April 22, 2024 • 11 mins
Josiah is a father of three and military veteran who spent three decades of his life battling addiction to drugs and alcohol. After countless failed stints in rehab and counseling, he shares the secret he discovered that finally led to freedom. Watch the full video episode on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@SnapshotTestimony
Resources Mentioned:
Karl and Crew Mornings - https://www.moodyradio.org/programs/karl-and-crew-mornings/
The 7 Resolutions - https://www.7resolutions.com/
Donate to Moody Radio: http://moodyradio.org/donateto/podcast/snapshottestimony
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Ally Domercant (00:00):
Welcome to the Snapshot Testimony podcast. I'm your host, Ally Domercant .
In this podcast, I ask my guests to share one
pivotal moment that helped shape their faith in Christ. In
this episode, you're going to meet Josiah. He's a father
of three and a military veteran. His addiction to substances
started early in life, and for a while he thought
(00:20):
he could manage it until he couldn't. Maybe you or
someone you know who's been there. It would eventually cost
him his marriage and his relationship with his kids. At
rock bottom, he turned on a podcast and heard a
story that sounded a lot like his own, but with
an approach to freedom that was unlike anything he'd heard.
Here's a snapshot testimony from Josiah.
Josiah (00:49):
You know, I grew up in a great household. Uh,
my parents loved me. I didn't have any issues with
that growing up. You know, they went through divorce, and
I was a little rough on me, but, um, just
growing up, I. As soon as I tried my first
taste of alcohol, I always wanted to have some sort
of something in. It made me to change the way
I felt. And, um, it led to. An addiction. Had
(01:11):
a pretty early age. Um, but I was functioning with it.
I went into the military, um, drank really heavily and
was not as happy as I thought I could be. Yeah.
Did that for four years, got out, and there was
a six year span where I worked out in the
oil field driving trucks and. I was so unhappy I
(01:31):
just could not find peace. And I was looking for
other jobs. I was looking for a way out of
just being miserable and having to take something every day
to change the way I felt. And after about a
year of searching, I was able to get back in
the military. I was like, oh, here we go. This
is going to change everything. I want to be happy.
And yeah, um, and not need substances to, to get
(01:51):
through my life. And that lasted for about a year.
And I started struggling again, and I went about another
six years and I introduced myself to methamphetamine. And that's
when it all just started crashing down. And. I didn't
realize how quick that I lost everything, but I was
(02:13):
asked to leave the military. I was asked by my
wife for divorce and I had three kids at this time.
They moved away and I exited the military and I
was in a very, very dark place, very dark. Um,
and I need to go back and say that my
I was introduced to, to the Lord when I was younger.
My family, we did go to church occasionally, but I
(02:34):
knew of God and I knew what Jesus had done
come and die for our sins. But and I actually
had some youth event, had gone up and and prayed
for the Lord to come into my heart. And but
that was it. I didn't change, but it was always
in the back of my mind. So when I fast forward,
back to when I was still in the military and
I had gotten addicted to the drugs really bad, um,
(02:57):
I guess God was still there waiting for me to
come to him. And yeah, and I went for about
another three years trying to quit, and I couldn't, I couldn't, um, yeah.
Ally Domercant (03:10):
So you turn on this Family Life podcast, and the
guest that day was Karl Clauson , who is a dear
friend of mine all. We co-host Karl and crew mornings together,
a show that you listen to and Karl's story. Uh,
you you really related to Karl? Went through his own, uh,
battle with addiction. What did you hear that day that
(03:30):
really caught your ear?
Josiah (03:33):
When he was talking about his book, The Seven Resolutions,
he was speaking about. Uh. Not trying to fix things
on your own. Self-Help, you know? Yep. And I had
been to so many rehabs, so many hours of counseling, therapy. And,
you know, it's all about working on yourself and getting
yourself better and taking these steps and forgiving yourself and
all these things that I was trying and nothing worked.
