Corey's journey is a testament to the power of love and the power of Jesus to change lives. Corey was born into hardship and lost his way for many years, but God loved Corey all along and had a purpose to redeem his life. God used the love of Jesus found in the hands and hearts of Christians at SafeHouse Ministies and Valley Rescue Mission to reach Corey's heart and transform Corey's life. Praise the Lord for another life redeemed and reconciled!
Corey's journey is a testament to the power of love and the power of Jesus to change lives. Corey was born into hardship and lost his way for many years, but God loved Corey all along and had a purpose to redeem his life. God used the love of Jesus found in the hands and hearts of Christians at SafeHouse Ministies and Valley Rescue Mission to reach Corey's heart and transform Corey's life. Praise the Lord for another life redeemed and reconciled!
Barely being able to breathe. I get there. I drop, somebody calls the ambulance. They take me over here to Piedmont. They put me in the hospital. They drained all that stuff off me. Again, they let me out the next day. I get out four in the morning. I don't know what to do. I'm sorry. The streets can be very scary for someone who's not used to being in the streets. I'm walking around, seeing people walking around, moving around. I'm like, Oh man, I'm going to get killed out here, man. I don't want, I don't got nothing. Somebody might try to rob, blah, blah, blah. God had his hands on me. I seen a homeless man sitting on a chair. He said, you got a cigarette? I don't smoke I said you got some food. He said, no, but you can go right up that street to the safe house. And that's where a beautiful journey has started up till today's time
Phil Shuler:HellO, and welcome to Renew, Restore, Rejoice, the Safe House Ministries podcast, where we share stories of the power of God to change lives through Safe House Ministries. Safe House Ministries is based out of Columbus, Georgia, and we are a ministry that exists to love and serve people who have been affected by addiction, homelessness, and incarceration. I'm your host, Phil Shuler, the Director of Development for Safe House Ministries here in Columbus, Georgia. Safe House serves over 1, 100 people each month as they transition back into our community. Safe House provides an abundance of services including 213 beds for homeless individuals and families, case management for obtaining job skills and long term employment. Over 300 hot meals every day, free clothing, and so much more. One of the most incredible services that Safe House provides is our free 9 12 month intensive outpatient substance abuse program, which is state licensed, CARF accredited, and has no wait list. Almost 100 percent of individuals staying in our shelters who follow our three phase program become fully employed within a few months. And 68 percent of individuals who stay at least one night with us End up finding work and moving into their own home. Thank you for being with us today and listening to our podcast. We hope you enjoy this week's episode.
Phil:Good morning. Today on the podcast, I have Corey with us and Corey's going to share his story. He has a really neat story. I don't know a lot about it but I've heard little snippets. Corey, thank you for being here this morning.
Corey:Thank you. Just want to start off by saying all glory to God. Main reason to be in here is giving a shout out to the safe house. Ministries, great group of people out there that want to thank Drew. Drew out there. It'd been a great help. Awesome. Little brief story on my backing. Mother was young and had me at 16. Shout out to my mother. I love her very much. She's a great woman. Yeah. Ended up at foster care seven months old where I stayed 16 years home after home after home, which taught me survival. Thank God come out of that been a hard worker being in foster care at 14. bEing in Phoenix City, I was able to retain a workers permit at 14 and I worked with the school. You grew up in Phoenix city. I grew up all over stayed in Selma Methodist children's home, Alabama Baptist children's home St. Mary's, Wilmer hall, Alabama Sheriff's ranch, et cetera. I stayed in a little bit over a hundred placements as a kid where I was. I wanted to get kicked out of homes to get back to my mother. So I stayed roughly probably the longest stay was maybe three to four, four weeks is from the exception of one home in Montgomery, Alabama. You got some hiccups, huh? Yeah. Sorry about that. That's all right. Yeah. I get the 16 17 I, After I get emancipated, my mama got me emancipated, moved up to Montgomery. Things fall out. I ended up in the streets, which wasn't in the streets probably two weeks when I met a female. We had two children. And from that span, reluctantly again, learning to work kept me aboard. Now, at about 19 or 20, I freaked out. Not understanding what life was really about and I ended up jumping off a bridge 40 feet Off of the Montgomery Boulevard the Eastern Boulevard bridge onto concrete straight face first Were you were trying to? Yeah, I was trying to commit suicide. The police found me at the bottom blood coming out my eyes, blood coming out my ears. They said when they got there, I walked, I stood up and run away. And they ended up catching me and put me in ambulance. And from there they just let me out again as a hospital. Which I was just lost. I started venturing into spiritual life and over the 19 years from 19 to probably 30, 30 years old, I just kept going through trials and tribulations, drug usage drinking, partying. I was a musician as well, and I stayed on the road a whole lot. I've done several shows in the nation as well. from 30 up to about 38. What sort of instruments do you play? I play the guitar. We've actually me and my wife my fiance now we've actually given away over 200 guitars to foster children from here to Chicago, which you could check out the Montgomery advertiser under Corey C walks a hard road to help kids. It's it's been a very strange journey of got. Really good music videos out and such. A whole bunch of different things has transpired over this time. So it's hard to, over the spill,
