Hello, my name is Mistee, and I am 40 years old. I grew up in what I thought was a normal family. Even though my parents weren’t together, I felt loved by both of them. I lived full-time with my mom and older brother in the city, and during summers and holidays, I was in the country with my dad, his wife, my stepsister, my little brother, and the rest of my extended family. When I think back on my childhood, I remember feeling happiness, but in reality, violence and substance abuse were always in the background and all around me.
At age 12, my world completely changed when my father was sentenced to 15 years in Arizona State Prison. I not only lost him, but also the big, fun, happy family I had known. It was just me, my mom, and my brother after that. I naively put my faith in people I should never have trusted, and this led me down a slippery path of drugs and alcohol to numb the pain, anger, and loneliness I felt.
I ended up dropping out of school and becoming pregnant at 18 years old. I was so happy to find out I was going to be a mom and finally have a family of my own. I quit using drugs and drinking, and I was ready to be the best mom I could be. Unfortunately, I still had so much pain and loneliness inside, and the only way I knew how to cope with it was alcohol. A few years later, after my beautiful baby girl was born, I was introduced to pills and then reintroduced to meth. This is where my life took another turn for the worse. My addiction became all-consuming, and I lost custody of my daughter. This led me further into a dark world I never even knew existed. I no longer recognized the person staring back at me in the mirror. In fact, I began to hate that person.
About two years ago, a deep exhaustion came over me, and I began to desire change, but my life was so submerged in addiction that I felt trapped with no way out. On April 11, 2025, God said enough was enough and pulled me out of my drug-soaked life and placed me in Outagamie County Jail. I was completely alone, and words could never explain the fear that filled my entire being. I thought I was angry at the world, but really, I was angry at myself. It was in that place that I found the one thing I had been searching for my entire life, and that was God and His unconditional love. For the next eight months, while incarcerated, I spent five days a week going to church and Bible study, filling my days with His Word. I was ready to change, and the Lord filled me with so much hope for a better life.
I was scared to be released from jail because I feared I would fall back into my old ways. I knew I needed more. I took my concerns to the pastor at the jail, and she told me about a program called Adult & Teen Challenge. After learning more, I knew this was exactly where I was meant to be. Only by the grace of God, and through Adult & Teen Challenge, am I here today, almost six months into the program. I now have a peace and joy I cannot fully explain. I am learning to love and forgive myself, and the greatest gift is knowing I am never alone, because Jesus is always with me.
My past is where it belongs, in the past. I have been made new in Christ, and He is redeeming every part of my life. I still have hard times ahead with court proceedings, but I can face them with confidence because the plans the Lord has for me are good. I thank God that He cared enough to save me. His grace has taken permanent residence in my heart and has changed me from the inside out.
The Lord says, "Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:18