#HopedealersSample

Day 7: "Go Save Some Lives"

Today, I want to introduce you to my wife, Ally. Ally and I have been on an interesting ride as I've gone through addiction, recovery, sobriety, and all the steps of Hope Is Alive I've been detailing so far.

But everything changed on August 31, 2015 when Ally sat down at her computer and, over what seemed like a timeless moment, typed up a plan for a Women's Program at Hope is Alive. She had a thriving career as an event planner and had no reason to look for something else to do, but God had begun to call a HopeDealer into action!

She wrote a detailed program that included all the usual stuff: the day-to-day schedule, places where we could draw our residents from, curriculum thoughts, and, most surprisingly, her role in all this.

Yes. Ally had typed up a completely new career for herself.

And then she slammed the computer shut.

Her words: "I thought, 'Heck no!' I'm so unqualified for this! I'm not a recovering substance abuse addict, I'm a business owner. How could I lead a brand-new program with women who are coming off meth and heroin when I don't even know what that feels like?"

For the next three days, she kept the computer closed and her mouth shut but, thank God, she kept her heart open. Ally eventually decided to send the plan to me in an email. She sent it around midnight and I read it immediately. I believed this was perfect for Hope Is Alive, and Ally was the one to make it happen.

But Ally had a year of business already booked! If this was going to happen, God was going to have to show up in a huge way.

And you know what? He did.

Ally called a fellow event planner who was able to take over all of Ally's clients. Literally a year's worth of work, handed over in a 30-minute phone call.

She had to find a house, and that was more difficult. She looked at 32 houses, all the time questioning God and feeling discouraged. Sometimes HopeDealers feel discouraged! That's okay! But she finally found one, texted the landlord her Hope Is Alive email address, and crossed her fingers.

He texted back: Do you know Lance Lang?

She texted: I do. Do you?

His reply: Yes. I gave him his first lease on his first house and if you want this for the same reason, it's yours. Go save some lives.

From there, the rest is history. Now Hope is Alive operates three homes for women and Ally oversees all of them. Through her commitment to follow her calling, dozens and dozens of lives have been changed!

Ally is a HopeDealer She heard God and she knew it would be tough but she said YES. And Hope Is Alive's Women's Program is going strong as a result. In fact, there are dozens of stories of women who have come through our program and turned their mess into a message. Check out today’s video to hear just how one of them came to find HIA.

But before you do, read back through this story. You see, lives are changed when God's people start saying YES! Because of Ally's obedience dozens of lives have now been changed.

Your story and your YES hold the same power! What is it God is asking you to say YES to today!? What are you waiting for??!