March 11, 2025 • 29 mins
Mike shares his regret in choosing the wrong friends as a teenager and how that led him down a path of great pain. There are so many amazing anecdotes and emotional stories with powerful lessons. As is true in all our lives, God was there working all along the way to bring Mike back from the destruction he had bound himself to. On a night when God was working in Mike's heart and he was sensitive to listen, he had a friend that brought him to SafeHouse Ministries where God got hold of Mike's heart and turned his feet on a path to victory.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Phil Shuler (00:05):
HellO, and welcome to Renew, Restore, Rejoice, the
Safe House Ministries podcast,where we share stories of the
power of God to change livesthrough Safe House Ministries.
Safe House Ministries is basedout of Columbus, Georgia, and we
are a ministry that exists tolove and serve people who have
been affected by addiction,homelessness, and incarceration.
I'm your host, Phil Shuler, theDirector of Development for Safe
(00:27):
House Ministries here inColumbus, Georgia.
Safe House serves over 1, 100people each month as they
transition back into ourcommunity.
Safe House provides an abundanceof services including 213 beds
for homeless individuals andfamilies, case management for
obtaining job skills and longterm employment.
Over 300 hot meals every day,free clothing, and so much more.
(00:48):
One of the most incredibleservices that Safe House
provides is our free 9 12 monthintensive outpatient substance
abuse program, which is statelicensed, CARF accredited, and
has no wait list.
Almost 100 percent ofindividuals staying in our
shelters who follow our threephase program become fully
employed within a few months.
And 68 percent of individualswho stay at least one night with
(01:09):
us End up finding work andmoving into their own home.
Thank you for being with ustoday and listening to our
podcast.
We hope you enjoy this week'sepisode.
Phil (01:18):
Good morning this morning on the podcast.
I have got Mike Singleton withme and Mike was another person
that one of my colleaguesRecommended I get on the podcast
because he's got a great storyand He is doing really well now
That was not always the case soMike Thank you for being here,
man.
Mike (01:37):
It's good to have you.
Phil (01:39):
I'm glad you're here and glad you're willing to share
your story to be anencouragement to others.
Mike, I got a quick question foryou.
If you had to pick one word thatwould best describe you, what
would that word be?
Mike (01:53):
I reckon it'd be outgoing.
Phil (01:55):
Alright, outgoing.
That's a good word.
How do you mean?
What is, what about you wouldyou say exhibits being outgoing?
Outgoing.
Mike (02:02):
I'm a very energetic person.
I like to get outdoors.
I enjoy hunting, fishing andstuff like that.
Phil (02:09):
Yeah.
You like being outside.
Mike (02:11):
Yes, sir.
Phil (02:11):
That's awesome, man.
Good.
Sitting up in a tree, waiting ona deer.
Mike (02:15):
That's right.
Phil (02:16):
All right.
Good.
Did you get anything thisseason?
Mike (02:20):
No, I actually didn't go this season.
I've been working too much.
Phil (02:23):
Alright, okay.
Working's a good thing too.
Mike let's jump in.
Just tell me, where you grew upand what growing up was like for
you.
Mike (02:33):
I grew up in North Island on 6th Avenue.
Growing up was I guess you couldsay my parents always took care
of me.
Never around that druglifestyle, never around any kind
of violence, anything like that.
Grew up in a church family,Baptist.
Just pretty much well raisedgrowing up.
Phil (02:51):
That's good.
That's a blessing.
It's a blessing a lot of peopledon't have.
Yeah.
I
Mike (02:55):
was very blessed to have a caring grandma and mother and
father which really took care ofme.
My grandma raised me to be kindand be nice.
Yeah.
Phil (03:06):
That's good.
So your grandma raised you?
Mike (03:09):
My grandma and my mom.
We lived in my grandma's house.
Phil (03:11):
Okay.
Alright.
So it was you and your grandmaand your mom?
Yes.
Okay.
Your dad not in the picture?
Yes.
Mike (03:18):
Dad's always been in the picture.
It's just when my dad and momsplit up for a few years and got
back together and then split upagain.
Oh wow.
That's cool.
But when you have, he's alwaysbeen in the picture though.
Phil (03:29):
Okay.
Okay.
So just whether in the housewith you or maybe just in the
picture, but not in the house.
Yes, sir.
Okay.
All right.
Tell me that like that as youwere growing older what began to
steer you in a path that led totrouble?
Mike (03:46):
I can say the trouble began around 15 years old.
I tried my first beer.
Still in school.
Played football.
I tried my first beer and Itried my first cigarette.
And I guess that's, you can sayit was a gateway to later on
down the road.
Phil (04:01):
Yeah, what led you to take that first step?
Was it
Mike (04:04):
just hanging around friends?
Hanging around certain group ofguys You know just I hung around
a lot of older people when I wasyounger.
So yeah, I guess that's whatkind of encouraged it and I just
started.
Okay.
Phil (04:19):
Had your parents ever said don't ever do these kind of
things?
Oh, of course.
And you just were like, eh, Idon't care.
I'm gonna try it out.
Yeah, of course.
Yeah.
So what began to happen fromthere?
Mike (04:29):
I grew a little older, about 17 or 18.
Started smoking marijuana.
And then the marijuana led tosome other things.
Led to meth use.
Very heavy meth use from thetime I was 18 to let's see about
Phil (04:43):
30,
Mike (04:44):
31 years old.
Phil (04:44):
Wow.
That's a really fastprogression.
At least it seems so 17, 18 soyou just jumped in and full
speed into the world of drugs.
Was that again, just related tothe people that you were with
and they're encouraging you totry it out or what?
Mike (05:01):
Yeah, I can, I say so.
Phil (05:04):
Yeah.
Were there ever things in yourlife that tried to pull you back
out of that?
Were your parents aware that youwere in that way and that they
like, what was that aspect oflife?
Mike (05:15):
My mom, she She tried time after time again when I started
to drinking.
And then I started hanging outwith friends even more at
parties and stuff.
And she just kept trying andnagging at me like, This is not
the road you want to go down.
And then, she just kept naggingand nagging at me.
And I just wouldn't listen.
Wish I would have.
Yeah.
Phil (05:35):
Was she aware from an early point or were you?
Oh yes.
Doing those like from the firstkind of the beginning was she
aware that you had starteddrinking or?
She was
Mike (05:45):
aware.
I'm not gonna say she didn'tcare.
I mean she really did care butI'm not, she didn't, I'm not
gonna say try harder.
Phil (05:54):
Yeah.
Mike (05:54):
I guess she thought because I was at home doing it,
it was.
She didn't condone it.
Not one bit.
Phil (06:00):
That's
Mike (06:00):
what I'm trying to
Phil (06:01):
say.
She didn't maybe didn't realizeit was as dangerous and serious
a thing as it actually was.
Yes.
Okay.
How about your dad?
Did he know at the time?
Mike (06:10):
Oh yeah.
Phil (06:11):
Was he strongly trying to encourage you to stay out of
that or was he like, eh,
Mike (06:16):
Yeah, he was trying to, yes.
Phil (06:18):
Okay.
18 years old, you're intoMatthews were you still in high
school?
Did you finish high school
Mike (06:26):
or?
I didn't finish high school.
I wish I would have.
I can say about 11th grade momcame in there and she's are you
going to school?
And then I was like, no.
And then I dropped out of schooland that's when the drinking got
worse and then marijuana gotworse.
I say roughly around 1920 Istarted doing the meth.