(03:56):
And when I heard him talk about, you know, giving
up and letting God come in and fix your life
and having a humble posture, you know, admitting that you
can do nothing without the Lord. That's when something started
making sense to me. And, um, I got out of
school that day. I came home and I bought this
book on Amazon, and it got it got to my
(04:18):
house a couple days later. And that's the first book
I had read in like 20 something years. And I
read it every morning. I would read a piece of
it and, um, yeah, by this time, and I will
say I had stopped using the drugs, but I was
I was on alcohol. I could not stop that. I,
I had a amazing woman that God brought into my
life that. Helped me through getting off of drugs, but
(04:40):
I could not stop drinking and I was. She had
finally had to leave me because I couldn't get my
stuff together. So I was drinking every night. Um, a very,
very bad depression. And the day I started reading this book,
I stopped drinking. Um, I actually went to a, um,
celebrate Recovery meeting. Wow. And it just so happened that
(05:02):
they were starting a step study the following week. So
I met a group of guys, um, that started walking
through the the the the Celebrate Recovery steps with me
and also reading Karl's book. And that's when the Holy
Spirit came into my life and just started helping me.
You know, I, I can't explain it other than that
(05:24):
his power, because I could not put the drink down for,
you know, by this time, like 40, you know, about
30 years I had been drinking, so.
Ally Domercant (05:32):
Wow.
So you read this book, you start going to celebrate recovery.
Were you, like, aware that, like, wow, I'm. I'm like changing.
Was it. Were you surprised yourself? Like, I don't I'm
not even sure what's happening here. Or was it like
kind of happened. And then you look back and realized it.
Josiah (05:51):
Um, well, I just every day that I didn't drink,
it was a surprise to me because, I mean, I
had leaned on that for so long. Um, but it
was just it was it was so shocking and amazing
to know that that God could come in and and
and change me. And I had never allowed him to
do that before. And it was really cool because every
(06:14):
day I would do the right thing. It was like
motivation to get up the next morning and do the
right thing again and let God change me for that day,
you know? And then next thing I know, I'm six
months down the road and I'm like, wow, I haven't
had anything to drink. And, um, it was just undeniable
that he was the one doing it.
And yeah.
My I started getting my relationship back with my kids. Um,
(06:37):
like I said, I have three kids and I started
spending more time with them. They. They are loving it.
Ally Domercant (06:43):
Wow.
So what's life look like for you now? Because this
has now been, um, what, 18 months now or, uh.
Josiah (06:51):
Let's see. Yeah. Yes, ma'am. Okay. About a year and
a half since I stopped drinking and. And it's about
three years since I've been off drugs altogether, so.
Ally Domercant (07:00):
Wow.
Josiah (07:01):
Well, I moved, I was, I was living two hours
away from where my kids were. I moved back at
the beginning of this year. Um, I see them all
throughout the week. Most of the time on weekends. I'll
have one of them. So, um, I've become the spiritual
leader of my house. That is amazing. Yeah. Uh, I
used to force myself to pray every now and then,
(07:21):
and it would feel really awkward. Mhm. Now I'm able to,
you know, to pray with my kids and, and introduce
them to the Lord. And, and they've seen him change
me and I'm active in my church. Um. You know,
listening to you guys on your radio show, it's really, uh,
it's really helped me to. Become active in my church.
(07:42):
Go serve. I'm a film maker going to school for
for videography. So I joined the the production team at
my church and and trying to meet other believers and just,
you know, stuck in my corner with people that can
can have my back if something does happen, you know.
Ally Domercant (07:58):
That's awesome.
So what would you say to the person who is
listening and who's maybe where you were at? I mean,
addiction is such a man. It's a it's a dark
thing because like you said, like you it's it feels inescapable.
Like we it's like this web that you keep getting
caught up in. What would you say to the person
who's where you were at? Like, man, I've tried the programs,
(08:20):
I've tried the, you know, the vow, the promise to myself,
I'll never drink or do this again. What would you
say to somebody who was who's there?
Josiah (08:31):
You have to join God. That has to be the
first step. It has to be because. If not, you
can't change yourself, especially if you're you've kind of lived
in it with addiction for so long. Um, I mean,
that that is the undeniable truth is God has to
be there with you to make you take that step
to to get away from addiction.
