For 27 Years He Masked the Pain. Then a Blacked-Out Drive and One Phone Call Changed Dale's Life.
Updated: Aug 7
Dale was broken for 27 years. He drank to cover the pain, and the drinking always pulled in more, drug use, bad decisions, toxic relationships. Spiritually, mentally, physically, none of it was good. And underneath it all was a question he could never answer: who was he, really?
For a while, he thought he'd found the answer in a career.
"I became a truck driver. I thought I made it. I'm getting money now, and money makes me who I am. But I was still drinking every day. My life was fake. I was living a lie that I had made it."
Before the truck, he had been homeless three separate times, a year at a stretch, with no purpose and no focus. So the career felt like the thing that would finally take him over the top. It didn't. The rejection and the old wounds were still there, and he was still using drugs and alcohol to cover them.
The Night He Woke Up in Jail
Dale had one rule: he would drink in the sleeper of his truck, but never behind the wheel. One night that rule broke.
"Somebody asked me for a ride. I don't even remember giving it. I just woke up in jail, wondering what I did."
The worst thing he did that night was take out a mailbox. But he knows it could have been a small child, or a family sitting in a Wendy's. After that DUI he was homeless a third time, and it only got worse. He started using meth, another line he'd sworn he would never cross.
Rehab Made Him Better at Being an Addict
He had tried rehab before, and he's blunt about what it did for him.
"It made me a better drug dealer and a better drug user. I'd do the program, but drink on the weekends. On the outside I looked great, haircut, suit, a job. But deep down, the root of my brokenness was still there."
He finished rehab and went straight back to drinking.
"Call Now"
Then his sister and brother-in-law asked if he would consider getting help, and they'd heard about a place in Abilene called Rise. When a bed opened, his brother-in-law called with the number. Dale said he'd call later.
"My brother-in-law said, no. Call now. And something stirred inside me. I felt like I was going to miss out on life if I didn't."
He called right away. And even though part of him tried to sabotage it, answering the intake questions wrong so he wouldn't get in, God, as Dale puts it, found a way to box him in and bring him to Abilene.
He Didn't Think He Had a Problem
Dale arrived expecting a hospital. Instead he walked into a three-bedroom house with one bathroom. He figured it was just a transition until Monday, when surely he'd get his own room somewhere. And at first he was certain he didn't belong there at all.
"They tell you to keep your testimony to three minutes. I thought, I don't even have a testimony. I'm not the one with the problem. They are."
Slowly, Jesus began to chip away at him. Dale always remembered the good times and forgot the bad, so God started reminding him of his past, and building in him a real conviction that he needed to change.
The Man Who Won Him Over
Dale came in suspicious of everyone, sure it was all for show. The person who became his staying power was Pastor Ray.
"He won me through his character, his integrity, the way he spoke to people. His testimony struck me, we came from almost the same background. God knew what He was doing when He placed that leader in my life."
The home taught Dale to lead himself and to take extreme ownership. He had spent his life blaming everyone, the government, his circumstances, his upbringing, until he finally learned the real issue was him. As his spiritual intelligence grew, so did his emotional and relational intelligence. For the first time, he could deal with people, have empathy, and put others first.
"God broke through by showing His love through other people. They didn't give up on me when I was giving up on myself. Feeling defeated is temporary, but giving up is permanent."
Relationship, Not Religion
Dale had believed in God, but not in Jesus, he couldn't accept that a man would die on a cross for him. Over time, through one faith-builder after another, he went all in. Even his prayer life changed.
"I used to do popcorn prayers, in and out. Now a lot of times I'll just sit there and not say a word, and enjoy His presence. Growth isn't in the religion. It's in the relationship."
Today, Dale says his life is the best it has ever been. Ministry doesn't pay much, but he says God gives him the perfect amount. He calls his job, being a champion of people and winning souls, the best job in the world. He graduated in 2019 and has been part of the Rise staff and movement for about six and a half years. And when Pastor Ray asked if he wanted to help launch in Austin, Dale's answer said everything about how far he's come.
"I said, you don't have to ask me, pastor. You just have to tell me to go."
If This Is You
Dale calls himself one of the most selfish, unreliable people he ever knew, and he changed. So if you feel too far gone, or if someone you love is hiding their brokenness behind a life that looks fine, don't wait. It's free, a real person answers day or night, and it starts with one call, the kind Dale almost put off until later.
Ready to reach out? Get help now. Freedom really is just one phone call away. (325) 232-5449.
And it's all free because of people like you. As Dale says, honest change is rarely free, and your giving planted the seed that changed his life.
If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction or thoughts of suicide, you are not alone and help is available. Rise Discipleship's 24/7 helpline is (325) 232-5449.
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