Tonight we attended the Coffee and Beans service, at which I had the pleasure of sharing God's greatness, and how He sets us free through His mercy and grace. This is a service for addicts, most of which are addicted to huffing glue. These men and women come in and are able to wash their hands, for most of them its the only time they wash their hands all week long. We sang a few songs, I shared my testimony, then we served those that were there a meal. The hurt and pain of addiction was plainly visible on their faces, and you could see the physical pain in their body language. I was reminded that addiction, of any sort, is a global issue, not just a local issue to Gainesville, GA. Sharing my personal story of addiction, hurt, and struggle was a blessing, not only for those who regularly attend the service, but for myself and those from Lakewood who were with me.
In my message to them, I reminded them that we ALL fall short of the glory of God, which is why we needChrist, that if we are in Christ we are a new creation, and God has great expectations and a future and a hope for us. Being able to pour my heart out to the people of Guatemala, I feel as if The Lord has allowed me to leave part of myself with them. But the most important thing that I was able to show them through my testimony, is that our God is a God of restoration, and that He loves us, no matter what season of life we are in. All we have to do is make a choice; a choice to follow Jesus, because our restoration and recovery is only possible with Him.
This experience was truly a blessing to me, and I will never forget it.
Much thanks to my translator, Andrea, pictured with me below.
Jeremy Shockley
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