Misery into Ministry

Proverbs 31:7 let them drink and forget their poverty and remember their misery no more (ESV)

Ain’t that the truth. Actually no it’s is not. I can tell you I tried with all that was in me to get as high as I could in hopes it would eliminate the fact of my current state. At one point homeless, but no matter how high I got, one thing still remained. I was homeless. Sure for a moment the numbness of emotion and mind would take over, but deep down I always knew the painful reality of my condition. Alone, afraid, mentally and physically tired with no where to go. No drink or drug was ever going to change that. I want to share about one of my first times ever drinking. I was fourteen, it was around thanksgiving weekend and I was at my first party. The doctors said I drank the equivalent of 27 shots in a little under a time period of 45 minutes. I remember feeling a little buzzed and I liked it. Then all I remember is not being able to see anything, I just wanted out of what I was experiencing. I did not know what was going on. Around four that morning I woke up in the emergency room, the first thing I tried to do was pull out the catheter, no amount of alcohol would have taken that pain away. I was also in a heat blanket. The nurse informed me that I had gone unconscious after drinking 2 cups of straight vodka. My friends were scared and did not know what to do, so one of them had the bright idea to stick me in the bath tub and run cold water on me. After a few slaps and still nothing they decided to stick me outside cause I was throwing up everywhere. That night it was in the high thirties, later I find out that was the cause of the hypothermia. Once everyone realized I was in bad shape they called 911. I was picked up and taken by ambulance to the emergency room. The paramedics said if they had come twenty minutes later I would have been dead. That night once I woke up and found this out I took it as a joke, I was smirk and remarked that at least I still had a good buzz. I let pride take over, I knew my limit from that day. Instead of remembering the misery of that night and the pain in the days to follow, I laughed it off. I continued to flirt with death until 19. The drugs weren’t working anymore, no longer could I blur out the misery, it was all to real. Under the influence of several drugs and yet I saw my life so clear, I could not hide from the extreme pain and unhappiness within. I called on the Lord in my despair and he meet me there, a broken man. No drink will let you forget your poverty, but the Lord will let your misery turn into your ministry.

Application:
I have never thanked God for sparing my life in this situation. Honestly until now it has not held much emphasis in my life. I will take time today to thank God for what he has saved me from.