Though originally from Washington State, she was raised by her grandparents in rural Oklahoma. When she was three, her father was shot and killed. Thankfully, she had her grandparents who provided a stable, loving environment… and made a lasting impact on her life.

“I wanted to go do these drugs cause I hadn’t done them for quite some time and it was time for me to do them again. I used to go on three-day binges. I would disappear and my wife and kids didn’t know where I was. They didn’t know if I was dead or alive or nothing.” Listen as Paul shares his battle with addiction and how it finally came to an end.

Working on the Alaska pipeline, Paul got into drugs and alcohol. It changed his life. His addictions had full control over him, until one night, when he had a dream so terrifying, that it caught his full attention.

He was in a fist fight at least twice a week, every week for most of his schooling… because of the way he looked. He didn’t fit in with the white kids… he didn’t fit in with the Native kids. Listen as Paul shares about the early days of his journey and how that would influence his outlook in the days to come.

Where was the peace that others seemed to have? As she looked around, she couldn’t help but notice. How come she couldn’t find it? It seems she’d been fighting for something all her life… perhaps just fighting to survive. She’d learned that in her youth. But she wanted what these folks had. Listen as she shares how she finally found what she was looking for.

Adrienne recalls as a young girl how she was sick at school one day. As the teacher took her home, all she could think about was what they were going to find when they got there. She wanted to jump out of the car and run into the house so no one would see what she was afraid of.

Vince was kicked out of his home at the age of 11 because he stood in the way of his father abusing his mother. He quickly learned how to live on the streets of Chicago. Trouble was something he was very familiar with. His life was careening out of control and he was headed for disaster when God came into his life and changed everything.

Ryan grew up with sports, but he was especially good at hockey… so good in fact that he was eventually drafted by a professional hockey team. He wasn’t content though – something was missing.

Ray shares how his grandfather told him stories that were handed down from his people… stories that were very scary and brought fear to him as a child. He shares one of these along with the impact that it had on him then, and the perspective that he has about it now.

Ray recalls a sobering moment: “When I woke up, I was sick. Not only from what I had drank that previous night, but the burden of sin was heavy upon me. And not only that but, I was so sick I knew if I died at that moment, I wasn’t prepared to meet God.”