Phil:like during your twenties, this was
Corey:after that bridge jump, I'll tell you what happened when I jumped that bridge, I woke up in the hospital. I, I woke up and thought that I might get from God was to work with children. And I picked up, somebody gave me a guitar one day, just out of the blue. It was like here, man, I want this. I just started playing it. And, I never took lessons. I learned how to play it and I just started giving that gift away. Around 38 from I was ADHD as a kid. I think I still have that as an adult. My motor spins really fast from waking up. My wife's or my fiance says I wake up on five cups of coffee. So if you imagine a motor overspinning all day, that can cause stress to that motor. Over time I started having health problems and I ended up having a enlarged heart. And at 38, I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. Two months ago, I had a heart attack and what was so unique to me about the safe houses. I started gambling about 38, 39 and a lot of these machines in these stores, they. compelled to me and just started wasting my time on them. I'm not saying they're a waste of time. I'm saying I wasted my time on
Phil:Wow. So that, so you got caught up and it just drew you
Corey:in. You drew me in and I start my fiance left me. She just had enough. She said drug usage too. I don't want to lie. Drug use too. She got there and all that same time, all at the same time, she got tired. And that was about 39. And that was actually just the last year, the year before last in the middle of the year about August of the year before last in 2022. Through this time period I have been blessed enough from working and doing music and doing all these great things that I had never Experienced really being homeless. Truly. Yeah, I Am when she left me it I broke down. I just took a backslide bad. I didn't really care about nothing. I ended up staying in somebody's shed in Oakland Park that I didn't even know. And one day, and I was still drug using and still not caring. I was trying to basically put my heart to sleep, I think, not knowing it, because I stayed in the shed. I wouldn't come out. It was weird. Very awkward. One day it was raining about five in the morning. I'm up. I've been up about two days. Lord Jesus. The something compelled me, said this is not my life. I am better than this. I went out that door and I walked through the rain and thunder with a backpack on my back with congestive heart failure. I could barely breathe. I had just been in the hospital with 60 percent oxygen. That I was near death. But it was the drug use, my own fault. We make our own choices. So I was choosing to to let go. Something God, Jesus put the Put love in my something back in my heart said I deserve to live and I walked out of there I didn't know where to go. I didn't know where to go. My mother she stays in a camper she is her life is too. She had a hard life as a child. She's she went through her own struggles She turned her whole life around and I cannot and will not and do not want to impose on her or try She stays in a small area. So she can't help me as far as Here's a place to stay. Here's some monies. Here's this. I didn't have medicine at the time. I needed to be on heart medicine. I take Lasix now. I take water pills that get all the, that get all the water in my lungs. Long story short, walking around, I drop almost in Crawford. And I walked all the way from OP in the rain to our Oakland park to Crawford, Alabama. Barely being able to breathe. I get there. I drop, somebody calls the ambulance. They take me over here to Piedmont. They put me in the hospital. They drained all that stuff off me. Again, they let me out the next day. I get out four in the morning. I don't know what to do. I'm sorry. The streets can be very scary for someone who's not used to being in the streets. I'm walking around, seeing people walking around, moving around. I'm like, Oh man, I'm going to get killed out here, man. I don't want, I don't got nothing. Somebody might try to rob, blah, blah, blah. God had his hands on me. I seen a homeless man sitting on a chair. He said, you got a cigarette? I don't smoke I said you got some food. He said, no, but you can go right up that street to the safe house. And that's where a beautiful journey has started up till today's time. I got up to the safe house. I didn't have nowhere to go. for those who are at the safe house. You would know that it's a lot of older folks there. So being young and sitting in a room full of elders. It felt awkward because I'm feeling like, man, I'm more useful than this. I could do something better