Seek ing the Son
William J. Griffin
Seek ing the Son By
William J. Griffin
On November 30th of last
year, a Friday evening, I
attempted to take
my own life. At the time
I had woo many reasons
not to live, but no
excuse. I had reached the
bottom of a downward
spiral that began the
moment I turned my back
on my family and my God
over eight years ago.
Three days before
Christmas of 2006, I was
in a minor car accident
that resulted in major
damage. My spine had been
injured, resulting in
the entirety of my back
refusing to properly
function. After seeking
medical attention, I
began another college
semester full of physical
therapy and opiate-based
prescription meds. Due to
previous
experiences with drugs
“scored” off the streets,
I managed to get on a
heavy dosage of methadone
for the pain - a drug
usually reserved for
cancer patients and
heroin addicts - knowing
full well my own fleshly
desire to get high.
Within weeks of final
exams, I had reduced myself
to a pill popping,
cocaine addicted, drunken
failure. Even though,
during the previous 2
years I had maintained a
4.0 average, I now
could not even make it to
class and had to take
incompletes from all
of my courses. After a
two month long
detoxification and recovery
period spent at home with
my parents, life seemed
to be on the up and
up. All by my own doing,
which is why I fell into
an even worse
drug-addiction not long
after my recovery. I had
found a good
full-time job, but by the
time I received my first
paycheck, I had
already returned to
alcohol abuse and illegal
purchases of
painkillers. I didn’t
last long. In the latter
part of July, I began
to intensify my opiate
addiction by using the
drugs intravenously.
What started as small
infrequent uses grew into
a ravenous hunger.
Within a few months I had
lost a handful of friends
and jobs to an
addiction I could no
longer control. Then the
drug supplies ran out. I
had borrowed too much
from my dealers, and my
other “hook-ups” were
tired of seeing me beg
for more. My physical
body rebelled in pain and
withdrawals, my soul was
in a pit of depression,
and I tried to drown
it all away in the bottom
of a bottle. By the last
week of November, I
had had enough and began
turning again to cocaine
highs, but this time
through injection - a
form of cocaine use I had
been wary of for many
years. By that Friday I
had unsuccessfully
increased the amount I was
“shooting up” all in
order to find an end to
my life... an escape from
all the pain and
suffering. When I awoke
the following day, December
1st 2007, I was surprised
to be alive. The near
overdose experience of
the previous night had my
body crying out. I did
the only thing I knew
to do… got drunk, and hit
the freeway. Even though
I expected to
“crash and burn” by God’s
grace my life was spared,
yet again, and I
reached my parents’ home
and sought help. Thank
you Jesus. Within
hours I found myself
detoxifying yet again at
the psychiatric ward at
Kootenai Medical Center -
just another step in the
ultimate plan God
had in store for my life.
By December 5th, I had
sought God’s forgiveness
for my sinful ways,
and arrived at the
Spokane Dream Center,
Glory to God! I am now born
again, filled with His
Holy Spirit, and
delivered from my addictions.
My body has been healed
from all pain and
suffering, He has freed me
from depression, restored
my relationship with my
family and shown me
the miracle of new life
in our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ.
The Dream Center has been
a life changing
experience for me and will
continue to be so. I am
surrounded by my newfound
brothers, and the
church body here has
welcomed me into the fold
like the prodigal son.
By His strength I have
grown less like me and
found that all things
are possible through
Christ. The prayers and
support you all have
provided reach further
than you may ever know…
THANK YOU!!! My thanks
and prayers also go out
to my Pastors and
Teachers here… GOD BLESS
YOU!!!
My heart’s one desire is
to obey the Lord, no
matter the cost. I am
learning daily to rely on
Him for all things and to
seek first His
Kingdom. God has given me
a heart to worship and
praise Him through
music as well as to
spread the gospel of
Christ to the nations among
those who have ears to
hear. My time here at
Spokane Dream Center is
providing an experience
that will remain with me
my entire life. Thank
you Jesus,
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