(06:46):
Okay.
And then still at home, I saystill at home with mom.
And then later on down the road,comes down the road.
I venture off of my own finallyand ended up staying at the
hotel rooms.
And
Phil (06:59):
how'd you get the money for that?
Those things?
So like you, you had like earlytwenties, you left your house.
I was started working for'em.
I was working
Mike (07:07):
for the Patels, they own the famous Bamboo Motel room.
That's where I was introduced tothe meth, really.
So
Phil (07:14):
you were working for the people that ran the hotels, or
owned the hotels.
Yes, sir.
And then that, that allowed youto stay in the hotel.
Mike (07:22):
That allowed me to stay there, and then, of course, I
started selling drugs.
And that's what really increasedmy meth use.
Phil (07:31):
Did the, were the hotel managers and everybody, were
they aware of all of that?
They were.
Mike (07:37):
They just, as long as I did my job, they stayed out of
my business.
Okay.
Other than that, yes.
When the heavy use of the drugswow.
Phil (07:45):
So there was a whole little drug business inside or
the location of the hotel.
Oh yeah.
There's a lot of drug activity,
Mike (07:54):
bad lifestyle, that's where I pretty much met the
devil in my
Phil (07:59):
eyes.
Wow.
Yeah.
When you say that what makes yousay that?
Mike (08:04):
Just the lifestyle the feelings, the, the loneliness,
the emptiness inside of me, Iknew it was there, but at the
time I just didn't care.
I didn't, I don't know, one wasthe drugs, the money, the
lifestyle.
You notice that just thatlifestyle was just, fun to me at
the time.
Phil (08:23):
Yeah.
Mike (08:23):
And yeah, it was just like, I was in this world, but I
wasn't, wow.
Phil (08:29):
Wow.
So when the highs wore off.
You just were hit with extremelows, like in your spirit and
your mind and your heart justexactly and that I guess that
would just drive you to get theroller coaster back up on the
high with the drugs and the sexand just everything, the money,
all that, but in the
Mike (08:49):
end it, that's all in a nutshell, what you just said, it
was just, it's every time I wokeup, I had to go get it, I had to
go get that.
I had to, And then when thenightfall came, it was like a
big disco in front of him, aroom, it's I don't know.
It's just the lifestyle thatdrove me and drove me crazy.
Phil (09:07):
Wow.
Makes me think of the verse inthe Bible that I think it's in
James, maybe the play or Jamesor Hebrews, the pleasures of sin
are.
For a season only, like they'retemporary, they're fleeting,
like you, you get those highsand those feelings of happiness,
but then it's gone so fast andit leaves you with just great
(09:31):
depths of emptiness anddarkness.
And it's interesting the way youdescribed it as actually just
meeting the devil like that's.
He loves to destroy people'slives like that.
Yes, he does.
Where were your parents duringthat time?
Were they still trying to keepin touch and trying to pull you
out of that?
Or were they just, you justYeah?
Mike (09:49):
They were.
They were trying to pull me outof it.
They kept trying to get me to goto rehabs.
And, at this time I had kids aswell.
Wow,
Phil (09:57):
how many kids?
Mike (09:58):
I have five now.
Okay.
At the time I only had one.
In your early 20s?
In my 23 I had my first child.
Okay.
And, my mama, of course, gotcustody of him because of the
drug use.
So And she'd bring him by timeand time to visit and he got to
(10:18):
an age where he like, wherelike, where his daddy, that
sadly was still not enough topull me away.
Was his mom in the picture?
Yeah, my wife now of 11 years.
We're still together.
Okay.
That's another thing.
She's been with me all
Phil (10:31):
through the
Mike (10:31):
addiction.
Phil (10:32):
Wow.
Now was she in that world withyou?
Like of her own?
Like in the addictions and thedarkness herself?
Mike (10:38):
Yes, sir.
Okay.
Yeah, she's We got together.
She never used any drugs untilshe met me.
She did, but she wasn't no methuser.
And we got into that lifestyle,man.
And it's just like a whirlwind.
It took us down through therepretty bad.
Phil (10:54):
Wow.
Wow.
Yeah.
So when you guys, obviously,both of you, when you, she got
pregnant and you guys had a,what's your son's name?
My son's name's Aiden.
Aiden, okay.
My first child, yes.
Was it immediate that your momor your grandma got custody or
was that?
No, it was,
Mike (11:11):
we kept our drug use hidden from everybody that
didn't know.
We tried to keep it on thetable.
The people that did know, didn'tforce DHR or anything like that
into our life.
Until a certain point where theythought, we were doing it around
them or we were Not fit to takecare of them, which in my eyes
(11:35):
now that I should have beenunfit the whole time But I could
say I've never done it around mychildren, you know I always put
them to bed and we'll go outsideor we'll go another area, But
yeah, they always tried to Pullthe kids away from us, but not
Legally, yeah,
Phil (11:53):
so after Aiden you had a few more kids But I know they
were still all in your custodyat the time.
Mike (11:58):
Aiden My mom and then a few years later.
We had another child and Ofcourse she tested positive Baby
had it, And he got took and put.
The baby tested positive forlike drugs in his system?
She did at the time when she wasgoing to her doctor,
Phil (12:16):
okay, so they immediately took that baby from the
beginning.
They took him,
Mike (12:19):
put him through another family member, which I see every
so often now.
Phil (12:24):
now who's that one with?
The same wife, her name'sBrittany.
Okay so Aiden was with your momand grandma.
Yes.
And then, what's the name of theSecond child.
Mike (12:34):
The second name is Trendon.
Trent,
Phil (12:36):
Trendon?
Mike (12:37):
Trendon.
Phil (12:37):
Okay.
Trendon's with somebody otherthan your mom.
She's with my,
Mike (12:41):
he's with my cousin,
Phil (12:42):
yes.
Okay.
Mike (12:43):
We continue the drug life,
Phil (12:44):
and Brittany you said was your wife's name?
Brittany.
were you guys both together justliving in the hotel room
together?
That was your life?
Mike (12:49):
Yes, sir.
Phil (12:50):
Okay.
Mike (12:51):
Yeah, we was just staying in hotel rooms, bouncing around
here and there, all of them fromabout 280 down everywhere.
And that's how we were justliving our life, man, until
right about, let's say, it wasbefore October of 2020.
She left me.
And What brought that about?
Was She just got tired of it.
Phil (13:12):
Tired of life.
She wanted her children back.
Okay, so she wanted to have abetter life.
But you weren't interested inthat at the time.
Mike (13:19):
Not at the time, until one of my good friends, his name's
Danny Bellflower, this is how itall began at Safe House.
My wife left me, of course.
She left me.
Were y'all
Phil (13:30):
married then, or were y'all
Mike (13:32):
Yeah, we're married.
Phil (13:33):
Okay, so you were married at that time?
Yeah,
Mike (13:34):
we've been married since June 26th of 16.
Okay.
Yeah, so we've been married, butlike I said, getting into that
lifestyle.
Yeah.
And on down the road.
I'm trying to get it to thepoint where.
Phil (13:47):
Yeah.
Yeah, so your friend Danny.
He was the one that encouragedyou to maybe try to get out of
that and get some help.
I encouraged him first, believeit or not.
Mike (13:55):
Yeah?
Yeah.
I encouraged him to go.
He was getting where he couldn'tfunction really.
He was losing it, yeah.
