Micah's Story
When Micah was a child, his mother worked tirelessly to provide for her four sons and to raise them right. Micah knew this and loved his mother immensely. When he began to experience abuse by a member of the family, he believed it would have been heartbreaking for her to hear. Instead, he learned to hide his pain from her and the rest of the world.
The trauma wore on Micah greatly. He discovered that drugs and alcohol brought a temporary escape from the anguish. By twenty-two years of age, Micah was addicted to crystal-methamphetamine. What most would call self-destructive, he saw as his only means to cope.
The addiction, though, merely compounded his pain. It strained his relationships with his brothers and his adoptive father. His mother - his ever-loving refuge - was diagnosed with an incurable cancer and died within a year. It had seemed that Micah had lost everything.
No longer able to bear watching Micah’s life wasting away, a friend told Micah about The Salvation Army’s Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation program and pleaded with him to try it. Encouraged, Micah enrolled in the program. The process was turbulent as he struggled against the effects of withdrawal, against submitting to authority, and with the uncertainty of his future.
Micah found encouragement through another friend he met in recovery. Though younger than Micah, Brent shared how important it had been to have God’s help in his own struggle with alcohol. Despite a deep sense of skepticism, Micah prayed and sincerely asked God to help him too.
A miraculous energy began to emerge in Micah’s life. He began to pray more often. He attended daily devotions. He gave himself completely to the program. Within months, a lifetime of addiction gave way to a solidified sobriety. He had hope and a future. Finally, on Mother’s Day, Micah graduated from the program – a tribute to the enduring love and influence of his mother.
A life filled with destruction has been overtaken with restoration. He is being trusted with responsibility. He has found a church community at The Salvation Army that deeply cares about him. The deep wounds between Micah and his family have begun to heal. His relationship with his father has new life. His brothers have welcomed him back with open arms. He was able to share the joy of Christmas morning with his sweet six year old niece.
“It took 30 years for me to destroy my life. It took God less than two years to put it all back together again.”