with myself. The congestive heart failure had me so far down that I couldn't, I actually couldn't move around. They got me hooked up with mercy meds. They got, I got free medication and save my life. I absolutely saved my life. Safe house saved my life. Not only did they save my life, they put my marriage back to get with my my, my fiance, seeing the turnabout of where I've changed my ways. And I got a lot of talk, a lot of spiritual journey from these guys. Drew over there is a realist. He doesn't sugarcoat things. Yeah. And he don't. He's not gonna sit there and tell you what you want to hear. Oh everything. No, you're gonna have to do this drew drew helped me get back on my journey. I don't think he even knows it Shoutouts to Brittany down there, and I don't know if she's still there or not, but I don't know her last name But that was a wonderful person Front desk was wonderful The people that come out there and feed you are wonderful. If you are hungry in Columbus, Georgia at 7 30 in the morning, I believe they'll feed you at this, at the safe house ministries on 21 to one Hamilton road, 21 to one Hamilton road. Also that you could be back there at around 1130 and they'll feed you lunch. And I also want to give a big shout out. I got to the valley rescue mission. They sent me right up the street. They said, man, I don't know where to go on it. I'm sleeping outside at the church on the side of this church waiting for this place to open up every day. I'm scared. I don't know where I stayed outside for about a week. They, somebody sent me up to the valley. I walked up to the valley. They, The guys told me at first, we can't let you in the program because you're on medication. You're a health, you're in your insurance risk. Greg Wilson. He's not with them no more. He's a preacher at a church. Go, Greg, stay the course. Greg Wilson put me on path and let me in the transitional living program. Ben's program right off. Twenty nine oh three second Avenue. And, I got a job right after that because now I'm on my medication. Now I've got my, I've got my heart back together. I'll turn back around, go back to the safe house. I stayed there three months. They give me a voucher to get a home for for rapid housing. They paid my first three months. They paid my deposit and helped me get some furniture. After that time, I'm This is when my transfer and my fiancee seen that everything was clear and she actually called me back up I started my paint business back up. I started working at the foundry Which is hiring if you need a job And I'm sitting here today. I Thank God for the valley rescue mission and the safe house. I thank God for drew. I thank God for you for putting them out here to let people know about what their ministry, they absolutely saved my life. Not my butt. They saved my life. Had I kept walking on the streets, I probably would have died from exhaustion. I haven't had the most. Easy life. And we all, nobody does what looks easy on the outside. Isn't always what we think, because we don't know how to perceive what someone else goes through or what they're taking in, but. Like the safe house and people like the Valley Rescue Mission, the massive way, all these programs that are here in Columbus, Georgia, they're saving lives, man. People like Clinton, Ernie and Drew and all the program directors over the safe house, the, all of these program directors that I haven't met, man, I'm humble to them because I know what they're doing for our community. I pray and thank God for them, and I hope them a great success in life. It is beautiful to watch what they do. At three o'clock, you can go to Valley, you can bring your children, you can bring your mama, daddy, cousins, uncles. They feed you at three o'clock. They open the doors with welcomes, open arms. I'm grateful, I'm thankful. And I hope people worldwide can see the steps and measures that people are taking. To build up homeless community because we don't have to have a homeless community. What we need is each other. And as long as we work hard through each other and with God's power and Jesus power, we could take every person off the street and at one foot step at a time, we will get there. And today I'm just thankful to say that I've been one that's been, my life has been saved by these people. That's so amazing.
Phil:I praise the Lord. What a, what an incredible journey and testimony. So where you're at now things are good with your fiance and your
Corey:church. You said, Oh yeah. Go to church Wednesdays, go to I go to God's house of prayer with pastor McLeod up in Auburn, Alabama. They're on YouTube. Check them out. I also used to go to the fort. I love pastor Matt up there Chuck Odom. These are some wonderful people. Wonderful people. The Fort has a lot of, the Fort has a lot of people that have recovered from drug addiction. So if you're nervous about going to a church because you've recovered from drugs and you just, you don't want to see these, you're nervous about being there. Go here to the Fort and get your journey started. And if you find a home there, stay there because there's people just like you that you can network with. To not only stay sober, but have Jesus and God in your life to watch over you. So that's been about the journey. And today I'm, my heart's great. I'm working hard and I owe a debt of gratitude to, to the safe house and valley rescue mission. Yeah.
