Program Living: Josh’s Story

"Before Hope House, my outlook on life was very bleak, and I felt empty. I had a lot of people who loved me, but I was incapable of loving them in the same way. I was looking to fill voids in my life and hide my shame with substance abuse, which led me to dark places, and eventually to jail.

I had gotten to the point that I was okay with being incarcerated. I was okay with looking at ten years in the penitentiary. I was okay with having to sever all ties with everyone I cared about, and I had lost all hope. I was willing to try anything different because I was in a very scary place. I had gotten second chances from so many people and squandered them all, but I felt like Hope House was the last second chance I needed.

Once I got to Hope House, I realized that through all the years of substance abuse and emotional turmoil, I needed help spiritually. The people at Hope House showed me how to reconnect with Jesus, the only one who could truly give me salvation and fill the voids in my life with His love instead of filling them with drugs and so many other things.

I’m continuing to grow spiritually, which is spilling over into every other aspect of my life. I’m looking forward to being the father I wasn’t before, to show love to the ones I care about, and to giving God the glory for being a light that came from darkness. I want to be an example to others that as long as there’s hope you always have a second chance."