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What happens when a man who's spent most of his adult life cycling through addiction and prison cells finds himself hiding in a briar bush on his 40th birthday? This raw, powerful testimony reveals an extraordinary journey from darkness to light.

Growing up without God and convinced that believers were fools, our guest's choices led him to try drugs at 16, receive his first felony charge at 18, and enter a devastating cycle of incarceration, addiction, and broken relationships. After multiple prison sentences and years lost to methamphetamine addiction, everything changed the night he fled from police and hid in a thicket of briars after stealing a little girl's bicycle.

The transformation that followed wasn't immediate or easy. Despite initial resistance to faith-based solutions, a series of seemingly coincidental events – a chance encounter at a church trunk-or-treat, prayer cards spanning eight years with his name on them, and the discovery that his daughter had been the first person to donate to the very church that would later lead him to faith – revealed a divine orchestration that left him undeniable evidence of God's pursuit.

Today, this former inmate serves as a pastor, prison programs director, addiction counselor, and trains law enforcement officers in crisis intervention. His testimony resonates deeply with incarcerated individuals because he's walked in their shoes, giving him unique credibility when sharing how faith transformed his life.

"There's a difference between being saved and being rescued," he explains. "Some people are saved before walking off a cliff, while others like me fell long ago and were yelling for help from the ravine. When that rope finally comes down and you make it out of a place you never thought you would – it's different."

This powerful story reminds us that no one is beyond redemption, that our most painful experiences often become our greatest qualifications for helping others, and that purpose can emerge from our deepest pain.

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