November 2016 Newsletter

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Forgiveness And Healing

Some guy down the street in their neighborhood gave two 13-year-old girls marijuana to try, because they asked him for it. Briana remembers thinking, “I had no concern about what it might do to me. Everyone else was doing it; you just start smoking to fit in. At 15, I started using crank (a form of methamphetamine). It stole my life. I couldn’t hold a job. I was still using meth when I was pregnant. She was born fine physically, but has attention deficit (hyperactivity) disorder. My parents took custody of her. A year later I quit meth; it had taken so much from me.” Briana stayed clean for a time. She had a son.

Some guy she was dating struck her son on the head, because he wanted him to stop crying. Briana’s son died from brain damage when he was 32 months old. She went through a period of shock. She said, “I started drinking heavy, using prescription pain meds. That didn’t work, so I started using meth again. I couldn’t figure out, if we have such a loving God, how could He let something like this happen? I was mad at God for letting me wake up in the morning. I got evicted; it was more important to get drugs than pay rent. I camped out by a river for bathing, used food stamps for food and water. After three months, it started getting cold. I tried going back to my grandma’s, but it was bad only because of other people with drugs. If I used enough meth, I didn’t have to sleep anywhere. It was easier for me to get drugs than to buy food and take care of myself.”

Years came and went, so did jail time. Finally one day, she said, “I was tired of running. Its hard to be out when you are on probation; you have to watch for cops. Its like not having any freedom. You get tired of doing the same thing over and over and not getting anywhere, so you turn yourself in.” But even after 42 days of incarceration the last time, she went right back to her old ways, until her probation officer caught up with her. She was given an ultimatum, go to Samaritan Inn or go back to jail. The idea of going to a homeless shelter scared her. She said, “I didn’t know them or if my stuff would be safe.”

Once Briana settled in, she said, “It wasn’t as scary as I thought. Samaritan Inn gave me back my motivation. I learned that I didn’t have to be the crackhead that I had turned myself into. For a long time, I didn’t have any self-worth.” After a few months, Linda (our manager) handed her a New Life Program application. She said, “It was the first time in a long time, anyone put any responsibility or opportunity in my way. There was authority and benefits, but I didn’t know if I wanted to work or stay.” The turning point for Briana was a chapel service dedicated as a memorial to her son. She said, Everything for me that day changed. I was no longer working for me or anybody else, I was working for God. He made me, He knew me and was everywhere. It was hard for me to realize that God could love a sinner like me. His forgiveness goes a long way. I learned to forgive people, like the man that murdered my son. I pray for his salvation.” She rededicated her life to the Lord. She said, “I saw people turning their lives around, and I wanted that too. A chapel speaker just brought it out.” She learned that God did not let her son be murdered; God blessed each one of us with freewill to go astray or to turn and receive Him openly.

Briana grew. In time, she became a program supervisor. She was one of the two women entrusted to move into the new Samaritan Inn a couple of months early for security and work assignments. She was among the hardest working people during that transition to the new location. Then she became one of the few selected for a staff position. Months later, she used her employment reference here to get a job outside. She had three job offers in her first week of looking. She has new friends that are good influences for each other. She has now left her temporary home here to start a whole new life.