Pregnant at age 12. Married at 13. Divorced at 25. Addicted to meth at 26.

 
Despite her pregnancy and marriage at an early age, Polly was still an overcomer. She graduated from high school with honors, attended college on a scholarship, earned her teaching degree, and found a teaching job she loved. She had everything going for her. That all changed when her marriage ended.

“I took on an extra job after I got divorced,” said Polly. “Between teaching and raising my daughter, I was tired all the time. Someone I worked with told me ‘I have something that will keep you from being tired.’ I took it and instantly I was hooked.”

Paying the Price

According to Polly, meth was “readily available and free.” But it cost her almost everything. Over the next three and a half years she lost her job, her car, her house, custody of her daughter, and was in and out of jail on drug-related charges.
“In February of 2007, I discovered I was pregnant. I wanted to stop using, but I couldn’t do it. I was living in a cinder block building, no power, no water. I slept on a box spring with no mattress until the day I went into labor.”
 

Miracle Baby

“Despite using meth every day I was pregnant … despite not having any prenatal care … despite my living conditions, my little girl was perfect,” said Polly. “I know that had to be God. She had to stay an extra week at the hospital for observation, but she had no side effects or permanent damage because of my drug use. She was a miracle baby.”

It was in hearing that first cry Polly knew she had to break free. “Her cry jarred something deep inside of me,” said Polly. “It was the first time in a long time I wanted something different. I was done with drugs.”

Polly’s mother and sister stepped in, taking custody of her daughter, while Polly went to a detox center. “After detox, I knew I needed to find a long-term recovery program. I received a list of 32 different places. I called each of them, and Nashville Rescue Mission was the only one that didn’t turn me away.”
 

Finding Hope

“I had been in church when I was a kid. I knew the process, but I didn’t understand what that meant for me. I found out when you don’t have Jesus you are just in survival mode. And that’s all I was doing in life until I surrendered to the Lord.”

“Through the classes, counselors, church services, preachers … the Mission’s program helped me understand what it meant to be able to choose to live for the Lord. Their program showed me who I was in Christ.”

“I had been at the Mission almost three months when I heard a still small voice during one of the services. I knew it was the Holy Spirit—telling me the only thing I needed to break free from these chains of addiction was Jesus. A couple of days later I surrendered my life to Jesus.”
 

Turning to Jesus

Polly thought she had it all together. “I was wrong. Jesus is the only one that can take the overwhelming desire for drugs out of a person’s heart. Today, I have no desire whatsoever for any drugs. I am truly free. He changed the desires of my heart. He gave me the desires He wants me to have. I have come to discover that life with Jesus is so full and rich.”
Polly graduated from the Mission’s program in May 2008. Besides setting her free from drugs, Jesus also has restored her life. Today, Polly and her husband, Craig, and their two daughters live in Corinth, Mississippi where they are active in their church. She also has a relationship with the daughter she lost custody of so many years ago and is now a grandmother. This past year, she regained her teaching license is now teaching at a local high school. Polly also works with Living Free Ministries to help women overcome their addictions.

Every day, women, just like Polly, walk through the doors of the Mission, desperate, hurting, and afraid.

Your gift today means these same women will be met with open arms, and welcomed into a place of hope and healing. You can make a difference.