“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” Hebrews 12:1.

Ever since his girls were taken away from him by Child Protective Services, Larry Jones has been on a mission to get them back.  Nothing else mattered.  He would jump through any hoop, go to any class, even stay at what he expected to be a dirty, smelly homeless shelter.

Larry had been a drug addict for 30 years, but when his chances of seeing his daughters – let alone of getting them back – were dependent on clean drug tests twice a week, he quit cold turkey.  He went to parenting and addiction classes, and he had the opportunity to visit his daughters in a supervised environment – a small room with big windows at the CPS headquarters – once a week. 

Larry was jumping through the hoops, but it wasn’t enough. He had two big problems:  he was homeless, and the friends with whom he was staying were still involved in the drug culture. His counselors sat him down and had a chat that went something like this:  Larry, this isn’t our first rodeo.  We’ve been doing this for 15 years.  We see that you’re changing – on the outside – and that’s great as far as it goes, but for you to be the dad these children need, you need to change on the inside.  Right now, you’re playing Russian roulette with your living situation.  One day, something’s gonna happen.  You’re gonna get depressed, and because the weed or the alcohol is there, you’re gonna use.

Larry protested that he had no place else to go, but his counselors told him about the Union Gospel Mission.  Fully expecting a depressing homeless shelter, Larry agreed to jump through what he thought would be just another hoop.  To his great surprise, the Mission became not only a real home, but the vehicle through which he discovered a relationship with Jesus Christ, the inner change of which his counselors spoke, and the best friends he has ever had.  He got his GED, his driver’s license and a new set of teeth.

Everyone noticed.  Larry went from one-room visits with his daughters to visits at the YWCA to visits in a home to unsupervised visits.  And Larry’s focus shifted.  The goal became not just to get his daughters back but to become the man God wanted him to be, the father his children needed him to be.  Larry now has a carte blanche invitation from the girls’ foster parents to visit whenever he wants.  He is a partner with them in his girls’ lives.

Toward the end of his time in the Mission’s recovery program, Larry started an internship at the Union Gospel Mission Thrift Stores.  His supervisors were so impressed by his work ethic that they offered him a full-time permanent position.  Now, Larry drives the donation truck three days a week, giving a face to the life change made possible by individuals’ donations, and works in the store two days a week, setting an example for interns and new employees.

Larry values the healing environment of the store and the ongoing accountability.  “I have a family here, too.  I let people speak into my life,” he said.  “If they say, we see this going on with you, I’m like, OK, I’ll take a look at that.  It opens my eyes.  I appreciate that because I don’t want to go back down that old road. It’s no longer an option.

“The healing and the recovery are going to continue.  I’m going on four years clean and sober. The Union Gospel Mission saved my life, and God brought me to the store so I can tell that story.”