Phil:So once you stopped doing the illegal drugs and you got on the LASIKs and like that, that seemed to really stabilize your heart and your 100%.
Corey:That's awesome. For those who might dabble or do drugs that have chemical based chemical remedies in it know that those things can cause heart problems. Will probably cause you heart problems and malfunctions inside of the organs. Because If you take water and put it in gas your gas, if you put gas or water in a car, it's not going to run. It's the same thing with drugs. You're putting something in your body that's not supposed to be there. It's going to, it's going to break down. Wow.
Phil:Corey, is there any other little story or anecdote that you wanted to add here at the
Corey:end? I want to say, give your life to God. All these things are not possible without God and Jesus. Find yourself friends, people that you can, you could talk to. There's no reason to be alone out here. If you're on the street, there's somewhere to eat. Don't be hungry. I don't care if you do drugs. I don't care if you own anything in the world. Do not go hungry in the city of Columbus, Georgia. You could go to the safe house, you could go to the valley. There's somebody out here that'll feed you. Being hungry is one hardship that I wouldn't want anybody to have. And just be thankful for the small things. Be very thankful. And be appreciative. Just big shout out to all my foster children out there, foster nation, motivational group we're a big family and shout outs to all the foster families and social workers and providers to care in that area. Thank you for your services. Thank you for our military services as well. I know that's a little bit off key, but I want to thank them for what they do as well. And thank you for what you're doing by. exploiting people to be able to give their story, to share what the greatness of this city and the greatness of what people are doing and to be able to share so people can find help. There's clothes out here. There's vouchers. You can get for free clothes. Stop walking around with no shoes. There's so much help reach out guys. Thank you. That's good.
Phil:You're so right. I think there's a lot of people that are struggling and they just don't know what to do and where to go. But there is help there. You're so right. Safe House Ministries, Valley, so many other organizations as well. And people can call 2 1 1 if they don't know what to do, call 2 1 1 and that's a program the United Way runs. They can help to direct you to
Corey:the other organizations. They have one in Alabama as well. Yeah. Yes I did just realize that. United Way of Chattahoochee Valley, right? Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely,
Phil:yeah. So call 2 1 1. That will help someone get connected and Then the United way can direct them to the safe house and to other organizations that can help them.
Corey:Exactly. Yeah. Just again, before I go, I definitely got to get back to work, but big shout outs to drew down there. It's drew Harris, right?
Phil:Drew
Corey:Johnson. Sorry, mr. Johnson, drew a Johnson. He has his own personal story. I'm sure he might have shared or not. I won't get into that, but you're an amazing man, bro. Stay hard as you are and be as soft and kind as you can be.
Phil:That's so good, man. Corey, you mind if I close this in a word of prayer? No,
Corey:sir.
Phil:Father, I love you. And I thank you for Corey. Thank you for his heart and his willingness to share a story. Thank you for his. His heart of gratefulness, Lord, for his heart that loves you, that recognizes that you are the reason that he is saved. That you are the reason that he was saved physically, but also you're the reason that he could be saved spiritually, Lord. Thank you for Jesus for how you help us in this life and for how you give us, through Jesus and his sacrifice, the opportunity to have life eternal in heaven. Lord, we're grateful. Bless Cory, bless his fiance and their upcoming marriage. May it be strong. May it honor you. May you use their lives to shine a light. To help others look to you and find salvation as well. Thank you. Bless Cory and his work and his path ahead. In Jesus name.
Corey:Amen. Amen.
Phil Shuler:We look forward to being with you again next week as we share another testimony about the power and the goodness of God to change lives through Safe House Ministries. if you are someone listening to this podcast that loves to hear these stories of the great things that God is doing in changing people's lives for the better, and if you would like to be a part of that work, please reach out to us You can reach us at 2101 Hamilton Road, Columbus, Georgia, 31,904. You can call us at seven oh six three two two. 3 7, 7 3, or you can email us at info@safehouse-ministries.com.