Success Stories

Shawn

Shawn will be baptized at a local church next Sunday. She now has hope and has accepted Christ as her Lord and Savior. Her story is one of losing many close family members in a short period of time. She came to the conclusion that anyone who became close to her would sooner
or later leave her.

Shawn’s parents divorced when she was 9 years old after much turmoil. At this time, her sister went to live with her father, her brother joined the Army, and she and her mother were left alone. Her dad died when she was 23 years old, and a niece was killed at the age of 9 shortly thereafter. A year later, her former father-in-law passed away.
Shawn, who has been married and divorced twice, has two children. Her son went to live with his father, and she and her daughter have been together since then.

After a recent relationship, she lost her job and became homeless. She came to Agape House, and her
daughter, now 20, went out of state to live with her dad. Shawn says she appreciates the strong support system she has found here and is looking forward to a new beginning with hopes of finding a job, getting back on her feet, and becoming independent.

She would like to take classes in retail management. We know God has a plan for Shawn, and He will never leave her or forsake her!

Greg

Greg grew up in an environment where alcohol was abused. His mother, however, did go to church and took him with her. She developed serious health issues, and when he was 13 years old, his primary influence became
his father.

Greg finished the 8th grade but was then kicked out of school for fighting. He was arrested when he was 14 years old for drinking. His first real sentence happened when he was 20 years old, and he spent four months in
jail. His last sentence was nine months in jail for DUI. His mother passed away two years ago when he was 32 years old. He and his father’s relationship is currently in need of restoration.

Greg found a job a month after he arrived at the Mission through a temporary agency. His heart’s desire is to get his GED, a place to live, and a job in small engine repair as he has some experience and training along these lines.

Greg states he has grown closer to the Lord since he has been here thanks everyone who ministers at the Mission and all those who support the work.

Veronica

After the traumatic occurrence of being sexually abused by a famly member at the tender age of thirteen, I was propelled into extreme rebellion. I recall a mandate I made then. “Now you’re going to find out what was so good about sex that he would go to such extremes to get it.” In this quest of promiscuity I identified myself with the sex I so easily handed out. The more I acted on it the better I felt. This however wasn’t my only way of acting out.

I became exceedingly violent, from countless suspensions from school to being expelled twice for fighting. At the same time drugs offered a false comfort for my grief. After being in such a mindless state it wasn’t long before I looked to gangs to be accepted. “We’ll be your family. We’ll have your back” were the enticing words spoken to me by a senior gang leader. During this decision process my promiscuis ways caught up with me.

I was a senior in high school when I became pregnant. I hid my pregnancy from my parents as long as I could. However, it wasn’t too long before I started showing therefore forcing me to confess. I was advised by all those around me to abort this child in order to “make things easier” but the Lord wouldn’t allow me. I became so convicted at the thought of abortion, I refused. This was further solidified when it was revealed to me I was carrying twins.

I became deathly ill six months along in my pregnancy and as a result went into premature labor. I can bring to mind the laymen explanation of the on call physician. “Veronica, you’re malnourished, dehydrated, have high blood pressure, low blood sugar, low blood platelets and you have something called toxemia which means there’s poison in your blood. In other words, you are dying. You’re in labor because the girls are taking all the good stuff your body needs to heal. It’s forcing them out and it’ll be useless to try and stop your labor. I don’t feel comfortable performing an emergency cesarean section because your body cannot sustain an operation of that magnitude. If we try to wait it out there’s a good chance things will turn for the worse. On the other hand, if I go ahead and operate it’s to be expected that one or both of the girls will not make it. Add yourself for that matter. So I need you to tell me what you want to do.” “Take them out” is what my mouth spoke. “Let us die together” was in my heart.

The operation proved successful. Now the real challenge began. Vanessa weighed a total of 1 lb. 14 oz. and Alexis 1 lb. 9oz. Both were diagnosed with health problems. Chronic lung disease being most problematic. I was devastated and resolved to detach myself from my dying infants. I eventually fell into a severe case of postpartum depression as my circumstances continued to worsen.

