Taranta

FROM THE STREETS TO THE SAVIOR

“God did for me what I could not do for myself.”

Taranta grew up in a tough environment, surrounded by bad influences and making poor choices. As a result, he fell into a cycle of substance abuse and crime. “There was a void I was trying to fill, an emptiness,” he said. “I was self-medicating to fill that void, but these were temporary fixes.”

Seeds of hope YOU help plant…

In 2007, Taranta came to Haven of Rest for the first time. “It was a short stay because I wasn’t ready to make a change,” he said. “But a seed was planted.”

Taranta soon returned to the streets and his destructive habits. “God was still there tugging at me,” he said. “But I was ignoring it.” His turning point came when he ended up back in jail. “There was someone in the cell beside me, a foul-mouthed, mean, angry man,” he said, “God showed me that this man was me, and He said, ‘Even when you were like that, I still loved you.’ I realized God gives us unconditional love. He doesn’t see our sin.”

A second chance for Taranta—thanks to YOU!

After his release from jail, Taranta saw it as an opportunity to return to Haven of Rest. He had a “heart change” and knew this was where he was supposed to be.

Psalm 23 (“The Lord is my shepherd”) became his guiding light. “When you have a child and you hold your finger out, they take your hand in such a way that shows they trust you,” he said. “They don’t ask where you are taking them, they just follow. God showed me to trust Him in that same way—to follow Him.

Life change you make possible…

Today, Taranta’s goals are centered around loving others as God loves him. “I want to be the father God intends for me to be,” he said. “I want to have the light of Christ in me that others would see the love of Christ.”

Thank you for all you make possible for lost souls like Taranta. Please continue to pray for him—for guidance and wisdom—and that he will keep his eye on Christ.