Paranoid, schizophrenic andstuff, and he was just, didn't
have nowhere else to go.
He was just burning bridgeseverywhere, and I seen him down.
I didn't know if I have myfriend anymore, just the things
(14:16):
he was doing.
Yeah.
And I encouraged him.
I was like, look, man, there'splaces you can go to get help.
This is me still in myaddiction.
Phil (14:26):
Yeah.
Mike (14:27):
Telling him like, Hey man, you can go get help.
Just go get help.
Go get your life together.
But what he's like, what are yougoing to do?
I said, I guess I'm going tostay here and keep trucking,
man.
Two months comes around, threemonths I ain't heard nothing
from him, and finally fourmonths comes around, he's
pulling up in a brand new car.
I was like, where you at?
And he's I'm at the safe house.
And I said, I'm at the GraceHouse.
(14:49):
I was like, what's the GraceHouse?
And he was like, man, it's whereyou want to go to get to know
God.
And he just kept coming back atme.
Finally, he's getting ready tograduate and he finally graduate
Phil (15:01):
from the Tomorrow's Hope substance abuse treatment
program.
He's
Mike (15:04):
getting ready to graduate and he's, the whole time he's
been at this place, he's comingto me showing me these nice
things, showing me, what I couldhave and showing me what I could
do, how I could change.
And it's getting to me everytime.
And then, I talked to God, eventhrough my addition, I talked to
God.
And I can hear him through otherpeople saying, get off the
(15:26):
drugs, get off the meth, andthis is one night right before
Danny came back to get me.
I was just sitting outside myhotel room and looking down at
this sign, it just said office.
And I kept looking at it and Ikept looking at it and by the
time Danny shows up, it's likemorning time.
I'm staying inside all night.
And Danny shows up and I look athis signs like, man, what do you
(15:46):
think that sign says?
It's telling me something.
I'm high.
I'm thinking, crazy things.
And I looked down and I said, itsays off ice.
It says off ice.
Get off the ice.
Then he said, get in the car,man.
You're going with me.
Wow.
So I jumped in the car.
I got no shirt on.
I show up at the safe house,pastor Eric comes out, and you
gotta have a shirt on, man, likethat.
And I was like, I don't haveone.
(16:08):
But we gonna find you one, comeon they give me a shirt, and
I'll go in there and sit down 30minutes to an hour.
Next thing I'm at the GraceHouse.
Which is the men's shelter atthe time.
At the time, it's a women'sshelter now.
Next thing I'm at the GraceHouse.
Wow.
And Danny's graduating, and Ifeel like I'm alone again.
He's
Phil (16:27):
gone.
So he's got his life together.
He's gotten clean through theTomorrow's Hope program.
He's gotten a job and gottenstability and he's off doing
well.
And now you're just getting intothe Just now
Mike (16:39):
getting there and then he walks me to the gate and says, I
can't go in man, I gotta go.
He's but I'll be around, I'll behere.
And I watched him leave and hegoes over to this little
warehouse right across thestreet.
I was like, I'm thinking like,where is he going?
Later on he comes back, abouttwo weeks later, he brings me a
phone, he's gonna bought me aphone, he's gonna bought me
clothes, he's got me where to aplace where I feel free again.
(17:02):
I'm two weeks clean, I'm like,wow, man.
Still got urges to leave, and hekeeps coming back for me, and he
came back for me again, andagain.
I'm sitting here, and I'm,Talking to God one night.
I'm like, I'm just like, thankyou.
Thank you, Lord, thank you forthis place.
And then my life began at thesafe house again.
Wow.
Phil (17:22):
Wow.
Man, that is amazing.
Yeah.
So you, they got you pluggedinto the Tomorrow's Hope program
as well.
Yes.
So you were getting thatsubstance abuse treatment
therapy and just going throughthe process of getting some job
training and life training andgetting back on your feet.
Yes.
Mike (17:41):
And then, I guess about a month later, I found out what
the warehouse was.
He was over there working.
Yeah.
He got me a job over therecutting grass with him.
And I started working with him.
At the time, I couldn't workbecause tomorrow's hope didn't
want you
Phil (17:55):
working.
You have to have a certainamount of time.
A certain amount of time.
And therapy.
And to get that stability beforeyou're allowed to go work.
Mike (18:02):
Yes, and that led to me I went to class, I kept going to
class for about another month ortwo, and I was waiting for them
to get released from the work,and then Something came up, just
putting back 30 days, and Mebeing so stubborn, I said can I
just drop out tomorrow so I canstay at Grace House?
And work, and stay clean, andDanny's No, do not do that.
(18:23):
You're gonna graduate tomorrow,so man, just like I did, maybe
in stubborn, I did it anyway.
And ended up dropping out of theTomorrow's Hope program, staying
at Grace House, working, goingto meetings, going to meetings,
any meetings, going to churchevery Sunday to Fort, and kept
going and kept going to about myseventh month of being there at
(18:45):
Grace House.
I just decided to go home.
I felt like I had God with me,and I felt like Danny brought me
to, back to the Lord's feet.
Yeah.
And I was
Phil (18:56):
When you say go home where was home?
Mike (18:58):
My mom finally got a place out there on Highway 80, and she
needed help, and I figured Icould be back with my kids.
My wife was still at hergrandma's, cause she's where she
went to go get clean.
Yeah.
I just figured I can go home andI had enough of the Lord with me
and I met enough and got to knowhim, reading my Bible, going to
(19:18):
the fort, so I went home, andDanny supported it.
He supported it.
He was there every day.
He'd come get me for work, Istill work with him every day
leading up to, It's tragic.
His death, led up to him dying.
Oh, wow.
He eventually, he traveled backout.
And it really broke my heart.
He, so he did what now?
He traveled back out.
(19:38):
He His mom, his mama got sick.
Yeah.
And if Danny, his mom, they wereinseparable.
Yeah.
And I just don't think hecouldn't take it.
Phil (19:47):
So when his mom got sick,
Mike (19:48):
she was in, yeah, he was in, she was in the hospital and
I just don't think he couldtook, his dad.
I don't know.
I'm not going to say that, butthat's what I think it was.
And he just, he turned back tothe drugs.
Phil (20:00):
Was that just when his mom was sick or did she pass away
and that's what turned?
Yeah, he passed, she passedaway.
And I
Mike (20:07):
guess he, he went back into the drugs just because he
couldn't handle it.
Yes.
And that's, I just look at itlike, that man saved my life.
Safe House saved my life, andfor him to do that, I owe my
sobriety to him.
Wow.
And that's one of the reasonsit's one of the reasons I stay
clean today, and I thank DannyBelfly for it, and I thank Safe
(20:30):
House Ministries, they
Phil (20:32):
saved my life.
So you were out living with yourmom and that's when Danny's mom
got sick and then That ended upshe passed and he took his own
life.
Mike (20:42):
He didn't take his life.
Yeah, it's the drugs Overdosedmaybe yes, he overdosed I Was
working one day.
It's actually I found anotherjob This is later on just a
couple months after I foundanother job and he was still
working you know, I'm stillseeing him calling him whatever
and I was working with this guy,Peyton, and got a phone call
(21:04):
saying that, Danny hadoverdosed.
Phil (21:07):
Oh.
And it Did you know did you knowDanny had gone back to that and
you were trying to get him?
I didn't know.
You didn't know?
I didn't know.
Mike (21:15):
I sensed it a little bit, I could tell by some of his
actions just the way he was.
I was He's carrying himself.
