Panhia’s Story

I went to my first court appearance on drug charges and the judge didn’t want me to go to Teen Challenge or any treatment at all. He said I was a menace to society and I was never going to change. He told me that I was always going to be a druggie. Afterwards, I went back to my cell, and I cried feeling hopeless. I didn’t want to do anything to better myself anymore, I was just going to serve out my time and when I got out, I would go back to using.

But one night, I heard this voice inside of me saying, just open up your Bible. So, I did, and it opened to Matthew, “With man this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.” I meditated on that and I prayed before I went to court that if God is true and God is real, he would to show up for me that day. When I got to the courtroom, I saw that the judge was different, and I felt some hope. In the courtroom, I felt the Holy Spirit. I felt like God was next to me. When the judge asked me, why should he should let me go to Teen Challenge, I told him, “Honestly, I don’t know. But, if you send me, I promise it would not be a waste of your time and I will show up every time that God wants me to show up.” He told me that his son had actually overdosed two weeks before on fentanyl and he wanted to give me a chance to redeem myself. He asked me not to prove him wrong.

In that moment, I knew that I had a purpose and that God had shown for me in such a big way. Since then, every single time he’s asked, I’ve shown up for him, I pray, I worship, and I sing. I work hard to be a good role model to my sisters coming in. I listen for where he wants me to go next and that, has given me everything I need to keep going.