How Master’s Touch Men’s transitional shelter and recovery program transformed Chandler.

Do Bible-based recovery programs actually work?

For people who have lost all hope and their loved ones, Wayside Cross Ministries Master’s Touch men’s shelter and transitional housing and Hope Outreach Work-skills development program in Aurora, Illinois, provide the opportunity and time for Christ to transform the lives of people in need. People just like Chandler. Fourteen months after starting the program, he is a graduate, working again, and on the road to independence.

At almost every age, men and women are finding rest and recovery at Wayside Cross Ministries from the problems of depression, addiction, and poor choices…

…even a young man like Chandler.

Years ago, a Nobel Prize winner was asked, in all of her travels, what were the worst conditions of poverty she had ever witnessed?

The greatest poverty in the world is the poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for. This is the greatest poverty.~ Mother Teresa of Calcutta

In a throwaway society, abandonment can be a powerful setback for anyone. It affects self-worth and one’s sense of significance, which for many will take a lifetime to defeat. Add generational addiction from both parents and it becomes a recipe for self-destruction that only God can overcome.

Chandler was only 24 years old when he arrived at Wayside Cross Ministries. By then he had already faced the kind of challenges in life most of us will never experience.

Discarded by his alcoholic mother and father at the age of five, thankfully the love of his grandparents became his saving grace. But eventually, even their love would not be enough for Chandler to overcome that brokenness in his soul.

“When I was age five, my mother was deemed not fit to raise us. I didn’t understand it at the time, but I do see that now. So my grandparents stepped in. They really did their best to make up for what my mom and dad weren’t capable of giving. But I guess it just wasn’t enough… I was about 17 years old when I left home.” 

Yet for a brief time before, Chandler and his two siblings had found shelter and comfort in the loving care of his grandparents’ home. Despite the frequent interruptions caused by his dysfunctional parents, who were still trying to play a role in their lives, Chandler was beginning to experience some measure of stability.

Thankfully, his grandparents stood in that gap that Ezekiel 22:30 describes. These strong churchgoing believers, having become fully committed to breaking a generational curse of addiction with their grandchildren, sought restoration for family through the love of Christ. But the journey would prove difficult.

By all accounts, his grandparents were both hard-working individuals. Chandler’s grandmother was a hairdresser, and his grandfather is a retired electrician. Every week they attended church and did their best to raise their grandkids above the turmoil they had already experienced in their young lives.

Frequent trips to the Wisconsin Dells and celebrating Christmas holidays were just some of the highlights of their time growing up. As a youth, Chandler was also very active in his church through the Awana Youth Group.

“For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.”

~Psalm 100:5 

For a time, it seemed like an ideal environment. In school, Chandler excelled in every subject. So much so, his grandparents decided to enroll him in a special school for engineering and technology during his high school years. He even participated on the track team, where he also excelled.

That’s why from the outside looking in, the direction he was about to take didn’t quite make sense.

By his own account, Chandler’s drug abuse was never forced on him. You could almost say it was a conscious choice of experimentation, but what he didn’t know was it also fulfilled a deep, unspoken need. Marijuana became alcohol and eventually, cocaine.

Unfortunately for Chandler, his genetic background towards addiction and the emotional needs caused by the childhood scar of abandonment were now quietly being met by his casual drug use. Eventually though, it consumed his young life.

Soon, his grades began to slip and his frequent run-ins with the law finally drove him to quit school altogether and leave home.

At 17 years of age, he found himself living on the streets. Occasionally, friends would take him in for a time. On cold nights, he would frequent one of the local shelters when he needed a place to stay. Back and forth between the police, home, and then back out on the street, Chandler drifted for nearly seven years.

“If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?” ~Matthew 18:12

Still, his church and his grandparents never gave up hope. Eventually, through the encouragement of his former youth pastor, Chandler found his way to Wayside Cross Ministries one day.

“I remember when I first arrived at Wayside, I was really scared. My whole life was in shambles. I lost everything. Yeah, I was hurt, very hurt, and very angry. But I was also very tired. So coming into the program, I’d already heard about it from my pastor, John Tyson. Over the years Pastor John had brought 15-20 people here from Elgin.

“Still, I remember when I got here thinking, ‘Oh man, this is going to be rough.’ I rebelled against structure my whole life. Now it’s like, okay, you got to go through this six-day-a-week schedule where your time is completely accounted for. It only left Sunday for fellowship, a little personal time, and for connecting with a local church. Once you got further along in the program you could spend the weekend with family and there are a few hours less structured that were your own.”

To be honest, it was a bit rough at first, but the Lord continued to work on me during that time. I guess that’s what that time is really meant for, to hear from God and process what you were experiencing. As I think about it now, I certainly needed to do a lot of that.”