It seemed different.
Phil (21:23):
Yeah
Mike (21:23):
and that night of, that day of, it happened, the day, it
was that night when it happened,but the day I seen him, he was
fine, I was taking him to myphone bill money, and he was
still, still on his contract Iwas taking him to the phone bill
money I owed him, and, he shookhands, gave me a hug, I was
like, I love you brother, he waslike, I was like, you okay?
He was like, nah, but I will be,I said, all right, man, you
(21:46):
would call me later at night.
He called me and he was like hesaid, my office won't let you
know.
Thank you for following myfootsteps.
And I'm so glad to help you getout of that addiction like you
did me.
There's one.
Let you know.
I love you, Mike.
I love you too, Danny.
Call me tomorrow.
He said, All right.
And by that time I was over byhis apartment and I just felt
(22:06):
something weird.
I wanted to go over there butsomething just led me into
another direction and I got thephone call the next morning.
So yeah, it me for a while, I'mstill not over it.
What, how long ago was that?
Man, it was back in it was aboutfour years
Phil (22:22):
ago,
Mike (22:23):
it had
Phil (22:23):
to be about four years ago.
Were you Were you stable andstaying clean, or did that kind
of rock your boat?
Mike (22:31):
No, it really didn't man, cause like I said it, everyday I
fight it.
And you know what they say, oncean addict always an addict, I do
believe in that, cause it's trueto me.
I still have little, tiny littleurges, I still have dreams about
it, and it's The one thing thatkeeps me going is God and
another thing that keeps megoing is my memories with Danny.
(22:54):
You know that.
Yeah.
He got me.
He got me clean.
Wow.
Like he restored my life.
Which of course, God first, but
Phil (23:02):
yeah
Mike (23:03):
he was the vessel
Phil (23:04):
Yeah.
Tell me about that journey ofyou of just building the clean
time so you're with your mom,Danny passed, and you're just,
you're still committed to stayon that path.
Mike (23:16):
I'm still going to meetings.
Just to continue to stay on thepath was just, like I said, the
memories with Danny.
Still working, still going, likeI said, still going to A& M
meetings.
Still talking to my sponsor atthe time, which he's passed away
too.
I'm still talking to Bobby Brownon if you ever heard of him was
still going to church a littlewhile after Danny had passed.
(23:39):
But then I fell apart from thatcause that's where, I don't
know, I'm going to say it was anexcuse that, going to church
because it's not an excuse, butI just seem fit not to go
because he's not there, yeah Butstill watching it online still
like I said still working stillgoing to classes and staying
strong.
Phil (23:59):
Yeah And now at what point did you get back together with
Brittany?
Mike (24:04):
She came back I'd say about three or four months after
I left the Grace House.
Phil (24:09):
Okay.
To you, to your mom's house withyou?
Yeah, to my mom's house.
Okay.
And did you get in, you guys hadall the kids or some of the kids
at that point?
We got
Mike (24:17):
two of them.
Okay.
We got my youngest, his name'sTaylan and he's four.
And then we got Aiden, which is11.
Okay.
And we also got a little girl.
She's four too.
She's five.
Her name's Jayden.
Awesome.
Awesome.
Awesome.
And she's got a step.
She's got a son, which is mystepson.
His name is Michael.
Phil (24:37):
Okay.
She got him, during the time shehad left you.
No, she had him before I gotwith her.
Okay.
He's he's 13.
Oh, wow.
Okay.
All right.
So you guys are come backtogether as a family and she's
clean at that point and she'sdoing well.
Yeah.
And you guys just kept buildingon that success and up to where
you are now?
(24:57):
Yes, sir.
Okay.
So you got three of the kids.
Now do you guys go to meetingstogether or do you guys
separately go to your ownmeetings home groups and
Mike (25:07):
no she don't Believe it or not.
She didn't use none of thisnetworking.
She didn't go to rehab like Idid she didn't get treatment.
She just quit co turkey.
Wow, and I commend her for itlike I don't see how she did it
I really don't Wow I guess shejust had a drive, she got tired
of it and said you go clean orI'm not coming back.
(25:29):
That's how it was wow.
And it took me a while, torealize she wasn't coming back
and it would never be me and heragain unless I left my demons
and my drugs alone, so that'swhat I did.
Phil (25:43):
Wow.
Man, praise the Lord for thevictory he's given.
Just praise the Lord for Dannyand for Safe House and
tomorrow's hope and just wow.
Mike (25:56):
Yeah, I don't know where I would be today without Safe
House Ministries.
they opened their doors to meand I knew God again.
As soon as I went there, it ledme to the fourth church and I
knew God again and I haven't letthat go.
Amen.
He never let me go, I walkedaway from him, but he never left
(26:16):
my side.
Yeah.
It's that's why I use thissaying that God created
everybody equal, but he createda blind man, but he created that
blind man so he has to walk byhis side so that blind man sees
better than us.
That's been, I heard that fromsomebody before and I just
touched my heart, so that blindman can see.
He can't see, but he can see,
Phil (26:36):
yeah.
Yeah.
Mike (26:38):
That's where I look at it, wow.
But yeah, Safe House Ministriesreally saved my life.
There are so many amazing thingsabout Mike's story.
The way that the Lord spoke tohim through that billboard, the
sign which said office, and theLord somehow got the message
into Mike's mind that he wastelling him to get off the ice.
(27:01):
I love the fact that he had afriend, Danny, that he
encouraged Danny to get out ofthe craziness and the drug
addictions, and then Dannystarted doing well and turned
around and got His friend Mikeout so many lessons to learn so
many things to ponder about thejourney that Mike had the danger
(27:22):
of teenagers who start out withdrinking and smoking and then
they hang around the wrongpeople and Start going down a
wrong path and parents who tryto get the teenagers out but
maybe sometimes just don't thinkthat It's that big a deal that
they'll be okay that they'llfigure it out on their own I
(27:44):
don't know it's as a parent Itis difficult.
It's so difficult to know howfar to go and how much to push
And just what to do sometimes toprotect your kids to correct
your kids Get them away fromdanger I don't know it's tough
but I tell you what it isSomething that is worth really
(28:07):
thinking about.
we can't change the past, but wecan learn.
We can learn from the past inour own lives, and we can learn
from the stories in the past inother people's lives.
And we can try to gain wisdom toapply for the future.
So, I hope you've enjoyed thispodcast.
Next week, Mike's gonna be backagain, and he's gonna share with
(28:28):
us that Even after the victory,life sometimes is still
challenging and things aredifficult and you have to keep
pushing forward, constantlybeing aware of the enemy and the
danger that he poses.
Mike's going to also pull outsome really good key lessons.
And share those with us nextweek.
(28:49):
So I hope you'll come back, I'mexcited, I've enjoyed talking
with Mike and I hope you have agreat week and I look forward to
having you back and just beingwith Mike again next week.
God bless you.
Phil Shuler (29:03):
We look forward to being with you again next week
as we share another testimonyabout the power and the goodness
of God to change lives throughSafe House Ministries.
if you are someone listening tothis podcast that loves to hear
these stories of the greatthings that God is doing in
changing people's lives for thebetter, and if you would like to
be a part of that work, pleasereach out to us You can reach us
(29:26):
at 2101 Hamilton Road, Columbus,Georgia, 31,904.
You can call us at seven oh sixthree two two.
3 7, 7 3, or you can email us atinfo@safehouse-ministries.com.