Ally Domercant (08:53):
Yeah. Yeah.
And the cool thing about your story is that you,
like the addiction is a big part of it. But
addicted or not, like new life in Christ, everybody needs,
you know, like the person who's addicted, the person who's
a a, you know, a businessman who feels like they're
on top of the world and, you know, like, we
(09:14):
all need Jesus, right?
Josiah (09:17):
Yes, ma'am. Yeah. Um, you know, now that I'm, I'm,
you know, with through the grace of God, I'm able
to not drink or do drugs, but I still struggle.
You know, I struggle every day with whether it be
laziness or not, using my time wisely or, um, you know,
lust or whatever, that most, most men probably do it. Sure. Um,
it reminds me daily that I guess I still need
(09:39):
God just because I'm. He's allowed me to get a
grip on that. That doesn't mean that I don't need
him every single day and. Yeah. And. Yeah. So that's why,
you know, like you said, no matter what your advice is.
Jesus is the only way to to get, you know,
ahead of it, you know.
Ally Domercant (09:54):
Yeah.
To freedom. I love the the subtitle. So it's the
seven resolutions, uh, where self-help ends and God's power begins.
It's that whole, like you said, that putting aside that
self-help that I can somehow make myself better. I mean,
that that didn't work for you doesn't work for me.
(10:14):
I mean, self-help is a lie. It really is, right?
Josiah (10:17):
Absolutely. Yes, ma'am. It is. And and like I was
saying earlier, when you grow up, when you kind of
raised in a, in a treatment environment because you've been
struggling with something so long, that's the complete opposite of
what you're told.
Ally Domercant (10:28):
Yeah.
Josiah (10:29):
And, and it's just an amazing thing to know that
the same God that created this earth is the one
that's going to help you out. As long as you
humble yourself before him, it, you know, you can get
to God's help. And yeah, I never thought about being
humble to God before, and now I do. And I
think that really helps me get through situations.
Ally Domercant (10:47):
Check out seven resolutions.com for more on the book and
other resources. Snapshot testimony is a moody radio podcast. If
you like what you're hearing, make sure to like and
subscribe so you don't miss an episode. I'm your host,
Ally Domercant , and together we're sharing the moments that shape
a life of faith in Christ.
Welcome to the Snapshot Testimony podcast. I'm your host, Ally Domercant .
In this podcast, I ask my guests to share one
pivotal moment that helped shape their faith in Christ. In
this episode, you're going to meet Josiah. He's a father
of three and a military veteran. His addiction to substances
started early in life, and for a while he thought
(00:20):
he could manage it until he couldn't. Maybe you or
someone you know who's been there. It would eventually cost
him his marriage and his relationship with his kids. At
rock bottom, he turned on a podcast and heard a
story that sounded a lot like his own, but with
an approach to freedom that was unlike anything he'd heard.
Here's a snapshot testimony from Josiah.
Josiah (00:49):
You know, I grew up in a great household. Uh,
my parents loved me. I didn't have any issues with
that growing up. You know, they went through divorce, and
I was a little rough on me, but, um, just
growing up, I. As soon as I tried my first
taste of alcohol, I always wanted to have some sort
of something in. It made me to change the way
I felt. And, um, it led to. An addiction. Had
(01:11):
a pretty early age. Um, but I was functioning with it.
I went into the military, um, drank really heavily and
was not as happy as I thought I could be. Yeah.
Did that for four years, got out, and there was
a six year span where I worked out in the
oil field driving trucks and. I was so unhappy I
(01:31):
just could not find peace. And I was looking for
other jobs. I was looking for a way out of
just being miserable and having to take something every day
to change the way I felt. And after about a
year of searching, I was able to get back in
the military. I was like, oh, here we go. This
is going to change everything. I want to be happy.
And yeah, um, and not need substances to, to get
(01:51):
through my life. And that lasted for about a year.
