Julian’s Story

Julian has been at The Potter’s House for 11 months. He says prior to coming to The Potter’s House he had really been struggling for years with addiction, and was living on the streets. 

He gave his aunt, who was familiar with Atlanta Mission and The Potter’s House, a call and she told him he needed to seek help. She was confident The Potter’s House could give him what he needed to get better.

Julian would have to give in completely, but he was ready. It was time to ask God for help. 

Struggled With Abandonment

I spent most of my childhood in Barbados with my mom. When I was a young kid—5 or 6—my mom was working on one of the other islands and I was having to live with my aunt at the time—she’s always been there for me, so I struggled with that abandonment as a kid. 

When I was about 10 or so, my mom and I moved from Barbados to the Virgin Islands, and it wasn’t long after that that I actually started to drink pretty regularly. I was about 12 when I had my first sip of alcohol. I was hiding it from my mom and using the alcohol to deal with my anger issues and my low self-esteem. Before, you could hardly say two words to me without me getting upset. 

The Hardest Time of My Life

When I was old enough, I joined the military and then I actually went to Vietnam and spent time there and in Europe. I was in the military for 10 years, and after the military was when I came to live in the United States and start my life here. When I first got out of ‘Nam, that was just the hardest time for me. 

It was very hard. At that time, people didn’t care too much for Vietnam vets coming back. There was a hatred thing going on, and that was just really difficult.

I started to really drink then and I became an alcoholic. I struggled with this for most of my life. I wasn’t able to cope with things. 

Somewhere along the line, I lost God and I knew I needed to find Him again. That’s why I’m glad I ended up here.

I was excited when I got the call to come to The Potter’s House. I was ready to get clean. I wanted to stay sober and I really wanted to reconnect with my spiritual side. That was one of the main reasons I wanted to come here. I needed to find God. 

That’s why I’m here. 

‘Eventually, it took hold of me.’

My attitude when I first got to The Potter’s House was not great—I wanted to be here, but I didn’t want to go through all of the classes and different things going on. 

I was the “trouble child” when I first got here. Basically, I just thought all of the assignments were too much, and I was bucking for a minute. But when I finally stopped and started praying and listening to what I’m supposed to be doing, everything changed.

Then I got baptized and it really changed! 

Eventually, it took hold of me.  A lot of the stuff that I learned through the counselors was that being an alcoholic was the cause of my anger issues and behavior, which was a lot of my childhood that I’ve been keeping in for years and years.
Coming here, I was able to finally get rid of that. My ability to cope with things now is a lot better compared to the rest of my life.

My whole reason for coming here was to learn and to get closer to God, and I think that’s one of the main reasons why I have calmed down so much—knowing that I have God with me. 

I’m excited about the future. I just got promoted [as a Leader at The Potter’s House] and I’m going to become a peer specialist, and then I’m going to move there into the ministry to help people. 

I would definitely recommend The Potter’s House to everyone. 

If you’re struggling with addiction, you can learn how to listen to yourself and do the right thing and be honest and sincere. I finally feel like I have hope now, and I’m able to see myself as myself. I’m able to move forward and help others with a clear mind and just have God by my side at all times.