Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Follett.
Hi Chris, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My name is Chris Follett, At the age of 4 my parents divorced. Leaving me torn between two different lives. My mother quickly remarried a man that Pastored a church. My father remarried a woman who was not a believer at all.
With my new stepdad, I quickly realized there were a lot of rules. When I would go to my dad’s house every other weekend, I realized I had no rules and could do or say what I wanted with little or no judgment or discipline. It was like taking a vacation every other weekend. At this time, I was doing very poorly in school. After hearing a teacher tell my mom I did not see the words on the page the same way the other kids did. I completely gave up on trying to learn to read or learn at all. I became the class clown and stayed in trouble. At the age of 11, I moved into my father’s house full-time. I quickly started smoking cigarettes and running with older trebled kids in the neighborhood. I started skipping school. At the age of 12, I got drunk for the first time and fell in love with alcohol. This was the start of a very dark future. I dropped out of school as soon as I got to high school. I started drinking plus smoking weed daily. I started experimenting with a lot of drugs. Acid, mushrooms, painkillers, somas, and anything else I could get my hands on. At 16 I tried cocaine for the first time and loved it. Now I could drink as much as I wanted and not pass out. It was perfect!
Now it was time to get a job. So, I thought to myself. I need to find a job I can still drink and party at. I went to every bar in town. Not knowing how to read or spell I had to talk with the person doing the hiring and convince them I was a hard worker and could get the job done. I did just that. A lady gave me a chance and I was now washing glasses stocking beer and making sandwiches in a bar! This was the perfect storm. I began meeting a lot of people that loved to party. Both old and young. I would party every day and night. Never stopping. I even parted when I was working.
As you can imagine, at this point, I began getting into some legal trouble. Got arrested for weed. And a few minors in possession charges. I was running with some pretty rough guys at this time and found myself in some very serious trouble. Now facing TDC time. Well, I ended up going to TDC on felony charges. Why take the ride to TDC I thought to myself how will I survive this? God was my only hope. I started rehearsing the prayer my stepdad would pray over me every night as a child. Heavenly Father, please keep an army of angels camped around me and protect me from the top of my head to the soles of my feet in Jesus’ name amen! Well God did listen and protected me the full time I was in that terrible place!! I participated in every church service and every prayer circle I could why I was locked up.
The day I was released I left God in that prison and found myself in the parking lot with a cigarette in my hand. The second the smoke hit my lungs the devil whispered in my ear. You need a beer you need some weed you need a girl It was instant. Not even a week out I was right back to do the same thing that got me in trouble in the first place.
Hanging with the same people using drugs and partying day and night. It was as if I had never stopped. Now we can jump ahead I’m 24 years old and bartending at a local bar when I saw the most beautiful woman walk through the door.
She was a new cocktail waitress, and I was in love. We began to talk and quickly started dating. Well, it was not long, and we had a baby on the way! I wish I could say we lived happily ever after but no!! We both had a drug and drinking problem and the relationship ended about 6 months after my amazing gift from God was born. After we split up, I asked his mother to please allow me to still be a part of his life. I wanted to get him on the weekend. She let me but the only problem with this is that I was a selfish addict and alcoholic. So, for the first 4 years of his life, there was not a time I ever picked him up sober. Every time I had him with me his little life was in danger. I still thank God every day I did not hurt him, kill him or go to jail with him riding in the car with me. Thank you, Lord!!! Well, let’s jump ahead a few years now. He is almost 5 years old. My life is out of control. I live in a very rough apartment complex in Houston. I’m working two jobs a small bar in the daytime and an adult entertainment club at night. This just fueled my addiction. And party lifestyle.
One weekend I picked my son up. At this time, he was the only person in this world I loved and would listen to. I didn’t listen to the judge, lawyers, probation officers my bosses, or anyone. But when my baby boy started talking you can bet, I heard every word. I was his biggest fan!! So, God used him to finally get my attention. That night my son asked me to please not drink the bottle of vodka that was set on the coffee table in my Livingroom. I was shocked to hear this from him thinking to myself why would he say that? I drank it anyway and the whole time I was drinking all I could think about was him asking me not to drink it. Well, I was feeling so bad that told everyone in my apartment that night strippers from the club, other drug dealers, gang members, and addicts I wanted them all out I was shutting the night down. I set there in my living room trying to mustard up the courage to go to my son’s room and check on him. Wondering if he would know I had drunk the vodka.