“But what made the biggest impression on me initially was interacting with a lot of the Master’s Touch and Wayside staff, as well as the many mentors and supporters that would come here to help. Just interacting with them and seeing the love of Christ being expressed to me in these various forms…you know, just like I got from my grandparents.

“Experiencing that sort of thing again was very impactful. But as I think about it now, I can see it was really the Lord demonstrating His love for me through each of the people He sent to serve in this place.”

Today, if you ask Chandler what was the hardest adjustment he had to make coming to Wayside, he will tell you:

“Two things. The first is being with a bunch of men in the Master’s Touch program who are all very hurt, angry, and extremely shattered. It can be very difficult. Some conflicts do arise. A lot of them are resolved, of course. But that was a big, big adjustment for me. I was so used to isolating by then and not being around people who were also broken and learning to rebuild their lives. It took me a bit of time to learn how to interact with and to speak with people appropriately. Thankfully Christ showed me how.

“The second thing I had to learn to do was to surrender. I mean completely surrender to the Lord. It’s required to really experience more than recovery but transformation, and that’s obviously still something God is working out in my life. We learned a lot about that in class. Even today, it’s still very difficult for me to completely release my own grip on life and say, ‘Lord, here it is…here’s my life; it’s yours now.’ To some degree, I guess, we are all learning how to do this in our daily walk.”

“Not my will but your will be done.”

~Mark 14:36-37 

Chandler would spend the next several months overcoming addiction and dealing with deep feelings of abandonment in our self-encounter classwork, but he also began working on his GED to finally obtain the high school diploma he’d never finished.

“At Wayside… the classes are great. We get assigned homework packets each week that we have to go through, and of course, there is a lot of Scripture and memorization too. For me, that kind of structure was very helpful as a lot of us are coming out of prison, off the streets, or just from rebelling against authority. It’s very significant when you know who you are in Christ…to see yourself as He does.”

“…If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”    

~John 8:36 

Thankfully, during the entire time Chandler has been at Wayside, his grandparents never gave up hope. They continued to stand by him and so did his home church in Elgin. These days, Chandler even makes regular visits to both on weekends, and they continue to fortify his walk in so many ways. Chandler also became very committed to giving back to others in the program, and to those who may be new and struggling.

As part of the free programs and the recovery process at Wayside Cross, residents are also expected to give back in some way to the ministry as part of the work-skills development in our Hope Outreach program. Some become Resident Assistants (RA’s), and others serve somewhere else in the ministry like the kitchen, housekeeping, warehouse, maintenance, workshop, and more. By giving back to others, each individual is gaining a sense of purpose and community. It’s also a practical opportunity to feel God’s presence working through them.

As Chandler explains… “One thing that’s very expressed in the program is this idea of servitude. By this I mean, it’s modeled through Jesus Christ, who became the ultimate servant for us all. So you have to develop this attitude of being a servant both to the Lord as well as to others around us. I think it’s a life-changing way to look at things, and it’s the appropriate way to see things.”

During his time at Wayside, Chandler has also served in several roles in the ministry, 2nd floor receptionist, security, and thrift-store team member. But in each case, he always made time to help others in the program. That’s why he became a natural choice as the 1st floor receptionist. In this highly visible role, his natural skills for hospitality really began to shine in the way he greeted residents, guests, and supporters who came in to drop off donations. It also allowed his computer and data management skills to be showcased, skills that coincidentally were in short supply in our development office.

Chandler’s Favorite Verse:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”  ~Proverbs 3:5-6

That’s why it really was no surprise for many when we asked him to join our staff as a Development Assistant. As a resident employee, Chandler also receives his own apartment while he continues to work and save. Today, his future plans include college and perhaps a deeper role in ministry.

Through it all, Chandler continues to display a humble spirit of servitude and humility for the people who support Wayside Cross Ministries as well as the mentors who continue to pour into his life. People like Tim Dunn, Pastor Tyler from Oasis Church, and Bill Stout. Like so many others, each mentor volunteers his time to support and encourage people rebuilding their lives here. None of it would be possible without the grace of God and people like you who feel called to help.

As Chandler explained:

“At the front desk of Wayside Cross’ main campus I’ve had the opportunity to see the heart of people in need seeking help, as well as people that support this place. You can never underestimate what God can do with your love and generosity. God is rebuilding my life one day at a time. He’s helping me overcoming addiction and connecting me in a deeper way with my grandparents. I’ve also earned my GED, and I’m working in a place that I have grown to love. And, I’m finally starting to dream again. Thank you!”

If you know someone who needs help with addiction or a place to recover and rebuild their lives contact Wayside Cross Ministries and ask to speak with one of our chaplains: (630) 892-4239

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If you enjoyed this story and want to learn about other lives that were changed, click: Stories of Hope & Recovery