Microphone (Samson Q2U Mi (29:41):
Thank you so much for being with us
this week for the renew restoreand rejoice podcast of safe
house ministries, we pray thatGod will bless you this week.
And we look forward to havingyou back with us again next week
for a new episode.
HellO, and welcome to Renew, Restore, Rejoice, the
Safe House Ministries podcast,where we share stories of the
power of God to change livesthrough Safe House Ministries.
Safe House Ministries is basedout of Columbus, Georgia, and we
are a ministry that exists tolove and serve people who have
been affected by addiction,homelessness, and incarceration.
I'm your host, Phil Shuler, theDirector of Development for Safe
(00:27):
House Ministries here inColumbus, Georgia.
Safe House serves over 1, 100people each month as they
transition back into ourcommunity.
Safe House provides an abundanceof services including 213 beds
for homeless individuals andfamilies, case management for
obtaining job skills and longterm employment.
Over 300 hot meals every day,free clothing, and so much more.
(00:48):
One of the most incredibleservices that Safe House
provides is our free 9 12 monthintensive outpatient substance
abuse program, which is statelicensed, CARF accredited, and
has no wait list.
Almost 100 percent ofindividuals staying in our
shelters who follow our threephase program become fully
employed within a few months.
And 68 percent of individualswho stay at least one night with
(01:09):
us End up finding work andmoving into their own home.
Thank you for being with ustoday and listening to our
podcast.
We hope you enjoy this week'sepisode.
Phil (01:18):
Good morning this morning on the podcast.
I have got Mike Singleton withme and Mike was another person
that one of my colleaguesRecommended I get on the podcast
because he's got a great storyand He is doing really well now
That was not always the case soMike Thank you for being here,
man.
Mike (01:37):
It's good to have you.
Phil (01:39):
I'm glad you're here and glad you're willing to share
your story to be anencouragement to others.
Mike, I got a quick question foryou.
If you had to pick one word thatwould best describe you, what
would that word be?
Mike (01:53):
I reckon it'd be outgoing.
Phil (01:55):
Alright, outgoing.
That's a good word.
How do you mean?
What is, what about you wouldyou say exhibits being outgoing?
Outgoing.
Mike (02:02):
I'm a very energetic person.
I like to get outdoors.
I enjoy hunting, fishing andstuff like that.
Phil (02:09):
Yeah.
You like being outside.
Mike (02:11):
Yes, sir.
Phil (02:11):
That's awesome, man.
Good.
Sitting up in a tree, waiting ona deer.
Mike (02:15):
That's right.
Phil (02:16):
All right.
Good.
Did you get anything thisseason?
Mike (02:20):
No, I actually didn't go this season.
I've been working too much.
Phil (02:23):
Alright, okay.
Working's a good thing too.
Mike let's jump in.
Just tell me, where you grew upand what growing up was like for
you.
Mike (02:33):
I grew up in North Island on 6th Avenue.
Growing up was I guess you couldsay my parents always took care
of me.
Never around that druglifestyle, never around any kind
of violence, anything like that.
Grew up in a church family,Baptist.
Just pretty much well raisedgrowing up.
Phil (02:51):
That's good.
That's a blessing.
It's a blessing a lot of peopledon't have.
Yeah.
I
Mike (02:55):
was very blessed to have a caring grandma and mother and
father which really took care ofme.
My grandma raised me to be kindand be nice.
Yeah.
Phil (03:06):
That's good.
So your grandma raised you?
Mike (03:09):
My grandma and my mom.
We lived in my grandma's house.
Phil (03:11):
Okay.
Alright.
So it was you and your grandmaand your mom?
Yes.
Okay.
Your dad not in the picture?
Yes.
Mike (03:18):
Dad's always been in the picture.
It's just when my dad and momsplit up for a few years and got
back together and then split upagain.
Oh wow.
That's cool.
But when you have, he's alwaysbeen in the picture though.
Phil (03:29):
Okay.
Okay.
So just whether in the housewith you or maybe just in the
picture, but not in the house.
Yes, sir.
Okay.
All right.
Tell me that like that as youwere growing older what began to
steer you in a path that led totrouble?
Mike (03:46):
I can say the trouble began around 15 years old.
I tried my first beer.
Still in school.
Played football.
I tried my first beer and Itried my first cigarette.
And I guess that's, you can sayit was a gateway to later on
down the road.
Phil (04:01):
Yeah, what led you to take that first step?
Was it
Mike (04:04):
just hanging around friends?
Hanging around certain group ofguys You know just I hung around
a lot of older people when I wasyounger.
So yeah, I guess that's whatkind of encouraged it and I just
started.
Okay.
Phil (04:19):
Had your parents ever said don't ever do these kind of
things?
Oh, of course.
And you just were like, eh, Idon't care.
I'm gonna try it out.
Yeah, of course.
Yeah.
So what began to happen fromthere?
Mike (04:29):
I grew a little older, about 17 or 18.
Started smoking marijuana.
And then the marijuana led tosome other things.
Led to meth use.
Very heavy meth use from thetime I was 18 to let's see about
Phil (04:43):
30,
Mike (04:44):
31 years old.
Phil (04:44):
Wow.
That's a really fastprogression.
At least it seems so 17, 18 soyou just jumped in and full
speed into the world of drugs.
Was that again, just related tothe people that you were with
and they're encouraging you totry it out or what?
Mike (05:01):
Yeah, I can, I say so.
Phil (05:04):
Yeah.
Were there ever things in yourlife that tried to pull you back
out of that?
Were your parents aware that youwere in that way and that they
like, what was that aspect oflife?
Mike (05:15):
My mom, she She tried time after time again when I started
to drinking.
And then I started hanging outwith friends even more at
parties and stuff.
And she just kept trying andnagging at me like, This is not
the road you want to go down.
And then, she just kept naggingand nagging at me.
And I just wouldn't listen.
Wish I would have.
Yeah.
Phil (05:35):
Was she aware from an early point or were you?
Oh yes.
Doing those like from the firstkind of the beginning was she
aware that you had starteddrinking or?
She was
Mike (05:45):
aware.
I'm not gonna say she didn'tcare.
I mean she really did care butI'm not, she didn't, I'm not
gonna say try harder.
Phil (05:54):
Yeah.
Mike (05:54):
I guess she thought because I was at home doing it,
it was.
She didn't condone it.
Not one bit.
Phil (06:00):
That's
Mike (06:00):
what I'm trying to
Phil (06:01):
say.
She didn't maybe didn't realizeit was as dangerous and serious
a thing as it actually was.
Yes.
Okay.
How about your dad?
Did he know at the time?
Mike (06:10):
Oh yeah.
Phil (06:11):
Was he strongly trying to encourage you to stay out of
that or was he like, eh,
Mike (06:16):
Yeah, he was trying to, yes.
Phil (06:18):
Okay.
18 years old, you're intoMatthews were you still in high
school?
Did you finish high school
Mike (06:26):
or?
I didn't finish high school.
I wish I would have.
I can say about 11th grade momcame in there and she's are you
going to school?
And then I was like, no.
And then I dropped out of schooland that's when the drinking got
worse and then marijuana gotworse.
I say roughly around 1920 Istarted doing the meth.
(06:46):
Okay.
And then still at home, I saystill at home with mom.
And then later on down the road,comes down the road.
I venture off of my own finallyand ended up staying at the
hotel rooms.
And
Phil (06:59):
how'd you get the money for that?
