Timon

Heroin addict for 20 years – Now a husband, leader and completely restored!

“I grew up in a broken family and by the age of 13, I was smoking and drinking. This led on to my using drugs and at 16, after committing many offences and receiving a number of convictions, I served a year in prison. By the time I came to Betel in 2006, I had been addicted to drugs for 27 years, 20 of them as a heroin user.”

“My life was completely destroyed. I weighed 7½ stone. I had no veins left to inject in my arms and legs and I was injecting directly into my neck. My family didn’t want anything to do with me because I had caused them so much grief, worry and pain. I spent a £30,000 inheritance on drugs in just six weeks and when the money ran out, I didn’t have any friends left. My life was such a wreck that if I hadn’t come into Betel when I did, I would have died.”

Timon has now been in Betel for eight years. Through his Christian faith and support from others at Betel who have also overcome similar addictions, he has remained completely free from heroin, alcohol and all chemical substances during this entire time. Embracing a life of recovery, he has decided to stay on in leadership at Betel UK.

“I have gained a purpose and a vision for my life. Now I want to help others gain victory over their addictions and experience the same restoration of their lives as I have. I met my lovely wife here at Betel and we live in one of our men’s centres that we oversee. I have also learnt valuable business skills at Betel. I received training and gained qualifications as a tree surgeon while here and now co-manage Betel’s tree surgery business. My relationship with my family has been completely restored and I can now look ahead to the future with confidence and hope, thanks to the amazing transformation that has, and continues to take place in my life here in Betel.”