A New Season - Luke's Story

Luke is a guest blogger and a graduate of the Teen Challenge program. His name has been changed to maintain confidentiality.

My name is Luke. I’m 23 years old and have been walking the road to recovery for the nearly three years.

When I was younger, if you asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up, I would tell you a firefighter, a police officer, maybe even a professional hockey player, but I would not have said addicted to drugs. But that’s where I ended up.

An Early Start

I grew up in a good home and lived a normal childhood. I loved playing sports every chance I got. However, around 12 years old, I started drinking with a group of buddies. I loved the freedom, power and confidence that it gave me. From the moment I had my first drink I was chasing the party lifestyle. But, I was different than my friends. I would continue drinking long after they went home and wouldn't stop until I passed out.

In grade seven, I started smoking pot and when I was part way through tenth grade, the school asked me to leave due to my poor attendance.

While all my peers stayed to finish school, I landed a roofing job and thought I was ahead of the game. The job provided me with money which led to more drinking and blackouts. It wasn’t uncommon for me to wake up in jail - not knowing what led me there.

I knew I had to do something about my blackouts because they were starting to take me to a dark place that I didn’t enjoy. I discovered that when I used cocaine the blackouts weren’t as frequent. I thought I had found a solution to my problem - I could party much longer with the help of cocaine.

By the age of 18, I was using cocaine almost daily. I became the person I never wanted to be.

I didn’t want to do anything unless I was under the influence. The more frequent I would use, the more problems found their way into my life.

Compounding Troubles

Due to my heavy drug use and week-long binges, mental health issues started popping up. I now had anxiety, depression, paranoia and hated being around people for the first time in my life.

I couldn’t hold down a job for more than a couple of months, and it was clear that I had a problem. But I only wanted to get help when I was under the influence. I wanted to be high because I had caused so much pain for myself that I couldn’t stand to be sober.

My life became a revolving door from the drunk tank, the hospital, and detox. I floated through a three-month youth addiction program without making any changes. Within a week of leaving the program, I was partying with friends again. The following nine months were hell on earth. I was abusing anything I could get my hands on and started smoking crack cocaine.

Turning Point

My destructive patterns were destroying the lives of my family, and I got kicked out of my mom’s house. I was living in my car and crashing on friends’ couches. One morning, I woke up in my car, and I looked around me to see people walking through the park, headed off to school and work. I realized I was done with this lifestyle. All the freedom, power and confidence that my first drink gave me was long gone by now. I had no hope and for the first time in my life, suicide seemed like a good option. I went to the hospital and pleaded for help.

While in a 30-day detox program, I learned about Teen Challenge. I couldn’t fathom going to a year-long program but the more I thought about it, the more I thought that maybe spending 12 months working on getting better was a good idea.

Giving Jesus a Chance

I did not grow up in a religious home, so I really struggled the first week at the centre. I knew nothing about Jesus or praying. I called my mom and told her she needed to pick me up. She told me I needed to give it a chance.

Frustrated and annoyed, I went into the prayer room to be alone. One of the guys that had been there a while came in to talk to me. Usually, he was pretty funny – always joking around. But this time he was more serious. He told me “it’s really not that bad” and encouraged me to give Teen Challenge a chance. Something in his voice made me trust him. Something changed then and there, and I called my mom to let her know I was going to stay.

After about two months, I was with some guys for “dorm prayer”. This is a time when we can pray together and encourage each other. I still was not too sure about this whole “Jesus thing”. When Riley asked if there was anything they could pray for, I thought to myself “Jesus, if you’re real you need to show me.”

I shared with the group that my grandfather had been waiting for three months for a double lung transplant. He had several disappointments with lungs that were not a match, and he continued to wait in hospital. Riley prayed for my grandpa that night. The next day was Friday which meant I could make a phone call. I called my grandpa and discovered he had just received his lungs! Within 24 hours of our prayer, he was recovering from surgery. God had gotten my attention!

Digging Into My Faith

After that, I started pressing into God, reading my Bible, and going to churches with the outreach team. I started growing in my relationship with Jesus.

Addiction is the worst thing and the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Without it, I never would’ve found Jesus.

During the rest of the program my faith took root and started to grow. I was baptized, completed my GED, and was set free from my addiction.

I knew that when I graduated, I couldn’t return to my home province, so I moved west and started a new chapter. I landed a job, am connected in a great church, and am part of an awesome Young Adults community. God is working in so many ways in my life!

I’m in school for addiction studies because I want to support those who are facing the same struggles I once faced. I’m passionate about sharing the gospel with everyone I meet. I will often go out with friends to pass out Bibles and share my story with people in my city. This is the start of a new season for me.

God gave me my life back, and then some! This is just the beginning of my story.