Those things?
So like you, you had like earlytwenties, you left your house.
I was started working for'em.
I was working
Mike (07:07):
for the Patels, they own the famous Bamboo Motel room.
That's where I was introduced tothe meth, really.
So
Phil (07:14):
you were working for the people that ran the hotels, or
owned the hotels.
Yes, sir.
And then that, that allowed youto stay in the hotel.
Mike (07:22):
That allowed me to stay there, and then, of course, I
started selling drugs.
And that's what really increasedmy meth use.
Phil (07:31):
Did the, were the hotel managers and everybody, were
they aware of all of that?
They were.
Mike (07:37):
They just, as long as I did my job, they stayed out of
my business.
Okay.
Other than that, yes.
When the heavy use of the drugswow.
Phil (07:45):
So there was a whole little drug business inside or
the location of the hotel.
Oh yeah.
There's a lot of drug activity,
Mike (07:54):
bad lifestyle, that's where I pretty much met the
devil in my
Phil (07:59):
eyes.
Wow.
Yeah.
When you say that what makes yousay that?
Mike (08:04):
Just the lifestyle the feelings, the, the loneliness,
the emptiness inside of me, Iknew it was there, but at the
time I just didn't care.
I didn't, I don't know, one wasthe drugs, the money, the
lifestyle.
You notice that just thatlifestyle was just, fun to me at
the time.
Phil (08:23):
Yeah.
Mike (08:23):
And yeah, it was just like, I was in this world, but I
wasn't, wow.
Phil (08:29):
Wow.
So when the highs wore off.
You just were hit with extremelows, like in your spirit and
your mind and your heart justexactly and that I guess that
would just drive you to get theroller coaster back up on the
high with the drugs and the sexand just everything, the money,
all that, but in the
Mike (08:49):
end it, that's all in a nutshell, what you just said, it
was just, it's every time I wokeup, I had to go get it, I had to
go get that.
I had to, And then when thenightfall came, it was like a
big disco in front of him, aroom, it's I don't know.
It's just the lifestyle thatdrove me and drove me crazy.
Phil (09:07):
Wow.
Makes me think of the verse inthe Bible that I think it's in
James, maybe the play or Jamesor Hebrews, the pleasures of sin
are.
For a season only, like they'retemporary, they're fleeting,
like you, you get those highsand those feelings of happiness,
but then it's gone so fast andit leaves you with just great
(09:31):
depths of emptiness anddarkness.
And it's interesting the way youdescribed it as actually just
meeting the devil like that's.
He loves to destroy people'slives like that.
Yes, he does.
Where were your parents duringthat time?
Were they still trying to keepin touch and trying to pull you
out of that?
Or were they just, you justYeah?
Mike (09:49):
They were.
They were trying to pull me outof it.
They kept trying to get me to goto rehabs.
And, at this time I had kids aswell.
Wow,
Phil (09:57):
how many kids?
Mike (09:58):
I have five now.
Okay.
At the time I only had one.
In your early 20s?
In my 23 I had my first child.
Okay.
And, my mama, of course, gotcustody of him because of the
drug use.
So And she'd bring him by timeand time to visit and he got to
(10:18):
an age where he like, wherelike, where his daddy, that
sadly was still not enough topull me away.
Was his mom in the picture?
Yeah, my wife now of 11 years.
We're still together.
Okay.
That's another thing.
She's been with me all
Phil (10:31):
through the
Mike (10:31):
addiction.
Phil (10:32):
Wow.
Now was she in that world withyou?
Like of her own?
Like in the addictions and thedarkness herself?
Mike (10:38):
Yes, sir.
Okay.
Yeah, she's We got together.
She never used any drugs untilshe met me.
She did, but she wasn't no methuser.
And we got into that lifestyle,man.
And it's just like a whirlwind.
It took us down through therepretty bad.
Phil (10:54):
Wow.
Wow.
Yeah.
So when you guys, obviously,both of you, when you, she got
pregnant and you guys had a,what's your son's name?
My son's name's Aiden.
Aiden, okay.
My first child, yes.
Was it immediate that your momor your grandma got custody or
was that?
No, it was,
Mike (11:11):
we kept our drug use hidden from everybody that
didn't know.
We tried to keep it on thetable.
The people that did know, didn'tforce DHR or anything like that
into our life.
Until a certain point where theythought, we were doing it around
them or we were Not fit to takecare of them, which in my eyes
(11:35):
now that I should have beenunfit the whole time But I could
say I've never done it around mychildren, you know I always put
them to bed and we'll go outsideor we'll go another area, But
yeah, they always tried to Pullthe kids away from us, but not
Legally, yeah,
Phil (11:53):
so after Aiden you had a few more kids But I know they
were still all in your custodyat the time.
Mike (11:58):
Aiden My mom and then a few years later.
We had another child and Ofcourse she tested positive Baby
had it, And he got took and put.
The baby tested positive forlike drugs in his system?
She did at the time when she wasgoing to her doctor,
Phil (12:16):
okay, so they immediately took that baby from the
beginning.
They took him,
Mike (12:19):
put him through another family member, which I see every
so often now.
Phil (12:24):
now who's that one with?
The same wife, her name'sBrittany.
Okay so Aiden was with your momand grandma.
Yes.
And then, what's the name of theSecond child.
Mike (12:34):
The second name is Trendon.
Trent,
Phil (12:36):
Trendon?
Mike (12:37):
Trendon.
Phil (12:37):
Okay.
Trendon's with somebody otherthan your mom.
She's with my,
Mike (12:41):
he's with my cousin,
Phil (12:42):
yes.
Okay.
Mike (12:43):
We continue the drug life,
Phil (12:44):
and Brittany you said was your wife's name?
Brittany.
were you guys both together justliving in the hotel room
together?
That was your life?
Mike (12:49):
Yes, sir.
Phil (12:50):
Okay.
Mike (12:51):
Yeah, we was just staying in hotel rooms, bouncing around
here and there, all of them fromabout 280 down everywhere.
And that's how we were justliving our life, man, until
right about, let's say, it wasbefore October of 2020.
She left me.
And What brought that about?
Was She just got tired of it.
Phil (13:12):
Tired of life.
She wanted her children back.
Okay, so she wanted to have abetter life.
But you weren't interested inthat at the time.
Mike (13:19):
Not at the time, until one of my good friends, his name's
Danny Bellflower, this is how itall began at Safe House.
My wife left me, of course.
She left me.
Were y'all
Phil (13:30):
married then, or were y'all
Mike (13:32):
Yeah, we're married.
Phil (13:33):
Okay, so you were married at that time?
Yeah,
Mike (13:34):
we've been married since June 26th of 16.
Okay.
Yeah, so we've been married, butlike I said, getting into that
lifestyle.
Yeah.
And on down the road.
I'm trying to get it to thepoint where.
Phil (13:47):
Yeah.
Yeah, so your friend Danny.
He was the one that encouragedyou to maybe try to get out of
that and get some help.
I encouraged him first, believeit or not.
Mike (13:55):
Yeah?
Yeah.
I encouraged him to go.
He was getting where he couldn'tfunction really.
He was losing it, yeah.
Paranoid, schizophrenic andstuff, and he was just, didn't
have nowhere else to go.
He was just burning bridgeseverywhere, and I seen him down.
I didn't know if I have myfriend anymore, just the things
(14:16):
he was doing.
Yeah.
And I encouraged him.
I was like, look, man, there'splaces you can go to get help.
