Mike Mustin will graduate soon from the Changed Life Recovery Program. He has worked hard on his life during his time in the program and he is looking forward to building a new life after graduation. Mike’s story is one of grace and grit, and it has God’s fingerprints all over it.
Mike was born in Baltimore and raised by a single mom until he was seven years old. His stepdad officially adopted him, and Mike is quick to say that he has happy memories of his early years. “I had a wonderful life in every way,” he confirms, “and I had great parents.”
He was a “straight A” student who never got into trouble throughout his school years. “My troubles began when I turned 18 and moved out of my parents’ house,” Mike says. He was attending community college and working at a restaurant. “That’s when the partying began, 
” he explains.
Mike’s drug habit would last for the next 10 years, culminating in a two-year stay in prison. After he was released in 2013, he came to the Mission and was accepted into the CLRP. “I quit two months before graduation, sadly,” Mike says, “and went back into the restaurant industry.” Although he never resumed drug abuse, he now struggled with alcohol abuse.
He got married in 2018, but anxiety, depression, and the resulting alcohol dependency caused his life to spiral downward. In late 2020, Mike returned to the CLRP with a firm resolve to renew his relationship with God, work hard on his marriage, and find a career path outside of the restaurant environment.
Today, Mike is grateful that he is in the process of restoring his marriage, he has a steady job at a local business in accounting, and he is attending school to earn a degree in addiction counseling. Even though Mike’s journey of recovery has brought him through the CLRP twice, he is trusting in God’s plan for his life and he is eager to embrace his future.
The purple flag flying on the Mission’s front lawn this month recognizes that September is National Recovery Month, a month set aside to promote and support recovery treatment and practices. It is also a time to celebrate those who have reached recovery. Pray for Mike – and for all the men in the CLRP – and celebrate the work that God is doing in them as He changes their lives now and for eternity!
