Faith in Sobriety
“[People say] I don’t see [your past] on you,” Williams explains, “ that’s God.”
A conversation between Lance Williams, guest; Devaughn and Rosa Williamson, hosts.
DW: Start us off by telling us, who is Lance?
LW: “Lance is a man who has been changed by God in and out.” he says.
Williams, a man who grew up fatherless by age 4, was raised by his single mother who worked multiple jobs in order to provide. His mother introduced him to church, yet his father was addicted to drugs: in spite of the church upbringing, Williams adopted “generational curses.”
Williams speaking on the Faith Ignite Podcast: Season 1, Episode 2
DW: Walk us through that generational curse you mentioned.
Pulled into the opioid/pill scene in high school due to the influence of peers, Williams wanted to please the people he came in contact with. Being taunted in high school made the remarks leave a mark on Williams’ decision making.
“It made me feel like superman,” Williams speaks of the first high of taking drugs (pills).
He mentioned that he overanalyzed in his mind, yet hardly spoke or communicated, leaving Williams ashamed of how he was wired: the pills numbed him.
He began following the path his father walked regarding drugs, dealing, alcohol, and addiction.
Now, he encourages young people to own who they are and love others in the midst of bullying.
DW: What was it like growing up without a father present?
“I remember the first lie I told.” Williams mentions one of the last interactions with his father as a child.
Williams’ father, fleeing from policemen, ran into the house, and told Williams to lie that he was not in the house as he climbed into the attic. The policemen “bust down the door” and asked 4-year old Williams if he had seen his dad.
“No,” young Williams responded.
Now, he mentions that he will be the opposite of his dad as a husband and father.
Williams also remembers doing things to get attention because he was lacking that relationship: he chuckled about a time when he “milked” an injury from a car wreck in third grade to get attention from his mother and grandmother.
DW: What was it like to walk through sobriety amongst temptation?
“So, so, so, so difficult.” Williams begins.
Williams didn’t see himself coming out of this addiction, even after seeking medical professionals to help wean off of opioid drugs. Prescription medicine did not help.
After a consequence from Williams’ second DUI (Driving Under Influence) notice, he began to see that God was present.
“It made me realize that God was even with me in my stupidity and in the darkness.” Williams recalls.
DW: How did you go through the process of forgiving your father?
Williams mentioned that he had to understand that his father was under an attack by Satan through addiction; his dad did want to be present with his son, says Williams.
After learning under Mr. Shell’s (Williams’ Godly mentor) counsel and love, Williams learned to forgive. He realized that he had to forgive his father; otherwise, he would not grow.
Williams understood that his father didn’t have the Godly community and accountability that he had himself.
“It was simple,” Williams states, “[I] give what he[father] didn’t give me.” Love and forgiveness.
Mr. Shell, four months prior to the instance, told Williams that his father would resurface. When he did, Williams was ready to forgive:
“I love you and I forgive you,” he talks about his first phone call with his father since the transformation, “I know you were running from things, but I still love you.”
RW: What was it like realizing that faith in God was real to you?
After fluctuating in and out of the church, Mr. Shell spoke of everything in Williams’ life: sins, encouragement, and words of wisdom for the future.
It had been the first time Williams connected with a man and received encouragement of that nature.
After Mr. Shell made the love that Williams craved a reality, he realized there was purpose for his life.
The following years, Williams has developed a successful business (spoken by faith by Mr. Shell prior) and remains three years sober and counting.
RW: What is it like believing for something; for example, your business?
Williams states that we are not only to hear the words of God, but to believe them, receive them, and know they are from God.
“Just step out in faith,” he encourages, “if God is leading you to do something, you have the ability to do it.”
RW: Where is Lance now today, and what are you believing for the future?
“Lance is growing and yielding to God,” Williams chuckles.
Ever since taking part of Mr. Shell’s bible study and the group of men he has connected with, Williams is at peace and wishes to mentor the youth.
For the future, Williams sees growth ahead, hope for a family, an increase in business, and has a dream to own a bank that operates unlike any other bank. He believes he will provide financial security to those who would be forsaken by other banks.
Williams also believes to send his nieces and nephews to college.
Lance Williams, a radically transformed individual who became a successful businessman, free from addiction and opioid drugs, speaks of faith:
“If you don’t believe, then there’s nothing possible,” Williams continues, “simply believe because that’s what God asks of us.”