I was told that once my daughters were released from the hospital I could no longer stay at my parents’ home. I took the first job I could find in hopes of saving enough of a deposit for an apartment.

The girls were released three months later. Yet, I still didn’t have enough money to put down for a new housing arrangement. In my despair, I called a dear friend of mine whom offered us an extra room in her apartment. I gathered what little we had and ventured to a town I knew nothing about.

We arrived in Bloomington in late September to an empty room with a single air mattress. The girls slept in our suitcase. I’ll never forget that sight. We lived there for a few months when financial aid discovered we were staying in an apartment they were paying for. She was giving an ultimatum of making us leave or having her financial aid revoked. I of course, wasn’t going to put her in that position and left. The only problem was I had absolutely nowhere else to go.

I was directed to a local women’s shelter where we abode for a single night. It was this night that Alexis became sick and needed medical attention. I made my way to the nearest pediatrician early the next morning. This visit was unusually special in that after Doctor Moore declared both of the girls needed to be hospitalized for R.S.V., he took us there himself. After a few days in the hospital I received a phone call from the shelter telling me that because the girls might be contagious we were no longer welcome to stay there. I pleaded with them and to no avail. I was once again without a place to stay. It was at this moment I hit rock bottom and began to weep. Dr. Moore happened to come in at that very instant and asked me what was wrong. I explained to him that once the girls were released we would have no place to stay. Then he did something unexpected, he comforted me. He say next to me, put his arm around my shoulders and said “Well, I’m not going to release you with no place to stay. We’ll find you a place. OK? We’ll find you a place.” For some reason I believed him.

I was eventually handed a small piece of paper from a nurse as she stated “I don’t know if this will help but its worth a try.” It was the phone number to Backstreet Missions. A big, burly voice answered and as soon as I told him my name he said, “Ah, yes! Veronica, I’ve been waiting for you to call. I’ll send someone to pick you and your daughters up.” Wow! How easy! That night as we settled into Agape House, I was greeted by a volunteer. She was carrying two large bags of baby clothes and eventually made her way in with a playpen. No more suitcases for us! I found a little glimmer of hope.

All residents of Backstreet Missions are obligated to attend Sunday services of their choice. If you don’t have a home church you were invited to attend a Bible study at the Mission. It was during my first Bible study that the Holy Spirit fell upon me in a mighty way. The study was about the woman at the well. Oh how that related to my present circumstance. I began weeping uncontrollably. I tried to cease from this obvious sign of weakness (or so I thought) but the more I tried the more I wept. After a few minutes I finally blurted out “I don’t know what’s going on! I’m trying to stop but I can’t!” A woman walked up to me with a handful of tissues and said “Honey, that’s the Holy Ghost.” December 5th was the day of my salvation. I remember feeling so loved and content. Like I found what I was searching for. But the reality was, He found me.

I was allowed to stay at the Mission for the next nine months. It was reminiscent of attending the University of the Holy Spirit! In all truth my time at the Mission laid a firm foundation in Christ. I was surrounded by Godly men and women who covered my daughters and me in prayer. It was exampled to me how to walk this Christian walk of faith. I was trained to read my Bible and actively participate in Bible study. My relationship with the Lord continually grew. I was taught the joy of mothering, spiritual warfare and kingdom principles such as tithing. All my needs were met both physically and spiritually. There are too may life lessons I gained during this time to state them all. Most importantly, they were the hands and feet of Jesus (my Savior) on earth.

The Lord once said to me “You are like a flower picked from amongst the weeds.” He brought me from a life full of rebellion and sin into His divine plan for myself and my family. Because of His goodness, mercy and love I have overcome and continue to press toward the the mark of the high calling in Christ Jesus. He is all I’ll ever need. To God be the Glory!

This year Veronica has joined the staff at the new Agape House as our weekend Supervisor. Her daughters are now 9 years old. During the week she is pursuing a college education. God is good!

Please do what you are able to help. Visit our How to Help page for various ways you can get involved.