“My growing up years I went to church and have always been religious. In December of 2018 my family moved to Savannah were we struggled to find a church until our neighbor told us about The Dwelling. My first time going to The Dwelling was after I got back from from training with the Army. The moment I walked into the doors of the movie theater it felt like family.

I was in a very dark place in my life at that time. I felt that I needed something more but didn’t know what else I needed. It was on June 11th of 2019 when my life changed forever. It was after I hung in the tree where I tried to end my life that God opened up my eyes and my heart. The reason why I’m here today because God didn’t see that my work was done. God saw that I still had a purpose here on this earth. God has done a miracle in my life and he showed me that he is the only one who knows when my time is over.

It has been a true blessing to get connected in with the men’s connect group where God has let me know that I’m not alone on this path. I have brothers in the faith that have helped me get to where I am today.

It says in Psalms‬ ‭55:22‬ ‭NLT‬‬ “Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” ‭‭This verse has been one of the most powerful verses in my life.

I just recently attended my very first conference, MORE19, at The Dwelling. At this conference I heard the most powerful words that I’ve ever heard and witnessed God changing lives like he’s changed my life.

After the conference was over I felt the urge that I had to go visit the tree where I tried to hang myself. The ratchet strap was still hanging there. As I approached the tree I asked God, “Now what do I do?” God spoke to me and said, “I want you to climb up there, exactly where you were standing in June 11th and just look.”

Tears started to roll down my cheeks as I stood up there and thanked god for this tree, and this experience. As I got done praying in the tree I climbed back down and got on my knees. I could feel his work being done. I felt my entire body go numb. And as I stood back up, I felt everything go. I felt my burdens release. I felt my anger disappear in the woods. I felt my troubled conscious go away. It felt as if God just removed a sack that was filled with rocks of my my shoulders.

It has been amazing to develop the kind of relationships that I have with my family at The Dwelling where God continues to do his work. I’m thankful that God has given me a second chance to be a witness of how powerful He is when you have faith in Him.” - David