Kayla's Story

There was a time in my life when I never imagined I would be standing here today.

I believed my story would end in addiction. I believed the pain, the loss, and the shame would eventually consume me. There were nights when I felt completely abandoned, completely broken, and completely hopeless. But today, I stand before you as living proof that God's grace is greater than our deepest wounds, our darkest failures, and our

greatest mistakes.

My name is Kayla, and my story is one of brokenness, addiction, loss, and ultimately God's incredible grace and redemption.

For as long as I can remember, I struggled with feeling unwanted and different. When I was 11 years old, I learned that the man who raised me and loved me as his own was not my biological father. Something changed inside of me after that. I began carrying wounds of rejection, abandonment, and insecurity that I didn' know how to process.

As I got older, I started looking for acceptance, love, and relief from

that pain in all the wrong places. What began with alcohol and marijuana eventually led to pills, methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl. For years, addiction controlled my life. I hurt the people I loved, lost opportunities, lost custody of my children, and found myself trapped in a cycle of relapse that I couldn't seem to escape.

Along the way, I experienced tremendous loss. I lost friends. I lost my Nana, the father of my youngest son, then, in that same year, I

lost my mother. Each loss left me more broken than before. I questioned God. I questioned my purpose. I wondered why so much pain seemed to follow me everywhere I went.

After my mother's death, I reached the darkest place I had ever known. I lost my home, my jobs, my faith, my sense of worth, and eventually myself. I isolated from everyone and became consumed by addiction. I attempted suicide and wrote goodbye letters to my sons because I truly believed there was no way out.

But even at my lowest point, God never stopped pursuing me.

What I once saw as another arrest was actually God's rescue plan. In 2024, I was arrested again and eventually found myself sitting in jail, completely exhausted from the life I had been living. A friend told me about Valley Rescue Mission and helped me apply. Looking back now, I can see God's hand in every detail.

When I finally arrived at Valley Rescue Mission, I encountered something I had spent my entire life searching for: unconditional love, acceptance, and hope. For the first time, I felt seen. I felt valued. I felt like I belonged.

Most importantly, while at Valley Rescue Mission, I surrendered my life to Jesus Christ.

Jesus met me in my brokenness and showed me that I didn't have to carry the weight of my past anymore. He taught me what it means to truly surrender. He gave me a peace that drugs never could, a love that people could never fully provide, and a hope that circumstances cannot take away.

As I grew in my relationship with Christ, I boldly put on my new identity in Him. In doing so, I left my past behind and began walking in the purpose He had for my life. I stopped allowing my mistakes, my addiction, and my pain to define me. Instead, I embraced who God says I am and became the woman He intended me to be—a woman redeemed by His grace, strengthened by His love, and transformed through His power.

Today, I am not standing here because of my own strength. I am standing here because of God's grace.

Every time I fell, He lifted me up.

Every time I ran, He pursued me.

Every time I thought my story was over, He reminded me that He was still writing it.

I still have battles ahead of me. I am continuing into aftercare.

I don't know exactly what the future holds, but I know who holds my future.

I want to thank the people God placed in my life during this journey.

If my story helps even one person realize there is hope, then it is worth sharing. No matter how broken life may seem, God is able to restore, redeem, and make all things new.

If you had met me a few years ago, you might have seen an addict, a failure, or someone beyond saving.

But God saw a daughter worth rescuing.

He saw purpose where I saw pain.

He saw hope where I saw hopelessness.

He saw life where I only saw death.

My life is proof that no one is too far gone for God's love.

No addiction is too strong.

No past is too broken.

No person is beyond the reach of His grace.

To God be all the glory.

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