From Brokenness to Redemption: My Testimony

My journey to truly knowing God began when I was 19 years old. I was lying in a hospital bed, dying, barely clinging to life, because the person I was in a relationship with had tried to stab me to death. But God spared me. I survived.

In the years that followed, that relationship eventually ended—thank God. And when it did, I was finally forced to look in the mirror and truly examine the person I had become in that season of my life. I was weighed down by regrets, by the pain I had inflicted on others and on myself. I had allowed myself to be consumed by toxic influences, and now I was left to reckon with the consequences.

Around the same time, I received devastating news about someone I had known in high school. Katie, the girl I had taken to my sophomore year homecoming dance, had been murdered—strangled to death by her boyfriend. My heart broke. Katie was a beautiful, kind-hearted soul, someone who radiated love and joy to everyone around her. She didn’t deserve to die like that.

But I did.

That thought haunted me. I had caused so much pain in my life—why did God spare me and not Katie? Night after night, I wrestled with that question. It consumed me. I couldn’t eat. I had nightmares. My heart was filled with anger and resentment toward God. If He was real, if He was good, then why did He let her die and let me live?

In my desperate search for answers, I began to pursue God—not out of love, but out of fury. I wanted to demand an explanation.

During this time, my family—knowing that I was struggling—gave me a collection of old family photos. As I flipped through them, one picture stood out. It was a picture of a 16-year-old kid. A kid who was passionate about God, who dedicated his artwork to glorifying Him. A kid who inspired others, who radiated love.

That 16-year-old kid… was me.

Seeing that picture shattered something inside me. That version of me—the best version of me—had been buried beneath more than a decade of bad decisions, toxic influences, and self-destruction. But he had something that I no longer had. He had God.

And I had abandoned Him.

In that moment, I broke. I wept. And for the first time in a long time, I cried out to God—not for answers, but just to be near Him again. I started praying fervently, reading Scripture—not to fuel my anger, but to truly know Him again.

And God answered.

He didn’t just heal me—He radically transformed my entire life.

God delivered me from the strongholds that had shackled my life. I had struggled with alcohol abuse, but as I grew closer to Him, He led me to pour out every bottle of hard liquor I owned—hundreds of dollars’ worth—down the drain. I had been using drugs, believing they fueled my creativity, but God showed me that my body was already His masterpiece.

When I let go of the substances, I gained something far greater—a sound mind, clarity, and everlasting peace. The paranoia, anxiety, self-doubt, and sense of losing control over my own mind disappeared. In their place, I found a confidence, a sense of boldness, and this mental sharpness that had always been mine by design—as a temple of God. I realized then: you can’t perfect something that was already created in perfection—we truly are made in the image of God.

I had been a thief, but God convicted me to return everything I had stolen and make things right wherever I could. He led me to donate three-fourths of my wardrobe, because my expensive clothing had fed my vanity and pride. One winter night, in the middle of a blizzard, I drove to Goodwill with four garbage bags full of clothes, shoes, and jewelry. As I handed the bags to the worker there, I felt led to simply tell him, “I appreciate everything you do. Thank you.” That simple act of kindness lit up his face. That was the Holy Spirit working through me.

God transformed me into a servant. I used to be selfish, consumed by my own desires. Now, I serve in my church’s children’s ministry, pouring into young lives. I deliver food to micro pantries, because I know what it’s like to go hungry. I volunteer with an organization that feeds the homeless because I know firsthand the hardship of poverty and the pain of going days without food. No one should have to endure that, and I want to help make a difference. I co-lead a young adults’ ministry, helping others grow in their faith, because I know what it’s like to be lost.

Looking back, I used to resent my past. I used to be angry at God for allowing me to go through so much pain. But now, when I look back, all I see is beauty. Every hardship, every wound, every dark valley—I now see that God was using them as a blueprint, a roadmap, to shape me into the man I am today.

I can relate to those who struggle with alcohol because I’ve been through it myself.

I can connect with those facing challenges with substance use because I’ve walked that path too.

I can speak to the poor, the hungry, and the homeless because I have been there.

I can stand with survivors of abuse and trauma because I have endured it.

I can reach the lost because I was once lost myself.

And now, I am found.

That night in the hospital at 19 years old, I did die. Because the person who walked out of that hospital was not the same person who had been carried in. I was made a new creation. I just didn’t realize it yet.

God spared my life not because I deserved it, but because He had a purpose for it. And now, I live every day for Him—serving others, loving others wholeheartedly, and testifying to His power and grace.

This is my testimony—my story of redemption.

A story of Jesus Christ transforming my life.

A Message for You

If you feel trapped by your past, weighed down by mistakes, or convinced you’re beyond saving, know this: You are never too far gone for God to redeem you. No wound is too deep, no sin too great, no darkness too overwhelming—Jesus Christ has power over it all. He is Lord over everything, even the forces of evil. If He could restore someone as broken and lost as I was, He can do the same for you.

Call upon Him, seek Him, and give Him your life—I promise you, He will set you free and transform you in ways beyond your wildest dreams.

It’s my choice. It’s your choice. He won’t force us to take His hand, but He never stops reaching for us. Every heart has a God-shaped hole—one that only He can truly fill.

So why walk alone, consumed by fleeting passions, when you could journey with the very One who created passion itself?

I am living proof that we serve a powerful, miracle-working God!

All glory to Him forever and ever. Amen.