Clinton4224

Abby Ades
All Things New
Mercy House
Moving to a new town and making friends can be tough for any teenager.
Eddie Buchanan knew this feeling all too well. “My dad’s job transferred us from
Kenner, Louisiana, to Clinton when I was in 10th grade. I did not fit in with anyone.
I had no confidence.” These feelings of rejection sent him into a downward spiral.
Eddie struggled with anxiety, depression, co-dependence,
bipolar illness, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Around age
19, trying to numb the emotional pain, he began dabbling with
drugs, alcohol, pornography, and promiscuity.
Moving from one odd job to another, Eddie spent the decade
of his twenties with no sense of purpose. By age 31, he was in a
full-blown addiction to drugs and alcohol.
In 2008, tragedy struck Eddie’s family when his younger
brother died unexpectedly, leaving behind a wife and three sons.
The heartache of losing his only sibling sent Eddie deeper into
a lifestyle of addiction. “I was in bondage. I would go to work,
go home, smoke pot, drink beer, then do it all over again the next
day,” he recalls.
At age 50, due to intense anxiety, Eddie had to quit his job
at a local barbershop and move back in with his parents. “My dad
had to help me a lot because I couldn’t get my act together. My
mom always believed in me, even in my worst moments.”
Despite his parents’ kindness, Eddie was using drugs in their
home behind their backs. One night, while high on drugs and in
a drunken rage, Eddie started tearing up his parents’ house by
slamming doors and breaking chairs.
“It was like I couldn’t control myself. At that point, I knew
this had to stop. My parents were in their seventies. I was afraid
I was going to lose whatever time I had left with them,” he shares.
Eddie was finally ready for a change.
“I was so broken, but I didn’t know how to change. I had
burned all my bridges. I knew if I kept running away from God,
it was going to get worse and worse.” He decided to go to Mercy
House Adult & Teen Challenge, a 14-month residential Christian
discipleship program for men in Georgetown, Mississippi.
The mission of Mercy House is to provide a Christian
faith-based solution to life-controlling problems, enabling men
to become productive members of society. By applying biblical
principles, they endeavor to help people become mentally sound,
emotionally balanced, socially adjusted, physically well, and
spiritually alive.
Eddie likened his addiction to an infection that a doctor cuts
out of the body so wholeness can be restored. It may feel painful
in the process, but the results are worth it. “I was a mess my whole
life. I had deep wounds, but God’s Word started to set me free.
His Word is the truth.”
While in the program, Eddie began to be healed from
feelings of rejection as he developed healthy relationships with
other men, both fellow students and leaders, who encouraged
him on his journey. “I started to see myself in a new way. It was
not self-confidence; it was Christ-confidence. I developed a very
real relationship with Jesus. It’s a real love. Now He is my
everything.”
Hometown CLINTON • 25