This is me still in myaddiction.
Phil (14:26):
Yeah.
Mike (14:27):
Telling him like, Hey man, you can go get help.
Just go get help.
Go get your life together.
But what he's like, what are yougoing to do?
I said, I guess I'm going tostay here and keep trucking,
man.
Two months comes around, threemonths I ain't heard nothing
from him, and finally fourmonths comes around, he's
pulling up in a brand new car.
I was like, where you at?
And he's I'm at the safe house.
And I said, I'm at the GraceHouse.
(14:49):
I was like, what's the GraceHouse?
And he was like, man, it's whereyou want to go to get to know
God.
And he just kept coming back atme.
Finally, he's getting ready tograduate and he finally graduate
Phil (15:01):
from the Tomorrow's Hope substance abuse treatment
program.
He's
Mike (15:04):
getting ready to graduate and he's, the whole time he's
been at this place, he's comingto me showing me these nice
things, showing me, what I couldhave and showing me what I could
do, how I could change.
And it's getting to me everytime.
And then, I talked to God, eventhrough my addition, I talked to
God.
And I can hear him through otherpeople saying, get off the
(15:26):
drugs, get off the meth, andthis is one night right before
Danny came back to get me.
I was just sitting outside myhotel room and looking down at
this sign, it just said office.
And I kept looking at it and Ikept looking at it and by the
time Danny shows up, it's likemorning time.
I'm staying inside all night.
And Danny shows up and I look athis signs like, man, what do you
(15:46):
think that sign says?
It's telling me something.
I'm high.
I'm thinking, crazy things.
And I looked down and I said, itsays off ice.
It says off ice.
Get off the ice.
Then he said, get in the car,man.
You're going with me.
Wow.
So I jumped in the car.
I got no shirt on.
I show up at the safe house,pastor Eric comes out, and you
gotta have a shirt on, man, likethat.
And I was like, I don't haveone.
(16:08):
But we gonna find you one, comeon they give me a shirt, and
I'll go in there and sit down 30minutes to an hour.
Next thing I'm at the GraceHouse.
Which is the men's shelter atthe time.
At the time, it's a women'sshelter now.
Next thing I'm at the GraceHouse.
Wow.
And Danny's graduating, and Ifeel like I'm alone again.
He's
Phil (16:27):
gone.
So he's got his life together.
He's gotten clean through theTomorrow's Hope program.
He's gotten a job and gottenstability and he's off doing
well.
And now you're just getting intothe Just now
Mike (16:39):
getting there and then he walks me to the gate and says, I
can't go in man, I gotta go.
He's but I'll be around, I'll behere.
And I watched him leave and hegoes over to this little
warehouse right across thestreet.
I was like, I'm thinking like,where is he going?
Later on he comes back, abouttwo weeks later, he brings me a
phone, he's gonna bought me aphone, he's gonna bought me
clothes, he's got me where to aplace where I feel free again.
(17:02):
I'm two weeks clean, I'm like,wow, man.
Still got urges to leave, and hekeeps coming back for me, and he
came back for me again, andagain.
I'm sitting here, and I'm,Talking to God one night.
I'm like, I'm just like, thankyou.
Thank you, Lord, thank you forthis place.
And then my life began at thesafe house again.
Wow.
Phil (17:22):
Wow.
Man, that is amazing.
Yeah.
So you, they got you pluggedinto the Tomorrow's Hope program
as well.
Yes.
So you were getting thatsubstance abuse treatment
therapy and just going throughthe process of getting some job
training and life training andgetting back on your feet.
Yes.
Mike (17:41):
And then, I guess about a month later, I found out what
the warehouse was.
He was over there working.
Yeah.
He got me a job over therecutting grass with him.
And I started working with him.
At the time, I couldn't workbecause tomorrow's hope didn't
want you
Phil (17:55):
working.
You have to have a certainamount of time.
A certain amount of time.
And therapy.
And to get that stability beforeyou're allowed to go work.
Mike (18:02):
Yes, and that led to me I went to class, I kept going to
class for about another month ortwo, and I was waiting for them
to get released from the work,and then Something came up, just
putting back 30 days, and Mebeing so stubborn, I said can I
just drop out tomorrow so I canstay at Grace House?
And work, and stay clean, andDanny's No, do not do that.
(18:23):
You're gonna graduate tomorrow,so man, just like I did, maybe
in stubborn, I did it anyway.
And ended up dropping out of theTomorrow's Hope program, staying
at Grace House, working, goingto meetings, going to meetings,
any meetings, going to churchevery Sunday to Fort, and kept
going and kept going to about myseventh month of being there at
(18:45):
Grace House.
I just decided to go home.
I felt like I had God with me,and I felt like Danny brought me
to, back to the Lord's feet.
Yeah.
And I was
Phil (18:56):
When you say go home where was home?
Mike (18:58):
My mom finally got a place out there on Highway 80, and she
needed help, and I figured Icould be back with my kids.
My wife was still at hergrandma's, cause she's where she
went to go get clean.
Yeah.
I just figured I can go home andI had enough of the Lord with me
and I met enough and got to knowhim, reading my Bible, going to
(19:18):
the fort, so I went home, andDanny supported it.
He supported it.
He was there every day.
He'd come get me for work, Istill work with him every day
leading up to, It's tragic.
His death, led up to him dying.
Oh, wow.
He eventually, he traveled backout.
And it really broke my heart.
He, so he did what now?
He traveled back out.
(19:38):
He His mom, his mama got sick.
Yeah.
And if Danny, his mom, they wereinseparable.
Yeah.
And I just don't think hecouldn't take it.
Phil (19:47):
So when his mom got sick,
Mike (19:48):
she was in, yeah, he was in, she was in the hospital and
I just don't think he couldtook, his dad.
I don't know.
I'm not going to say that, butthat's what I think it was.
And he just, he turned back tothe drugs.
Phil (20:00):
Was that just when his mom was sick or did she pass away
and that's what turned?
Yeah, he passed, she passedaway.
And I
Mike (20:07):
guess he, he went back into the drugs just because he
couldn't handle it.
Yes.
And that's, I just look at itlike, that man saved my life.
Safe House saved my life, andfor him to do that, I owe my
sobriety to him.
Wow.
And that's one of the reasonsit's one of the reasons I stay
clean today, and I thank DannyBelfly for it, and I thank Safe
(20:30):
House Ministries, they
Phil (20:32):
saved my life.
So you were out living with yourmom and that's when Danny's mom
got sick and then That ended upshe passed and he took his own
life.
Mike (20:42):
He didn't take his life.
Yeah, it's the drugs Overdosedmaybe yes, he overdosed I Was
working one day.
It's actually I found anotherjob This is later on just a
couple months after I foundanother job and he was still
working you know, I'm stillseeing him calling him whatever
and I was working with this guy,Peyton, and got a phone call
(21:04):
saying that, Danny hadoverdosed.
Phil (21:07):
Oh.
And it Did you know did you knowDanny had gone back to that and
you were trying to get him?
I didn't know.
You didn't know?
I didn't know.
Mike (21:15):
I sensed it a little bit, I could tell by some of his
actions just the way he was.
I was He's carrying himself.
It seemed different.
Phil (21:23):
Yeah
Mike (21:23):
and that night of, that day of, it happened, the day, it
was that night when it happened,but the day I seen him, he was
fine, I was taking him to myphone bill money, and he was
still, still on his contract Iwas taking him to the phone bill
money I owed him, and, he shookhands, gave me a hug, I was
like, I love you brother, he waslike, I was like, you okay?
