’ll be with you every day. Just seek me.’ In the little choices and the big ones, He’s always there,” Chad said.
Today, Chad’s a proud husband and successful electrician hoping to impact others by the way he lives his life, much like his coworker once did for him.