A husband and wife in Tennessee saw their lives transform as they fought addictions to meth and other drugs with the help of a Christian program at their church.
Brent Walker’s Facebook post recently went viral, which showed photos of him and his now-wife, Ashley, while addicted to meth in 2016 and then after 2.5 years of sobriety.
Many news outlets, including the BBC, covered the inspiring story of the couple’s transformation. But little of the coverage has highlighted the help the couple received from a Christian recovery course they attended at church.
“I go wherever you go”
On 31 December 2016, Brent told Ashley – his then on-and-off girlfriend – that he wanted to stop using drugs: “I asked her if she’d quit with me and she said ‘yes, I go wherever you go.’”
It wouldn’t be an easy turnaround. Brent had struggled with addiction since he was just nine years old and served time for drug-related offences, including dealing. But they sought and found help at a local church: “We decided to go to church and we got rid of anything that was associated with the drug life…”
The couple celebrated their first month of sobriety by getting married at Cornerstone Church of God in Cleveland, Tennessee – which they still attend.
They attended a Christian recovery programme called Celebrate Recovery, which describes itself as “a Christ centred, Bible based recovery programme”. As they continued to stay sober, they found themselves slowly able to achieve life goals, no longer spending their earnings on drugs. They were able to move into their own place to live, buy a car and are seeking to regain custody of Ashley’s children.
“God is the only reason we made it”
Brent’s Facebook post – which was only originally intended for friends and family – has been shared 143,000 times on the platform. In it, he indicated his new-found purpose in life: “This December 31st will be 3 years we have been clean and sober and living for God.”
Brent has told Christian Concern that the help received from church, Celebrate Recovery and God “is the only reason we made it”. He says, “I stopped trying to straddle the fence and gave myself completely to Christ.”
Now covered by news media around the world, the story of their recovery is inspiring many drug users to seek help for their addictions. May it also inspire many Christians to reach out to people in their communities who are in need of help.