I moved into Theresa’s house November 2008. Little did I know that I would be the first girl of the vision that God had given to Theresa, Restoration House Ministries.

When I met Theresa I was a mess and so was my family. I lost my husband to infidelity and blamed the devil instead of taking responsibility for my actions as well. At the time I thought God had left me. I then spiraled into a two year depression, and from all of the poor choices I had made, it almost cost me my daughter. I was living here and there with friends and family, my daughter had no stability I was tired and wanted a better life for the both of us.

I went to church off and on but I still chose to stay in the environment I was in. Drinking and partying was an every other weekend thing. When I was going through all of that I had no encouragement from anyone except the negativity of the world. I was so far from God. I never thought he would use someone like me. It’s funny how God works; I became best friends with Amnysti; Theresa’s daughter whom invited me to church every day for a whole year. I had only seen Theresa in passing, until the Sunday I decided to go to church and tell my whole life story to Amnysti. Theresa was sitting next to us and when church was over she offered to take me out to lunch. A week later my daughter and I moved in. Theresa opened up her home to us giving up her bedroom so my daughter and I could have the room we needed. That made one of the biggest impacts in my life. She accepted me for me and gave me a safe haven to leave my past behind and start over.

This was a place to grow in God’s word and get closer to him, to experience life with simplicity without drama and be in a positive environment. It gave me time to gain Gods wisdom and learn to make better choices for myself and my daughter. God showed his never ending love through Theresa opening up her home to me. It was nice to be in an environment that was not judgmental of what I had been through or what I was going through. It is good to know that there are people who love and care about my well-being, Restoration house is like no other. I personally had never lived in a women’s home before RHM, but grew up with and worked with kids in a group home and when they left, their heart was still the same; bitter and angry just like when they came in. God spoke to Theresa’s heart and told her to start this ministry; because she listened she was able to provide a healthy stable environment for my daughter and me, a place of healing for my broken heart. There I was taught that God loved me and created me in his own image. I was not the lies I had been told; “You’re worthless, you will never amount to anything, look what you have done, no one will ever love you, trash, not worthy etc. ” I soon found out that is not how God feels about his children! He is loving and kind; I was taught the truth of God’s word and had time to heal.

3 years after God started Restoration House Ministries just for me, I was offered the Public Relations Specialist position for Restoration House Ministries and I am also manager of RHM Gleanings Resale shop. I personally would never in a million years imagine I would be sitting down at this very moment writing my testimony, and for that reason I am forever grateful to a mighty God and his love for me.

Hello, my name is Christy I am 21 years old. I spent 9 months in the care of Restoration House Ministries as a resident and student. My decision to come to RHM was a tough but necessary decision that changed my life radically. My whole life I believed lies as a result of things I was told or things I told myself, my lies started at a very early age after being sexually abused by someone very close to me. The abuse went on for many years but ended when I was 15 years old. When the abuser left I began to abuse myself. I followed a path filled with drugs, violence, and alcohol.

From the age of 18 to 20 I was living out of a backpack, sleeping on various couches, going home occasionally. I wanted desperately for my family to approve of my life but no matter how hard I tried, I felt like I failed them, and I too felt like I had been failed by them. In my mind everyone I ever knew failed me, including God. I was hurt and believed that no one cared about me because growing up no one saw what was happening to me behind closed doors and worse, I didn’t think anyone cared to know. Everyone knew something was wrong but no one ever asked. I was also told that I would be an addict for the rest of my life and that there was no way to change the person that I had become, I believed every word. My hope for a future was stolen from me and I embraced the life that was set before me, a life God never intended for me. I gave up on hoping for myself and multiple times I tried to end my own life, I wanted to die without feeling anything. Looking back it seems silly because or how many drugs I had taken, I could always feel my broken he art. The pain that was there never went away.

In the middle of all of this mess called my life, God found me and picked me up, after a series of life events God led me to Restoration House Ministries.
During the 9 months in the program I was shown that there is a Love that can be compared to no other thing. I was walked step by step into the life that God had planned for me, which was wholeness, spiritually, mentally and physically. I look back at all the days I should have died and I know I have a Savior who cares. All the years I thought He abandoned me and left me for dead, He was actually carrying me through. After 9 months in the program, I made a decision based on God’s leading to stay at RHM as the resident coordinator. I never experienced life like I have in the more recent days. The women of Restoration House Ministries taught me the most valuable lessons in this world. I learned how to go to God with my issues and how to apply God’s word to my life. One of the things I hold most valuable is that they taught me how to maintain stability in God and not be tossed around by my own thoughts. Now I not only get to see that fruit produce in my life but also in the girls that I now get the opportunity to teach.