I walked into his room and like never before he had his lights-out games off and was in his bed, blanket over his shoulder facing the wall crying his little eyes out. My heart dropped that night. I walked across the room set on his bed and asked him if he wanted me to tell him a story. He set up with the biggest tears I have ever seen in my life rolling down his beautiful little face. He said no dad you drank that. As he laid back down, he did not want me to touch him or even say a word to him. His little heart was broken!! I stud up completely defeated with no words to say I walked out and went to the living room where I took a hand full of pills to go to sleep. I woke up the next morning determined not to drink. I made it a few hours when I realized there was no way in the world, I would make it through the day without alcohol in my body. I was shaking sweating puking and completely sick. My son asked me daddy are you okay I told him no I’m sick please help me get your bags together so I can take you to mommy’s house. He said okay why he was in his room getting his stuff I hit the kitchen and began chugging vodka. I know that was the reason I was sick. I took him to his mom dropped him off and started dirking more than I ever had before. To this day I can’t tell you what I did that weekend but thank God I woke up in my apartment on Monday morning. Now I had to go to work and set up the bar to get the week started. That morning at the bar I mixed myself a strong bloody Mary like I always did. And when I took the first drink it was like my kid was in my head. I heard his little voice say daddy please don’t drink that!!
Today I know this was God getting my attention. And it worked. For the next 5 days, it was like I had a good angel on one shoulder and a bad angel on the other shoulder. My good angel only said daddy please don’t drink that and the bad angel said you are the worst dad in the world. You can’t read you can’t spell. What are you going to do teach you how to mix drinks and cook crack! KILL YOURSELF!! Then soft I would hear daddy please don’t drink that. Then. You are destroying your son every second you spend with him kill yourself so his mom can find a man that can take care of him right. You are the worst thing that’s in his life kill yourself.
Well by Friday I was convinced that I was destroying my amazing son’s life. So, at the end of my shift, I told my boss I would not be back they could replace me and walked out. Then I called my night job and told them I’m not coming in and I won’t be back you can replace me! I went to the liquor store and bought 2 half gallons of vodka when to my apartment and started chugging. I got my gun and loaded it up. Got a pic of my son and gave it a kiss. Hung my comforter over the wall behind my sofa braced my feet under my coffee table stuck the gun in my mouth and closed my eyes. In a split second before I squeezed the trigger a voice in my heart screamed at me to call my mother. I dropped the pistol in my lap and looked around the Livingroom to see who screamed it was empty. So, I began to scream back. I said fine I will call but she will never answer. She doesn’t even know my number. She is a pastor’s wife and sleeping. When I hear the answering machine, I’m pulling the trigger. I put the gun back in my mouth and braced myself again. Then I heard her voice on the other end. God saved my life again. Because I’m 100% sure I would not be writing this now if I would have heard the answering machine. I would have ended it right then!! My mom answered the phone. When I heard her voice on the other end I started weeping. When I say weeping, I mean it I was crying so hard I could not breathe or talk. You see I had not heard my mom’s voice in years. As I was weeping, she began to yell through the phone. She yelled say something who is this Chris, I know it’s you please say something!! What did you do? Did you kill my grandbaby? Did you kill someone?? What happened?? SAY SOMETHING!!!! You see I wanted to say something, but I could not catch my breath because I was crying so hard!!
