“I AM JUST ONE BEER AWAY FROM LOSING EVERYTHING…”
By Chaplain Matthew Feldmeth
My name is Matthew Feldmeth. I was sentenced to 85 to life for commercial burglary. And yet I was raised in a good home, with two terrific parents. So how did I end up in State Prison? Drugs. No, I am not blaming drugs for my behavior because no one held me down and made me start using drugs. That was my choice, my decision. I started with Marijuana and then went to Heroin, Methamphetamine, cocaine… all of it. I was a drug garbage can. Drug use lead me to sell everything I owned and when I ran out of that I started stealing everything I could. I lost my wife, my family, and eventually my freedom.
The good news, I am NOT writing this from inside a prison cell. I am writing this from inside my home. Jesus Christ delivered me from drug abuse and lead the judge who sentenced me to help me get out after 18 years. I have now been out for five years. I have re-married, I have a great job, money in the bank, I am the Chaplain for this prison ministry.
The Straight & Narrow Men’s Group
I can honestly say, I am living, Joel 2:25-27:
“25And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. 26And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. 27And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel and that I am the LORD your God, and none else.”
But I also know I can not take this gift for granted. Addiction is always looking over my shoulder. Drug use is so insidious. We do it when we’re down, we do it to celebrate and oftentimes, the enemy tells us, we’ve been clean and sober for so long, we deserve to just try one time… that is a lie from the pit of Hell and I have seen over and over again, the guys and gals of our ministry fall because they believe this lie.
I must continually remind myself that I AM ONE BEER AWAY FROM LOSING EVERYTHING! One beer will lead to a six-pack, will lead to the 12 pack and I will be back on heroin within a month. So the way I live my life and my suggestion to you is to know within yourself that you can not have a beer, a puff from a marijuana cigarette…. Nothing! Sobriety is a day by day choice… chose it!
Two of my friends. Life is good, God is good!
Matthew Feldmeth has been out of prison since June 11, 2015. He now works full time for UPS, leads the HOLLYWOOD IMPACT STUDIOS STRAIGHT & NARROW MEN’S GROUP on Friday nights, helping ex-offenders to stay clean, sober, out of jail and mainstreaming back into society. He is the Chaplain for Hollywood Impact Studios Prison Ministry. He is happily married living in the San Fernando Valley.