And I started struggling again, and I went about another
six years and I introduced myself to methamphetamine. And that's
when it all just started crashing down. And. I didn't
realize how quick that I lost everything, but I was
(02:13):
asked to leave the military. I was asked by my
wife for divorce and I had three kids at this time.
They moved away and I exited the military and I
was in a very, very dark place, very dark. Um,
and I need to go back and say that my
I was introduced to, to the Lord when I was younger.
My family, we did go to church occasionally, but I
(02:34):
knew of God and I knew what Jesus had done
come and die for our sins. But and I actually
had some youth event, had gone up and and prayed
for the Lord to come into my heart. And but
that was it. I didn't change, but it was always
in the back of my mind. So when I fast forward,
back to when I was still in the military and
I had gotten addicted to the drugs really bad, um,
(02:57):
I guess God was still there waiting for me to
come to him. And yeah, and I went for about
another three years trying to quit, and I couldn't, I couldn't, um, yeah.
Ally Domercant (03:10):
So you turn on this Family Life podcast, and the
guest that day was Karl Clauson , who is a dear
friend of mine all. We co-host Karl and crew mornings together,
a show that you listen to and Karl's story. Uh,
you you really related to Karl? Went through his own, uh,
battle with addiction. What did you hear that day that
(03:30):
really caught your ear?
Josiah (03:33):
When he was talking about his book, The Seven Resolutions,
he was speaking about. Uh. Not trying to fix things
on your own. Self-Help, you know? Yep. And I had
been to so many rehabs, so many hours of counseling, therapy. And,
you know, it's all about working on yourself and getting
yourself better and taking these steps and forgiving yourself and
all these things that I was trying and nothing worked.
(03:56):
And when I heard him talk about, you know, giving
up and letting God come in and fix your life
and having a humble posture, you know, admitting that you
can do nothing without the Lord. That's when something started
making sense to me. And, um, I got out of
school that day. I came home and I bought this
book on Amazon, and it got it got to my
(04:18):
house a couple days later. And that's the first book
I had read in like 20 something years. And I
read it every morning. I would read a piece of
it and, um, yeah, by this time, and I will
say I had stopped using the drugs, but I was
I was on alcohol. I could not stop that. I,
I had a amazing woman that God brought into my
life that. Helped me through getting off of drugs, but
(04:40):
I could not stop drinking and I was. She had
finally had to leave me because I couldn't get my
stuff together. So I was drinking every night. Um, a very,
very bad depression. And the day I started reading this book,
I stopped drinking. Um, I actually went to a, um,
celebrate Recovery meeting. Wow. And it just so happened that
(05:02):
they were starting a step study the following week. So
I met a group of guys, um, that started walking
through the the the the Celebrate Recovery steps with me
and also reading Karl's book. And that's when the Holy
Spirit came into my life and just started helping me.
You know, I, I can't explain it other than that
(05:24):
his power, because I could not put the drink down for,
you know, by this time, like 40, you know, about
30 years I had been drinking, so.
Ally Domercant (05:32):
Wow.
So you read this book, you start going to celebrate recovery.
Were you, like, aware that, like, wow, I'm. I'm like changing.
Was it. Were you surprised yourself? Like, I don't I'm
not even sure what's happening here. Or was it like
kind of happened. And then you look back and realized it.
Josiah (05:51):
Um, well, I just every day that I didn't drink,
it was a surprise to me because, I mean, I
had leaned on that for so long. Um, but it
was just it was it was so shocking and amazing
to know that that God could come in and and
and change me. And I had never allowed him to
do that before. And it was really cool because every
(06:14):
day I would do the right thing. It was like
motivation to get up the next morning and do the
right thing again and let God change me for that day,
you know? And then next thing I know, I'm six
months down the road and I'm like, wow, I haven't
had anything to drink. And, um, it was just undeniable
that he was the one doing it.
And yeah.
My I started getting my relationship back with my kids. Um,
(06:37):
like I said, I have three kids and I started
spending more time with them. They. They are loving it.
Ally Domercant (06:43):
Wow.
So what's life look like for you now? Because this
has now been, um, what, 18 months now or, uh.
