Changing the direction of one’s life is a daunting task; but often needed

by Pastor Lewis Morris – 

The image of that elderly man sitting beside the Sears and Roebuck store burning trash to keep warm that cold winter morning will forever be burned in my memory. The sight of him sitting there continues to this day, years later, to weigh heavily upon my heart. That man was my grandfather — a man I loved and idolized.

He was a good man — a kind, gentle soul — who nevertheless battled alcoholism. 

I recall one occasion when my mother hid his bottle of whiskey under the house during one of his drinking binges. I was maybe 7 or 8 years old at the time. I was playing in the yard when I espied him — definitely under the influence — crawling under the house in search of his bottle. He found it!

Moments later I observed him struggling trying to unscrew the cap on the bottle. Finally — in desperation — he broke the neck of the bottle on the edge of the porch.

I guess the family thought the situation that morning was nothing out of the ordinary. They had witnessed it numerous times in the past. They were wrong! My grandfather never touched alcohol again after that day. It proved a turning point in his life. I think that morning he felt upon his heart the awesome burden of shame and guilt. He too realized the hurt and embarrassment he was causing his family. 

He wrestled with God that fateful morning and his life was forever changed.

That day he came to the “fork in the road.” He could have continued along the path he was traveling or take his life in a different direction. He chose the latter. His life was transformed. He literally became a new person — one devoted to God…