Meet Connor. Connor didn’t grow up in a typical Christian household and was raised primarily by his older brother. However, during High School, Connor’s brother was murdered and Connor was left to fend for himself. Fortunately, Connor’s best friend’s family stepped in and adopted him. They introduced him to the Bible and Christ’s love and he became very involved in church. But over time, Connor became less active in his faith. While he was deployed in Iraq with the Army, he experienced such great suffering and PTSD that he thought God was punishing him and abandoned God completely. To fill his void, Connor turned to alcohol and steroids.
During this time, Connor met his wife, Ashleigh, and together they had a son. Although Connor had people in his life who loved him, he was still using alcohol and steroids to numb his pain. Connor’s family became neglected and suffered because of his decision to turn to his vices. Ashleigh ended up leaving him, and again, Connor was left without a family. Shortly after his wife left him, Connor took a training jump with the Army and fell 600 feet. He blew out his back and became paralyzed from the waist down. All of these terrible things seemed to be happening to him all at once. He blamed God for his problems and was spiraling down into a deep suicidal depression.
One day, while Connor was at his lowest point, a complete stranger walked up to him and started talking to him about the Gospel. Because of this stranger, Connor grasped God in a completely different way and began to revitalize his faith and delve deeper into God’s Word. Through God’s grace, Connor was able to leave his vices and become righteous in God’s sight! Connor brought his family back together and helped his wife, Ashleigh, start a relationship with Christ. And to make the story even cooler- the complete stranger that walked up to Connor is now his best friend and baptized Ashleigh! Connor realized that God had been working in his life all along and never stopped seeking a relationship with him. Now, Connor sees that God makes all things work together for good – even through the terrible circumstances and choices. Today, Connor and his wife have two children, a third on the way, and spend a lot of time volunteering with their church and spreading God’s hope and love to others.