He was like, nah, but I will be,I said, all right, man, you
(21:46):
would call me later at night.
He called me and he was like hesaid, my office won't let you
know.
Thank you for following myfootsteps.
And I'm so glad to help you getout of that addiction like you
did me.
There's one.
Let you know.
I love you, Mike.
I love you too, Danny.
Call me tomorrow.
He said, All right.
And by that time I was over byhis apartment and I just felt
(22:06):
something weird.
I wanted to go over there butsomething just led me into
another direction and I got thephone call the next morning.
So yeah, it me for a while, I'mstill not over it.
What, how long ago was that?
Man, it was back in it was aboutfour years
Phil (22:22):
ago,
Mike (22:23):
it had
Phil (22:23):
to be about four years ago.
Were you Were you stable andstaying clean, or did that kind
of rock your boat?
Mike (22:31):
No, it really didn't man, cause like I said it, everyday I
fight it.
And you know what they say, oncean addict always an addict, I do
believe in that, cause it's trueto me.
I still have little, tiny littleurges, I still have dreams about
it, and it's The one thing thatkeeps me going is God and
another thing that keeps megoing is my memories with Danny.
(22:54):
You know that.
Yeah.
He got me.
He got me clean.
Wow.
Like he restored my life.
Which of course, God first, but
Phil (23:02):
yeah
Mike (23:03):
he was the vessel
Phil (23:04):
Yeah.
Tell me about that journey ofyou of just building the clean
time so you're with your mom,Danny passed, and you're just,
you're still committed to stayon that path.
Mike (23:16):
I'm still going to meetings.
Just to continue to stay on thepath was just, like I said, the
memories with Danny.
Still working, still going, likeI said, still going to A& M
meetings.
Still talking to my sponsor atthe time, which he's passed away
too.
I'm still talking to Bobby Brownon if you ever heard of him was
still going to church a littlewhile after Danny had passed.
(23:39):
But then I fell apart from thatcause that's where, I don't
know, I'm going to say it was anexcuse that, going to church
because it's not an excuse, butI just seem fit not to go
because he's not there, yeah Butstill watching it online still
like I said still working stillgoing to classes and staying
strong.
Phil (23:59):
Yeah And now at what point did you get back together with
Brittany?
Mike (24:04):
She came back I'd say about three or four months after
I left the Grace House.
Phil (24:09):
Okay.
To you, to your mom's house withyou?
Yeah, to my mom's house.
Okay.
And did you get in, you guys hadall the kids or some of the kids
at that point?
We got
Mike (24:17):
two of them.
Okay.
We got my youngest, his name'sTaylan and he's four.
And then we got Aiden, which is11.
Okay.
And we also got a little girl.
She's four too.
She's five.
Her name's Jayden.
Awesome.
Awesome.
Awesome.
And she's got a step.
She's got a son, which is mystepson.
His name is Michael.
Phil (24:37):
Okay.
She got him, during the time shehad left you.
No, she had him before I gotwith her.
Okay.
He's he's 13.
Oh, wow.
Okay.
All right.
So you guys are come backtogether as a family and she's
clean at that point and she'sdoing well.
Yeah.
And you guys just kept buildingon that success and up to where
you are now?
(24:57):
Yes, sir.
Okay.
So you got three of the kids.
Now do you guys go to meetingstogether or do you guys
separately go to your ownmeetings home groups and
Mike (25:07):
no she don't Believe it or not.
She didn't use none of thisnetworking.
She didn't go to rehab like Idid she didn't get treatment.
She just quit co turkey.
Wow, and I commend her for itlike I don't see how she did it
I really don't Wow I guess shejust had a drive, she got tired
of it and said you go clean orI'm not coming back.
(25:29):
That's how it was wow.
And it took me a while, torealize she wasn't coming back
and it would never be me and heragain unless I left my demons
and my drugs alone, so that'swhat I did.
Phil (25:43):
Wow.
Man, praise the Lord for thevictory he's given.
Just praise the Lord for Dannyand for Safe House and
tomorrow's hope and just wow.
Mike (25:56):
Yeah, I don't know where I would be today without Safe
House Ministries.
they opened their doors to meand I knew God again.
As soon as I went there, it ledme to the fourth church and I
knew God again and I haven't letthat go.
Amen.
He never let me go, I walkedaway from him, but he never left
(26:16):
my side.
Yeah.
It's that's why I use thissaying that God created
everybody equal, but he createda blind man, but he created that
blind man so he has to walk byhis side so that blind man sees
better than us.
That's been, I heard that fromsomebody before and I just
touched my heart, so that blindman can see.
He can't see, but he can see,
Phil (26:36):
yeah.
Yeah.
Mike (26:38):
That's where I look at it, wow.
But yeah, Safe House Ministriesreally saved my life.
There are so many amazing thingsabout Mike's story.
The way that the Lord spoke tohim through that billboard, the
sign which said office, and theLord somehow got the message
into Mike's mind that he wastelling him to get off the ice.
(27:01):
I love the fact that he had afriend, Danny, that he
encouraged Danny to get out ofthe craziness and the drug
addictions, and then Dannystarted doing well and turned
around and got His friend Mikeout so many lessons to learn so
many things to ponder about thejourney that Mike had the danger
(27:22):
of teenagers who start out withdrinking and smoking and then
they hang around the wrongpeople and Start going down a
wrong path and parents who tryto get the teenagers out but
maybe sometimes just don't thinkthat It's that big a deal that
they'll be okay that they'llfigure it out on their own I
(27:44):
don't know it's as a parent Itis difficult.
It's so difficult to know howfar to go and how much to push
And just what to do sometimes toprotect your kids to correct
your kids Get them away fromdanger I don't know it's tough
but I tell you what it isSomething that is worth really
(28:07):
thinking about.
we can't change the past, but wecan learn.
We can learn from the past inour own lives, and we can learn
from the stories in the past inother people's lives.
And we can try to gain wisdom toapply for the future.
So, I hope you've enjoyed thispodcast.
Next week, Mike's gonna be backagain, and he's gonna share with
(28:28):
us that Even after the victory,life sometimes is still
challenging and things aredifficult and you have to keep
pushing forward, constantlybeing aware of the enemy and the
danger that he poses.
Mike's going to also pull outsome really good key lessons.
And share those with us nextweek.
(28:49):
So I hope you'll come back, I'mexcited, I've enjoyed talking
with Mike and I hope you have agreat week and I look forward to
having you back and just beingwith Mike again next week.
God bless you.
Phil Shuler (29:03):
We look forward to being with you again next week
as we share another testimonyabout the power and the goodness
of God to change lives throughSafe House Ministries.
if you are someone listening tothis podcast that loves to hear
these stories of the greatthings that God is doing in
changing people's lives for thebetter, and if you would like to
be a part of that work, pleasereach out to us You can reach us
(29:26):
at 2101 Hamilton Road, Columbus,Georgia, 31,904.
You can call us at seven oh sixthree two two.
3 7, 7 3, or you can email us atinfo@safehouse-ministries.com.
Microphone (Samson Q2U Mi (29:41):
Thank you so much for being with us
this week for the renew restoreand rejoice podcast of safe
house ministries, we pray thatGod will bless you this week.
And we look forward to havingyou back with us again next week
for a new episode.
Popular Podcasts
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.