The one message that changed Jocelyn’s life

Jocelyn is grateful for the support she’s found at the Mission.

Jocelyn’s early life was chaotic; her parents separated when she was young, and she primarily lived with her mother. “I wasn’t normalized into having a family. I was separated between holidays and weekends between my parents,” she said. “I mostly stayed with my mom, taking care of her. My mom was into partying, clubbing, drinking, but I was none the wiser.”

At age 7, her mother became engaged to a man named Lucas, who initially seemed like a good influence—until abuse began. Jocelyn witnessed domestic violence and was briefly separated from her mother when Child Protective Services intervened due to drug use. Living with her father offered a semblance of stability, and school became a safe haven.

“I didn’t want to hurt my mom; I wanted to protect her. I didn’t want to say I was afraid of Lucas,” Jocelyn shared. “My break was when I was at school, I could talk to my friends. We were kids, we were all going through things and were scared. We didn’t want to go to the authorities. So, we just told each other. It was my escape.”

Jocelyn’s family later moved to Vegas, where things worsened. “I had so much anger, I started getting rebellious,” she admitted. Lucas became physically and verbally abusive toward her, and although he left when she was 12, her resentment towards her mother grew. She stopped going to school, became isolated, depressed, and began experiencing suicidal thoughts. At 14, she started drinking and using marijuana, while her mother continued her drug use.

Despite brief attempts at therapy, Jocelyn spiraled deeper into depression and addiction, especially after her mother lost custody of her children again. Jocelyn blamed herself and began drinking daily, mixing alcohol with pills and self-harming. Still, she pushed herself to complete her GED, attend college, and work, but the partying never stopped.

One day, a friend sent her a video, and the message stuck with her, “God loves you, don’t forget that.” Though she had once been an atheist and leaned on astrology, Jocelyn began attending First Christian Church, a church partner of RMA CC, where she found fellowship, a sense of belonging, and the Mission.

The program gave Jocelyn a new perspective. “There was one night where I was reading the Bible, where I was thinking about what happened in my past, my trauma, and I started crying. I was thankful. God’s given me this gladness that I went through these things,” she said.

“I think God uses that part of my story. I don’t think I would have ever been close to God if I hadn’t experienced the things that I did when I was younger. It was the small things that put into perspective who I am today.”

After graduation, Jocelyn is planning on becoming a nurse. For now, she’s found the community she’s always longed for. “I haven’t been around many people at once. I had an isolated upbringing. But we all support each other. We all identify with each other. Where else would you find that?

“We’re all building each other up towards God, surrounding ourselves with God. It’s better in this home than anywhere else.”

Update: Jocelyn is close to graduating from the Life Recovery Program and is
currently interviewing for a position at our thrift store. She’s feeling  clearminded, full of hope, and is now loving life. Jocelyn plans on starting nursing school within the next year!