Mark wants to share how your support changed his life!

A Heart of Thanksgiving

“I acted like I was fine… but I was dying inside.”

Mark was just 16 when he came face-to-face with unimaginable tragedy. “I walked through the front door of my house and found my stepfather dead on the stairs.”

He was devastated, and that night he turned to alcohol to numb his pain. “From that point on, whenever anybody died or I lost anything, my grieving process was to self-medicate.”

Mark struggled with addiction for more than 50 years, always acting like he was happy when, in fact, he was dying inside. “I faked a smile all the time.”

Then his biological father passed away, sending Mark’s addiction spiraling out of control. Before long, he found himself experiencing homelessness, wandering the streets, aimless and hopeless. “I started praying that God would take me home,” he says.

But God led Mark to Wheeler Mission instead, and through our Foundations Program he found shelter, meals, and a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ. “Bible studies taught me a deeper meaning of scriptures, and it changed my outlook on life.”

Through quiet times with the Lord and biblical counseling with our compassionate staff, Mark has also unearthed and addressed the root causes of his addiction. “It was a great relief to confront and get rid of those things,” he says. “Now I’m happy.”

“I don’t have to fake a smile anymore.”

For the first time since he was a boy, Mark is clean and sober and walking in the joy of the Lord. And he has shared his joy as a volunteer in our kitchen, providing for the physical needs of our guests through his culinary creations and ministering to their wounded hearts and spirits by sharing his testimony of transformation. “Now, I have a mission. I’m here to help people, and it’s a true blessing to be able to serve.”

Mark is filled with thanksgiving for God’s redeeming love in his life—and your incredible generosity and support! “Before I came to Wheeler Mission, I was lost, but now I’m walking in God’s light.”

To read the most recent issue of Inside Story, click to download.