A Changed Life

The Testimony of Walter Green

I have been going to church since childhood, but the time that I came to know the Lord Jesus as my personal Savior was in the summer of 1976. Some friends, family, and I were on our way to play basketball when we came across a tent set up on the street corner. I received Jesus in my heart that very day. I would like to say that I have been walking with Him faithfully since then, but I truly can't say that.

I have been a lot of places and have done a lot of things; one thing I know to hold true is that Jesus will never leave you. A person may wander away from Jesus, but he never leaves you. I made a lot of bad choices in my life and paid dearly for them. Alcohol and drugs, just to name two, took a toll on my life. These habits kept me broke, broken-hearted, and lonely, not to mention jobless.

In His mercy and goodness, the Lord showed me the Winston-Salem Rescue Mission. In the late 80's, I started coming to the Mission: good food, nice and hot, clothes to change daily, and chapel to attend nightly. I was just like anyone else-once I got the proper rest, a few clothes, and a little money from the jobs they pay you to do, I would leave, only to return again. And they would always welcome me back.

Well, to make a long story short, in 2001, I returned to the Mission once again. By God's grace, He blessed me to grab hold of what the Rescue Mission had to offer me and put it all to use. I started working in the warehouse at the loading dock. Soon I was the warehouse worker that had a plan for life and truly wanted it to work. After some months working the dock, I became the Assistant Dock Supervisor. More months went by, and I was blessed to be the Dock Supervisor. More months passed, and I found myself in the position of Assistant Warehouse Manager.

While working at the Mission, I then started going to school at Forsyth Tech. Some loose ends of my busy life needed tidying up, so I started working on my GED. While all this good stuff was going on, it got better. The Lord Jesus blessed me with a job-a good job that pays well and has total benefits. Soon after this, the Lord blessed me with my own apartment, and I have a car that I got from the Mission. I'm active in my church and still have goals for my life. Where will the Lord put me next? I don't know, but I'm so glad He led my path to the Winston-Salem Rescue Mission. I don't dot all my i's or cross all my t's, but I do know that Jesus loves me and although I may fall, He'll pick me up.