Johnny Rhodes, broken and hopeless, found himself 700 miles away from his new wife in his fifteenth drug and alcohol rehab, desperate for answers:
‘Why can’t I stay sober and serve God like I know I’m called to do?’, Johnny cried out.
Desperate for help, a friend gave him a copy of Andrew Wommack’s Self-Centeredness—the Source of All Grief.
Johnny says,
I was somewhat offended at first, but as I read, the words written really ministered to my heart.
During worship at the rehab, the name “ANDREW WOMMACK” popped into his mind like a neon sign. Then the word “SCHOOL” entered his heart. After the service, a friend told him Andrew was the founder of Charis Bible College.
The Holy Spirit stirred my heart deeply. Tears streamed down my face as I realized that God hadn’t given up on me. His call on my life hadn’t changed! I felt an internal sense of peace and excitement, knowing that the Lord was calling me and my wife to Charis in Colorado.
Two months later, Johnny and his wife, Jeannie, pulled out of Sulphur Springs with a 24-ft moving truck—and faith.
The Lord blessed them with a rental home right next door to Charis. But a mere two days before school began, Johnny was once again in the grips of alcohol and crack cocaine. How could the Lord use him after so many bad decisions for so many years?
Hopeless and angry, he dragged himself to school for orientation. He only went the second day to appease his wife.
As praise and worship began, I exploded in a burst of anger. I believed that I was being punished by God, and He was angry with me. And I was angry at everyone in the building—their joy, their love, their freedom. I was deceived and full of self-pity.
Johnny stormed out of the building, cursing Charis—and God. But just outside the door, he felt the overwhelming impression that if he left Charis that day, addiction would kill him.
So he returned—angry, full of hate and disgust.
But when he lifted his hands and voice to Jesus, the Holy Spirit revealed God’s love in a way he’d never experienced.
This revelation of the love of Jesus set me free! The grip of addiction was loosed, and I left that day a free man…
Since starting classes at Charis, we have received revelations of God’s love that have radically transformed our lives. Neither one of us is the same!
