I went from preacher’s kid to meth addict — then everything changed

I grew up arsenic the lad of a traveling evangelist. My ma is genuinely 1 of the kindest radical you’ll ever meet. Sadly, beneath her elegant facade was a heavy fear-driven request to look arsenic though everything was OK. Our beingness was acold from it. The antheral I grew up watching talk down a pulpit was not the aforesaid antheral astatine location down closed doors, wherever I had a front-row spot to the carnal maltreatment helium heaped connected my mother.

Keeping the concealed of Dad’s maltreatment was our No. 1 regularisation arsenic a family. No 1 could ever know. I retrieve a clip erstwhile idiosyncratic astatine a campy gathering asked my ma astir her achromatic eye. I was young, hardly gangly capable to travel up to her elbow, and I was flooded by dread. Would our household concealed beryllium exposed? Before my ma could reply, my dada jumped in: "She fell successful the shower." As I heard those words, my full assemblage trembled with disbelief and anger. Watching my begetter archer a cowardly prevarication to support his representation — and my ma sheepishly unreal she was a dumb woman who fell successful the ablution — was unbearable to watch. At specified a young age, I didn’t cognize however to process immoderate of it.

As I stepped into my preteen years, I became a wrecking shot of atrocious decisions. In my mind, some my earthly and heavenly fathers were the villains successful my story. By the clip I was 11 and 12 years old, I was smoking cigarettes, stealing and drinking alcohol. 

As a teenager, I stayed up astir each night, snorting cocaine, drinking, smoking cookware and, finally, taking painkillers to get to sleep. When I was 17, idiosyncratic introduced maine to a cause called crystal meth. This was a caller low. Looking back, it feels similar an out-of-body experience. How could I person made specified monumentally destructive choices? I had built an full beingness astir my trauma, my hurt, my choler and my addiction.

CHRIS PRATT ON FINDING GOD DURING SON'S LIFE-THREATENING CRISIS AND HOW IT TRANSFORMED HIS SPIRITUAL LIFE

At 3 a.m. 1 night, I was successful a acheronian spot erstwhile Jesus revealed himself to this wounded preacher’s kid. Right there, that night, I enactment my religion successful Jesus. I stock much astir my translation — and however Jesus changed my beingness overnight — successful my caller book,"Radically Restored: How Knowing Jesus Heals Our Brokenness."

This is wherefore I judge God heals, and that He inactive performs miracles. I judge due to the fact that I travel the aforesaid Jesus who "cast retired the evil spirits with a elemental command, and helium healed each the sick" (Matt. 8:16 NLT). But what astir heavy wounds near by trauma? What if those wounds are caused by a genitor oregon a spouse — idiosyncratic we should person been capable to trust, idiosyncratic who should person been a harmless place? We each cognize those wounds spell overmuch deeper.

ANCIENT CHRISTIANS LIVED ALONGSIDE FOLLOWERS OF MYSTERIOUS FAITH 1,500 YEARS AGO, ARCHAEOLOGISTS SAY

When asked whether God tin heal affectional trauma, Christians mightiness springiness a knee-jerk religion answer: "Yes — and won’t He bash it!" We privation to guarantee others — and possibly ourselves — that we’re saved and judge without doubts. We thin to debar asking hard questions because, arsenic Christians, we’re not definite it’s allowed. 

As I stepped into my preteen years, I became a wrecking shot of atrocious decisions. In my mind, some my earthly and heavenly fathers were the villains successful my story. By the clip I was 11 and 12 years old, I was smoking cigarettes, stealing, and drinking alcohol. 

My position is that honorable religion does inquire questions, but it doesn’t question who God says He is. That mightiness dependable contradictory, but it’s not. God wants authenticity, yet we indispensable spot Him adjacent successful achy experiences. When we are authentic and we trust, God reveals the chains that hindrance america truthful we tin laic them astatine the ft of the transverse and locomotion distant successful freedom.

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That’s easier said than done — particularly if those chains were enactment determination by radical we erstwhile considered safe, oregon by a genitor oregon spouse we should person been capable to trust. Unresolved trauma became my prison. I didn’t cognize however to beryllium acceptable free. The hardest portion is that adjacent aft the carnal maltreatment stopped, my begetter ne'er addressed what happened. In my childhood, his beingness was monolithic and terrorizing. But passim my teens and aboriginal 20s, helium was determination — but not truly there. In the movie of our lives, helium became little of a monster and much of an other who blended into the background. His lack during those years was a caller and antithetic benignant of wound.

Stephen McWhirter attends the 11th Annual K-LOVE Fan Awards astatine The Grand Ole Opry connected May 26, 2024, successful Nashville, Tennessee. (Jason Kempin/Getty Images)

I wonderment whether my father’s detachment was due to the fact that helium believed that, aft each he’d done, helium nary longer had the close to beryllium my father. Maybe helium didn’t speech astir the past maltreatment oregon marque amends due to the fact that helium would person had to ain what happened. He would person had to resistance it retired of the shadows and into the light. I don’t cognize the reply for my dad; I lone cognize helium pretended it ne'er happened.

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But it did happen. And astatine immoderate constituent — for my begetter and for the remainder of america — everything we effort to fell volition beryllium laid bare. Jesus said, "For everything that is hidden volition yet beryllium brought into the open, and each concealed volition beryllium brought to light" (Mark 4:22 NLT). Everything — adjacent the things we privation to support hidden successful the acheronian — volition beryllium brought into the light. That mightiness dependable scary, but it doesn’t person to be. When we willingly bring those hidden things into the airy to confess, repent and marque amends, they statesman to suffer their power.

Unfortunately, my dada could ne'er bring himself to look what helium had done. I judge this kept him imprisoned by guilt and shame. If you relate, delight cognize Jesus loves you and is warring to acceptable you escaped and heal each breached portion of you. This committedness isn’t conscionable for sons and daughters who person been hurt. It’s besides for the father, mother, spouse oregon anyone who has harmed others. Jesus doesn’t conscionable heal and reconstruct the atrocious things that happened to us. He besides mends the unthinkable things we whitethorn person done to others. When we consciousness chained to guilt and shame, existent healing and state await connected the different broadside of thing called repentance.

Adapted from "Radically Restored" by Stephen McWhirter. Copyright Stephen McWhirter© (May 2026) by Zondervan. Used by support of Zondervan, www.zondervan.com.