From the Asylum to the Altar
He was a man with little or no recollection of his past, no hold on the present and dying hope for the future. Oblivious to everything around him, Joseph Ouverney lived a life none would envy. Heavily reliant on drugs, foaming at the mouth and looking like a beggar – not by choice – simply because he was physically unable to take care of himself; But that was years ago. Today instead of people coming to him feeling sorry for him, they come to him seeking the same help he received at the church where he pastors. Together with his wife, Raquel, they dedicate their lives to helping people transform their life through their faith. Here they tell their story.
At the age of 12, Pastor Jose as he is more commonly known today, and his twin brother developed a mental illness which made day to day life a hard task. According to their family doctor, they had inherited the illness from their grandfather who suffered from Parkinson’s disease (a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that often impairs the sufferer's motor skills, speech, and other functions - Wikepedia). Taking care of the twins took its tool on his mum since she was left alone to take care of her boys.
“My dad abandoned us when he found out that my mum was having twins. It wasn’t easy for me because we were very violent. We used to fight until one of us shed blood. We even used to hit out mum,” he said regrettably. “We were prescribed strong medication to help control our aggressive behavior. We were on 12 a day. Mum was never at peace because she had to deal with two problematic kids and have her family humiliate her whenever she would go ask to borrow money for the medications (they were expensive)”
Unlike Pastor Jose, his wife Raquel never had to struggle financially. Both her parents held good jobs so at home; she had everything she would need materially
speaking. But as the saying goes, ‘money can’t buy you happiness’, Raquel’s family was riddled with story arguments that almost always spewed over into
violent fights
"I came from a broken home,” admits Raquel. “My parents were heavy drinkers and would fight until it was out of control. My father was in the military and kept weapons in the house. I remember one day, in the midst of another argument, he pointed a gun at my mother's head.
I was just a child… I was always afraid wondering whether today would be the day he would kill my mother."
There was a time when Pastor José also lived in fear. Due to his increasingly uncontrollable violence, he got himself into a clash with a local gang who retaliated with death threats.
"They threatened to kill me five times; they were going to jump me then kill me. I was so scared I hid in doors. Mentally I was getting so bad that, twice a week I had to have injections "calm the lion down". I felt so low I tried to kill myself a few times. My mother had to always be around, to watch over me because I would tear my hair out and would only eat if my food were put in the blender - I only wanted it through a straw. I got to a point where I did not talk, smile, and bath nor cut my nails any more. I used to scratch myself until I started bleeding. My mum was so tired of seeing me in that state that she considered putting me away in a ‘madhouse’."
Meanwhile Raquel and her family were also going through tragic and traumatic events. Her father was shot in the head (and survived), she was hit by a car, and her mum weight weight plummeted to 6 stones and was plagued by health issues.
"We did not know what to do,” said Raquel. "That is, until mum and I came across a UCKG TV progamme offering help and decided to see if they could help us too. We received a warm welcome; that day I felt a peace that I had never felt at home before. We took on board the advice we were given and decided to make a Chain of Prayer to fight for the restoration of our family. My mother got invaluable advice that made her wise wife (the arguments started to decrease as a result)
and I started to seeing my obstacles as challenges."
Pastor José also heard of the HelpCentre at this
point and asked to be taken there.
"By the time I came to the UCKG I looked like a beggar. My hair was long, I was drooling because of the medication and angry because everyone looked at me with pity - I did not want pity from anyone. At the HelpCentre they spoke and treated me like a normal person - I did not want to leave.
His mother continued bringing him to the HelpCentre where they were encouraged to use their faith in God together with the doctor’s direction.
“The more I came the more I felt better. Within two months my doctor took me off the medication. My doctor could not believe what was happening to me because I was dependent on the medication since I was 12. Today my brother is also well. We went from being problematic children to becoming our mother’s pride and joy. Madness today? Only for God!" concludes Pastor José
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