My name is Carl Greer. I was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, on July 6, 1952, but lived most of my life in southeast Louisiana. I grew up in a religious family that talked about God and prayed often. At a young age, I was baptized into a denominational church that my parents attended for a short time. The pastor, a friend of the family, was accused of drinking on a fishing trip with some of the elders, was dismissed shortly thereafter, and my parents left the church. My mother and father were both alcoholic for as long as I can remember, but they did try the best they knew to be good parents and provide a good home. I can remember believing there was a God, but never gave it much thought past that, and neither I nor any of my family knew Him personally at that time.
At the age of 13, I began drinking. At 19, I smoked my first “joint.” Anyone who says marijuana doesn’t lead to stronger drugs just hasn’t smoked it long enough. As time passed, I began mixing drugs and alcohol, and, by the time I was 33, my life was totally out of control. One night, in a drug-induced vision so clear I really thought it was happening, I saw myself putting a pistol in my mouth and pulling the trigger. In desperation and fear for my life, I entered a drug and alcohol detoxification program.
Shortly after being admitted, I began to see my whole life pass before me. The waste, the emptiness, the unhappiness! All the years spent going nowhere! I realized there was something missing in my life . . . an emptiness that I could not seem to fill with anything the world, drugs, alcohol or sex had to offer. I started reading the Bible, looking for answers . . . something to fill the emptiness. With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I was led to realize that what I was looking for was not a “what” at all, but a “Who” . . . the Lord Jesus! God’s Spirit drove home such verses as Isaiah 1:18-20, “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land. But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.” I realized what I needed to do! So after reading Matthew 6:6 and feeling that the going into a “closet” was somehow involved in the whole process, I climbed into the small military-style wall locker in my hospital room, closed the door, confessed to God that I was a sinner, and accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour.
After thirty days, I was told that for me to go on to the halfway house, I would have to be drug-free for thirty days. At the time, the doctor had prescribed a strong anti-depressant that he said I would need to be on for the rest of my life. This would disqualify me from going on to the halfway house program that I felt I really needed. I knew that “with God, all things are possible,” so my first step of faith was to quit taking the anti-depressants. Thirty days later, I went into the halfway house for sixty days, and then on to the three-quarter-way house for another sixty days! By this time, in spite of accepting Christ, I had lost my car, my home, my business, and my family. I was sober, but humanly things didn’t look too good. But God is faithful!
That was five years ago. I still have problems, but now I have peace in my heart and joy in my life, thanks to the Lord Jesus. God has been so good to me. My family and I are back together! I have a good job! I am actively involved in a local assembly with a great group of Christians to gather with! BEST OF ALL, through Christ Jesus I have the gift of God: Life . . . Abundant Life . . . Life Eternal . . . WITH HIM!
Psalm 34 says: “I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears . . . This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles . . . Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusteth in Him.”
This truly is the story of my life . . . IN HIM!