When we make ourselves available for God’s use, He may lead us to serve Him in ways we never imagined. Such was the case for Linda and I back in the late 1980's. We were living in southeastern Oklahoma when we met a man who God used to change the course of our lives. Clark Wilson was a Choctaw Indian man who had been a multi-multimillionaire. He had been the owner and CEO of a large and successful construction company. However, Clark had a major problem that caused him to loose his company. He was an alcoholic. When we met Clark he was going through bankruptcy and had little left from his past life of wealth.

Clark had accepted the Lord Jesus Christ about a year before we met him. However, he was not being taught and he lacked direction in his life. Clark and I began studying the Word of God together and once Clark began to study the Word, he developed an insatiable thirst for knowing God and His Word.

Clark had a deep love and compassion for his fellow alcoholics, and he looked to me for direction on how they could be reached for the Lord. At that point I knew absolutely nothing about alcoholism or any other addiction. We visited Christian treatment programs and began to put together a ministry plan to reach alcoholics. To our surprise, God opened up a ninety-five acre camp near Tahlequah, in northeastern Oklahoma, to be used as a Christ centered residential treatment program.

Both Clark and I moved our families to Tahlequah and opened up a residential recovery ministry for alcoholics and other drug addicts. God used this ministry and brought a number of individuals to the Lord and restored broken homes.

In 1994, God very clearly indicated a change in ministry. The mission that owned the camp property that we were using was experiencing serious financial problems and they let us know that they were going to sell the property. At the same time, I had a second life threatening bout of viral encephalitis which left me seriously weakened and struggling to carry on the ministry God had given us. Shortly after that, Clark entered the hospital with Guillon Barre Syndrome and died a month later.

We began making plans to move to serve the Lord in another Christian recovery ministry but the Lord clearly indicated to us that He wanted us to stay in Tahlequah and serve Him here. We joined United Indian Missions (UIM International) and began a ministry to the Indian people of northeastern Oklahoma.

Before joining United Indian Missions, I had taken some drug and alcohol counseling classes and was doing an internship in the state treatment center here in Tahlequah. After finishing the internship, the director of the program asked if I would serve as the spiritual counselor (volunteer) in the state program in Tahlequah. I agreed and began leading group therapy sessions with the men and later on with the women. I was given complete freedom to teach the Bible and lead men and women to know and walk with the Lord Jesus Christ.

I can only look back with awe at how God has used this ministry. I am now the chaplain (volunteer) of the state recovery center here in Tahlequah. Well over a hundred men and women have professed faith in the Lord and many more than that have been helped back to walking with the Lord. In the fall of 2002, we initiated Sunday morning services at the facility that are being led by several retired pastors and missionaries.

The Lord is continuing to use this ministry. It is a tremendous privilege to be used by God to influence others for Him. Our primary ministry is still with Indian churches, but God has often encouraged us by letting us see spiritual fruit with men and women who have been caught in bondage to alcohol and other drug addictions.