Finally, I said. Mom, he is okay but I’m not. I need help or I’m going to die!! Moms are so amazing even though I had abandoned her for all of them years she was still willing to talk with and help me that night. First, she said Chris make me a promise. I said what? She said promise me you will not hang this phone up on me no matter what tonight. I said I promise I won’t mom. She then began to tell me she had been praying for me for years and God told her not to try and call me that if she tried to call me that I would die. He told her she had to wait for me to call her. She said I think this is that call. She then told me how she had heard about the life I was living and the things I was involved in. She said she found a place for me to go but I had to be ready to fully give God my heart and do things his way. I told her mom it was either that or I hung this phone up and put a bullet in my head. Well, she talked to me for about 8 hours that night until the sun came up the next day. She got me to pour all my vodka out at some point in the night. I have no idea how she did that because I would never do that. Not for any reason or anybody. Well, when the sun came up, she said Chris I have a number to a program that helps men with addiction but it’s not a rehab. It’s a men’s discipleship program! She said if you’re just trying to get out of trouble with the law or trying to fix a relationship with a girl or trying to get a job back don’t call!! But Chris if you’re ready to become the man God intended you to be and start doing things his way You should call ASAP. She told me it’s your choice and only you know if you’re ready. She gave me the number and then hung up the phone.
I stared at that number for a long time. Then made the call! The man on the other end asked me a bunch of questions. Then he said are you ready? I said yes and 3 days later I was at a men’s discipleship home up by Austin Texas. They welcomed me in and gave me a bible. I thought to myself I can’t read so this won’t be much help. But then I felt the peace of God come over me and I knew I was in the right place! That night before sleeping I put my hand on that bible and spoke. God, I don’t know if you are real. I don’t know if that was you that screamed at me in my apartment. I don’t know if these people are fracking crazy. But I do know this God I hate my life I hate the father I am to my son. I hate everything about my life but my son. And with every minute I spend with him I’m destroying him more and more! So, God, I promise you I’m going to give 100% to this. I’m going to do everything these people tell me to do for the next 6 months if you are real, please don’t let me leave this property the same man I am today!!
That night I heard a very soft voice in my heart. God said Give me 100% for the next 6 months and I will give you 200% for the rest of your life here on earth and in eternity. God is real and he keeps his promises! With a lot of hard work, I learned to read. And within one year of graduating from the program, I went through it. I built a team around me, and I started my own 501c3 non-profit organization. I’m now the president and founder of Innerfaith Disciple House. A men’s discipleship program just like the one God saved my life at! We will be entering our 11th year in May 2023. The program has helped hundreds of men from all over the US find freedom from and maintain freedom from addiction! We have a 73% success rate with our graduates. In 2019 we purchased a new 6,400sqf. House on a 7-acre ranch. We now have an inground pool full fitness facility volleyball court horse riding arena equine therapy fishing pond and lots of other blessings for our students/Disciples. Innerfaith disciple house is a six-month Christian character-building and discipleship program for men 18 years old and up struggling with addiction. The men are not allowed to work because they are in the program, and we never make them raise money to support the program. We want them to be focused on building their new life with God for the full six months they are here. They are not allowed to leave the property unsupervised unless it’s on an approved day pass with family after they have been in the program for 90 days.
We also have another property that is our transition house and aftercare program where if the men that graduate the 6 months in the house want to further their recovery. They can move over there get a job and start working on building their life. Why still living in a structured environment? We have a very good reputation in our community, and we are funded only through donations from people and businesses in our community. If you would like more info, please feel free to contact me Chris at 936-827-3113 You never know God all you need until God is all you have!!
The best is yet to come!!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Learning to run a business has been the hardest part.
Learning to read and work on a computer. I quickly learned that Life is hard and it’s important to always learn and grow. I had to learn how to conduct myself on a professional level. Manage my team and my financials responsibly. I had to learn how to let my yes be yes and my no is no. even when it was uncomfortable.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m the President and founder of a 501c3 nonprofit organization. I help men struggling with addiction. We are most proud of the 73% success rate graduates have after completing our program.
We are also known for our beautiful facility and our open house services every Thursday night from 7 pm to 9 pm.
Our loving environment and the presence of God in our facility are what sets us apart from others.
Networking and finding a mentor can have a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
I think it’s important to put yourself out there and welcome as many people as you can into your life. But do so with caution and get as much advice as you can from others on your team. always be willing to try something new.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.innerfaithdisciplehouse.com
- Instagram: Innerfaith disciple House
- Facebook: Innerfaith disciple house
