“You know when I first went to jail, I thought that I’m never going to do heroin again, but it was like within minutes of walking out of the jail I was back thinking, you know, ‘OK I just got to get a little bit in me and then I’ll stop’ and I just would take off again. The same with treatment.”

Kevin first started dabbling with drugs at fifteen years old. By nineteen years old he was married and using with his wife. He was a believer and he tried to follow God, but no matter how hard he tried to be in control the addictions would take over and eventually he found himself on the streets.

“I couldn’t stop the thoughts; I would obsess about using, and that was my whole life. I wasn’t talking my family, and I wasn’t talking to my son. ”

His life had spiraled out of control, and he had to come to terms with the fact that he didn’t have any control in his life or over his addictions. He felt as though he were living in his own personal Hell, with no hope, as he merely tried to survive from day to day.

“I remember specifically giving up.”

Kevin had tried multiple recovery programs, and even graduated from some, but he always found that as soon as he was out of them the obsessive thoughts about drugs would come back, leaving him full of despair.

“I’d gone to treatment a few times, and I would get out and I’d be obsessed about using. I would fight it and try to do some of the things from the recovery program, but I just thought that if I have to live like this, fighting this constantly… I’m just going to quit. I’m not going to go to any more treatments. I’ll just try to be the happiest heroin addict that I could be.”

No matter how many times Kevin failed or was constantly struggling, his status as a child of God remained unchanged. God’s love for us isn’t based on our ability to change, but rather it’s based on what Christ did for us on the cross.

God had greater plans for Kevin than living a life of addiction. Kevin remembers the day that he felt Christ reach down and get a hold of him again, giving him the strength, power, and hope to live a very different life.

“I was on like 19th and Nicollet, and I had been trying to get off of methodone and somoxine because that was what I ended up being on for like seven years, and I hated that. I was thinking about doing either suicide or going back to a federal prison because I hadn’t been there yet. And then I ran into somebody that had worked at Teen Challenge.”

Mike had been at Teen Challenge and was doing well with his own recovery. When he saw Kevin he pulled over and while his question was simple, “Hey, how’re you doing?” It’s impact was huge. Kevin, who had just been contemplating suicide, suddenly found himself getting invited back to Teen Challenge.

“I don’t even know exactly what he said, he was just encouraging, and I was trying not to cry right there on the street, but it was so clear, and I went and I talked to my sister and she got me into Teen Challenge.”

Kevin was able to complete the Teen Challenge program and is now freed of his addictions and has a healthy and active relationship with God. Although his journey to get here was difficult, and at times seemingly hopeless, God never left his side and in His own timing brought Kevin back to where he needed to be.

Highlight – Kevin’s Story

God’s perfect timing: Kevin’s story