My story begins on April of 2010, the moment that I was truly alive. Theresa Klacman picked me up from the Juvenile Detention Center, and brought a surprise with her. My mom and siblings had joined her. I didn’t know where I was going but I knew it was going to be somewhere safe. I walked into the doors of Restoration House Ministries not knowing what to expect. My probation officer didn’t give me much of a choice, he had tried just about everything to get me to change my ways and become a better person, but nothing had worked so far. This was our last hope before he resorted to even more drastic measures.

My first week at Restoration House was like nothing I’ve ever experienced. At first I thought it was strange how everyone was always so happy and care free. “These people need help,” I would think. But little did I know that I was the one in need of the help. I didn’t understand why everyone was nice to me and why they cared so much for me to get better. I would immediately assume that they wanted something in exchange. My whole life people did things because they wanted something in return, so why would this be any different?

I grew up in an abusive house hold, where no one spoke up because they were afraid. An entire family dominated by one single man. My father was verbally and physically abusive to me, my siblings, and my mother as well. We all got accustomed to the abuse, but still knew in our hearts that we didn’t deserve to be treated like that. As a result of the abuse and other components, I began to act out in search for attention from whoever was willing to give it to me. That’s what landed me on probation. Once on probation I made no effort to change, in fact I acted out even worse. I knew that if I was locked up then I wouldn’t have to be at home. At that point in time anything was better than going home. My probation officer found out about the abuse and moved me to my friend’s house. She didn’t know, but where she was about to move me was going to get me into deeper trouble. The woman who I moved in with did what she could to keep me out of trouble, but her efforts were futile.

During my short stay there I got pregnant. My world felt like it turned completely upside down. I wasn’t ready to become a mom, being a child myself. I wept for hours, not because I felt sorry for myself, but because I felt sorry for the life growing inside of me. In my mind I saw myself beating this child just the way my father used to beat us. I knew I didn’t want this poor unborn baby to go through that, so I began to call abortion clinics. To my surprise no one answered. Abortion seemed to be my only solution at the time. I was only 15 years old when I got the shocking news of my pregnancy. I felt so alone and scared, not knowing what to do. The last thing I wanted was for this child to grow and be like me or his father. Not much later, it seemed like God had answered my silent prayer.

A month later is when I walked through the doors of Restoration House. I didn’t plan to change a thing about me. I was actually aiming for the complete opposite. I had attempted to“fake it till I made it.” I quickly learned, that takes strategy and serious determination, which I did not have. Soon my true self began to emerge. I was very rebellious, I pushed the envelope, but not far enough to be kicked out or discovered. I didn’t want to be there, yet I didn’t want to leave. I was afraid to change because I felt like no one would accept me. What I didn’t know was that God had different plans for me. I thought he had forgotten about me just because my circumstances didn’t play out so well. Restoration House Ministries helped me to make the changes that no other program was capable of doing. They were the first ones who didn’t give up on me no matter how stubborn I was. RHM stood by and let God slowly but surely, crack me open and begin his work with me. They helped me build a long lasting relationship with God and have encouraged me to pursue the dreams He placed in my heart. They filled me up with knowledge and helped me to better understand why certain things happened to me and let go of what had me in a stronghold all those years. I discovered many things about myself while I was at restoration house. One of the things I learned was that un-forgiveness was a major part of why I did the things I did. Shortly after I gave my heart to Christ, I was able to forgive my father and mother, and all of the other people who had hurt me in my life. But most importantly I forgave myself for the agony that I had caused others.

God rescued me from a horrible place and brought me into a home where I would be able to recover and begin a fresh start. Restoration House provided me with a tutor and the funds necessary for me to complete not only my GED but also pass my THEA test. They helped every step of the way and helped me enroll in college. I am currently enrolled in my 3rd semester at the Victoria College. Thanks to all of the classes and Bible studies that RHM provided I was able to

get hired at The Bible Bookstore, and also started to volunteer at the E3 services through Faith Family Church. I have such a passion for helping young teenagers. Working at E3 is going to help me for that day when I begin ministry with the Juvenile Detention Center. I want to tell thegirls there that there is a way out and that their past does not have to destroy their future. That’s something I will always have in my heart.

I am also a proud mother of a 1 ½ year old named Isaiah. My child will not have to suffer the throbbing pain that I suffered. I am putting an end to all of the curses that have followed my family lineage. My son will not have to know what it is to go hungry or know what the sting that a beating leaves behind feels like. I am determined to provide for my son, and I don’t just mean financially. Thanks to all of the advice that the volunteers gave me at Restoration House, I am able to give Isaiah the love and affection that my parents never gave me as a child. One thing that has been made very clear to me is that without God I am nothing. I am positive that if I wouldn’t have gone to RHM, I and my son would not be at home typing my testimony today. The way I was heading, I would’ve either been dead or in prison. But thank God that His mercy and forgiveness is so immense that I was granted a brand new start. We all deserve to start over, and with the help of Restoration House I was able to do just that.