My Name is Drew Barker. I am 19 years old and have been a Christian a little over two years.
God has delivered me from so much including: Homosexuality, Witchcraft, Suicidal thoughts and more.
My junior year of High School, I started coming out to people as being gay and surprisingly a lot of people were okay with it. A fact that is astounding here in the Bible Belt (The Bible Belt consists of much of the Southern United States extending west into Texas and Oklahoma.).
I had always known I was different, starting when I was a child. But never knew what to call it. Then I learned what being Gay was and I adopted that as my "label".
Long story short, my Mom found out and talked to the Youth Pastor at Church about it.
Later, he pulled me aside and talked to me about it after church. I put on the good little Christian façade and pretended to take it all in.
I came to find out, everyone was talking about me behind my back, and it really annoyed me greatly!
So I went to live with my Dad and Step-Mom in Oregon, they knew I was gay and they loved me regardless. In fact, I went to the PRIDE Parade while I was out there, they were very accepting.
But even out there, I was lonely.
I became severely depressed. I was happy when I was around people, but behind closed doors, I was miserable.
So I resorted to wanting to control my life through Witchcraft.
We lived within walking distance from a Border's book store and I would spend hours upon hours sitting in a chair taking notes from a book on Witchcraft because the book was like $30 and I had no job.
I was very into it, I knew a lot. I did a spell for money and it worked. I won't go into detail about the others.
But one night, I was sitting on the floor meditating and a figure was standing right in front of me, glowing white, just beautiful.
(I know now that it was Satan in the flesh, this was revealed to me as I am typing this now. Until this point I thought it was a demon.)
I was worshipping Satan. But to me, being a real-live witch, it was a Goddess.
I had Tarot cards, everything, I was very good at what I was doing. The last spell I ever done was for someone to love and here is where things got interesting:
So one day, I met this guy who seemed to really like me. I went over to his house and the rest is history.
This really tore me up because he wasn't texting back or talking to me in any way at all. So I talked to my stepmother about it that night (Friday).
The next morning I woke up and everything was gone..my laptop, my phone, everything.
I thought they were playing a joke on me, so I got up and took a shower and was washing my hair when my Dad pounded on the door. I told him I would be out in a few minutes.
When I came out of the bathroom, I got a huge lecture that basically ended with him telling me that they were shipping me back to North Carolina...I cried, but inside I was emotionless.
That was a very painful day, that ended with my trying to take my own life.
My Dad called me many hurtful things and a failure. My stepmother called me a waste of skin.
So you can see where I would want to die.
As you can tell though, I am here today.
I came back to North Carolina and had to live with my best friend because my step dad hates me, so I wasn't
allowed in their house.
I went to church with my best friend when I didn't want to,
but God had convicted me on the plane ride home and i knew i had to do
something... I went to the altar thinking if God can't take this, no
one can!
I look back at my life, up to the time I got saved and I thank God that he never gave up!
His hand was over me, his angels about me. Even though I wanted nothing to do with him.
He wanted everything to do with me!
Now, I stumble, I fall, I make mistakes and give into temptations sometimes. But I am forgiven and loved. God has now called me into youth ministry!
God is not a God that judges our past, he is a God that brightens the future!
In Love and In Christ,
Drew
