In 2011 I was the owner of a failing locksmith shop and making no money. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was in a major depression. My day consisted of going to the shop, waiting for a call, coming home, sitting down on the couch, turning on the tv, and I was done. I was completely checked out.
In September I deployed with DMAT to Charlotte, NC in preparation for Hurricane Irene for four days. When I got back my wife and I were talking, and she said she wasn’t sure she wanted me to come back. That statement shook me to my very core.
Shortly afterwards, we began meeting with a marriage mentor couple. In October, I was working in the kitchen at a day care just to earn a paycheck. I had seen an announcement in church for a ManAlive EXPEDITION and had mentioned to my wife that I would like to go. On Wednesday before the camp, a friend called me and asked if I would like to go. I told him I would like to but couldn’t afford it. He told me that if I wanted to go it was taken care of and there were some guys that I could catch a ride with.
On my way to ManAlive I was thinking that maybe I’ll get some rest, but I wasn’t expecting much else. When I arrived, I connected with the first person I met. That night around a campfire a guy asked me what my story was. Normally I am very guarded around people I don’t know but for some reason I just spilled my guts about everything that was going on with me. His response was simply, “You’re in the right spot.”
Over the course of the weekend, God did some amazing things in my life to the point that when I got back Sunday, Brenna said she could see the change in me. I now recognize the enemy’s attack and know how to battle not only for myself but for my wife and my family.
To sum it up, the ManAlive EXPEDITION did not change my life, it changed the way I live. I say this because to say it changed my life means it was a one-time event, but to say it changed the way I live means it is continual.
