To Know the Father's Love
For years, Heath knew what it meant to be a father—but addiction kept him from truly being one.
After losing his job in 2017, Heath’s life began to unravel. What started as something he thought he had control over, quickly became something he couldn't make it through the day without. Opioids took control over his life.
“I honestly thought I never would be able to get off of them.”
Years of addiction cost Heath more than his career and stability. It ended his marriage, damaged his relationship with his children, and left him all alone. The father he wanted to be seemed further and further out of reach as his addiction grew.
Then, after being clean for more than 60 days, Heath relapsed, overdosing twice in three days.
After the second overdose, Heath woke up in a hospital room. There, a caseworker helped connect him to Oliver Gospel, where he was given a bed for three days before entering the Mission’s recovery program in November of 2025.
That was the turning point for Heath.
He came to Oliver Gospel looking for recovery, but what he found was even greater... a Father.
Before coming to the Mission, Heath says he didn't have a relationship with God. Today, that relationship is at the center of his recovery journey.
“I know God loves me unconditionally now. I can't have recovery without God.”
Through Oliver Gospel’s recovery program, Heath has been given more than tools to overcome addiction. He has been surrounded by people who remind him of his worth, encourage him to keep going, and help him understand the needs that have fueled his addiction and how not to fall back into that addiction cycle.
His life coach, John Cromer, has become an important part of that journey.
“He tells me that God loves me often, and he tells me that he loves me. So, I’ve got love again in my life.”
And that love is changing the way Heath sees his future.
His goals are to continue growing in his relationship with God, stay committed to recovery, obtain a job, have a car and a home again, and reconnect with his children, who are now adults and starting families of their own.
Heath is learning that before he can fully step back into his role as a father, he needs to understand what it means to be loved by his own Father in Heaven.
The road ahead isn't easy. But Heath no longer believes he's walking it alone.
“I feel like if I could do it, I mean there is hope that other people can do it as well. This place does transform lives. I truly believe that.”
And that hope is giving him the courage to dream about being a father to his sons again. Because healing begins when we discover that we have a Father who never stopped loving or fighting for us.
For Heath, Oliver Gospel offered more than a second chance through recovery. It gave him the opportunity to meet the ultimate Father—to experience His unconditional love and discover the hope of eternal life with Him.
