JIM SPRAGGON
A few years ago I came to the realization that my life had no meaning. I was raised in church as a child but it had no fulfillment to me.  Everything that I did was going to send me to hell, so I had to find something to give me a sense of purpose or worth in my life so in my teens I found that in alcohol and drugs.

As I fell farther from God, I fell farther into my addictions. Then my life was shaken. My father was diagnosed with cancer; 15 months later he was dead. Then my mother was given 6 months to live. Back in my early 20’s, I hated my life. Life was not what I wanted. So, I tried to take my life. As with the rest of my life I was a failure…so I thought.

After that my addictions just took over. That was all I cared about; not my family, friends, job, nothing else mattered. I would use people for whatever I could get out of them. I didn’t care what happened to them. The only person I had faith in was my drug dealer.

Some time later, after living day to day, I met my future wife, Kim. I fell in love with her but I still loved my alcohol and drugs more. We got married and I had a pre-made family and I was not ready for that. I started going back to church, but that was not even of interest to me. It took time from my time with drugs.

I became an Easter & Christmas Christian and that was still too much. In that time my daughter was born. I really can’t remember her early childhood. I was too interested in other things. The only things I can remember were being angry all the time. No one was safe from my wrath. The first one to feel my wrath was my stepdaughter. The next was my wife. That led to our first separation. So I decided to get baptized. I don’t know if it was for me or for other people. I was on a short-lived high.

I fell away after we experienced 2 miscarriages. I felt that God was punishing me again, so my anger and addictions took over again. This time it was my other stepdaughter and this time it was different. I could not bail out of jail. I was in over night and I was looking at prison time.

I came to the realization that I was empty inside. I needed a change. In the process of going through a treatment program for my addictions, I was told that I needed to find a “God of my own understanding”. The only God that I had known was Jesus Christ. So I offered to Him all my problems, and myself such as my anger, my addictions and He took them from me right then.

My struggles were still there in regard to the world and its problems. My life was still not easy, but the weight was off my back. I finally had a way out of the pain I had felt for all those years. As Psalm 30:2 says, “O Lord, My God I called to you for help and you healed me.” Jesus Christ’s love has raised me up like Lazarus.

Now I am very active in my church as a youth sponsor, and along with my wife, I facilitate a small group that helps other growing Christians to get closer to Christ. I also enjoy being a part of the major events that our church presents at Christmas and Easter, but the only thing I know for sure is that I am going to see the face of Jesus Christ when I die and He is going to take me home.