Josiah (06:51):
Let's see. Yeah. Yes, ma'am. Okay. About a year and
a half since I stopped drinking and. And it's about
three years since I've been off drugs altogether, so.
Ally Domercant (07:00):
Wow.
Josiah (07:01):
Well, I moved, I was, I was living two hours
away from where my kids were. I moved back at
the beginning of this year. Um, I see them all
throughout the week. Most of the time on weekends. I'll
have one of them. So, um, I've become the spiritual
leader of my house. That is amazing. Yeah. Uh, I
used to force myself to pray every now and then,
(07:21):
and it would feel really awkward. Mhm. Now I'm able to,
you know, to pray with my kids and, and introduce
them to the Lord. And, and they've seen him change
me and I'm active in my church. Um. You know,
listening to you guys on your radio show, it's really, uh,
it's really helped me to. Become active in my church.
(07:42):
Go serve. I'm a film maker going to school for
for videography. So I joined the the production team at
my church and and trying to meet other believers and just,
you know, stuck in my corner with people that can
can have my back if something does happen, you know.
Ally Domercant (07:58):
That's awesome.
So what would you say to the person who is
listening and who's maybe where you were at? I mean,
addiction is such a man. It's a it's a dark
thing because like you said, like you it's it feels inescapable.
Like we it's like this web that you keep getting
caught up in. What would you say to the person
who's where you were at? Like, man, I've tried the programs,
(08:20):
I've tried the, you know, the vow, the promise to myself,
I'll never drink or do this again. What would you
say to somebody who was who's there?
Josiah (08:31):
You have to join God. That has to be the
first step. It has to be because. If not, you
can't change yourself, especially if you're you've kind of lived
in it with addiction for so long. Um, I mean,
that that is the undeniable truth is God has to
be there with you to make you take that step
to to get away from addiction.
Ally Domercant (08:53):
Yeah. Yeah.
And the cool thing about your story is that you,
like the addiction is a big part of it. But
addicted or not, like new life in Christ, everybody needs,
you know, like the person who's addicted, the person who's
a a, you know, a businessman who feels like they're
on top of the world and, you know, like, we
(09:14):
all need Jesus, right?
Josiah (09:17):
Yes, ma'am. Yeah. Um, you know, now that I'm, I'm,
you know, with through the grace of God, I'm able
to not drink or do drugs, but I still struggle.
You know, I struggle every day with whether it be
laziness or not, using my time wisely or, um, you know,
lust or whatever, that most, most men probably do it. Sure. Um,
it reminds me daily that I guess I still need
(09:39):
God just because I'm. He's allowed me to get a
grip on that. That doesn't mean that I don't need
him every single day and. Yeah. And. Yeah. So that's why,
you know, like you said, no matter what your advice is.
Jesus is the only way to to get, you know,
ahead of it, you know.
Ally Domercant (09:54):
Yeah.
To freedom. I love the the subtitle. So it's the
seven resolutions, uh, where self-help ends and God's power begins.
It's that whole, like you said, that putting aside that
self-help that I can somehow make myself better. I mean,
that that didn't work for you doesn't work for me.
(10:14):
I mean, self-help is a lie. It really is, right?
Josiah (10:17):
Absolutely. Yes, ma'am. It is. And and like I was
saying earlier, when you grow up, when you kind of
raised in a, in a treatment environment because you've been
struggling with something so long, that's the complete opposite of
what you're told.
Ally Domercant (10:28):
Yeah.
Josiah (10:29):
And, and it's just an amazing thing to know that
the same God that created this earth is the one
that's going to help you out. As long as you
humble yourself before him, it, you know, you can get
to God's help. And yeah, I never thought about being
humble to God before, and now I do. And I
think that really helps me get through situations.
Ally Domercant (10:47):
Check out seven resolutions.com for more on the book and
other resources. Snapshot testimony is a moody radio podcast. If
you like what you're hearing, make sure to like and
subscribe so you don't miss an episode. I'm your host,
Ally Domercant , and together we're sharing the moments that shape
a life of faith in Christ.
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