My name is Zaid.

For too many years I was addicted to alcohol and intravenous heroin.

If there were a one-word metaphor for my life it would be nightmare. Nothing was right
about my life or my lifestyle. I was suicidal and, as a result, I was also a regular at the Nevada Mental Health Center.

In fact, I was at the Center when I was released to the Reno-Sparks Gospel Mission. The longer I’m here at the Mission the more I realize there is real hope for me. My relationship with God is now filling the holes in my life that I once filled with alcohol and other drugs.

I’m smiling again.

I’m excited that God is giving me back my joy. I’m smiling again because it feels so good to be clean and sober. In the past I was so far away from God it was impossible for me to connect with him. Today, it’s all so different. I’m enjoying a new birth in Christ that’s filled with optimism and opportunities for service.

I also have a deep appreciation for you who give so much to the Mission — whether it’s your money, your time or your influence. I don’t say it lightly when I tell you your donations helped save my life. What greater gift could you ever give a person? I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Because of a loving God and so many caring people,

I no longer need sleeping aids for depression and mood disorders. God is taking care of my physical problems as well. God bless you for helping one more lost person find his way home.

Thanks to so many caring people, God is transforming my life.