By SCOTT MIMS / editor-in-chief

WILSONVILLE – Grady Covin will not hesitate to tell you that he was once an alcoholic. What led to the dramatic change in his life is something he wants to share with everyone who will listen to him.

Covin, the pastor of the newly established non-denominational church The Mission, has an unconventional approach to his new ministry – it’s built around a faith-based addiction recovery program.

The mission is based in a newly renovated church that sits atop a high hill off Alabama 25, just south of Wilsonville. In the foyer hangs a work of art depicting Covin’s ‘verse of life’, or a passage of scripture with which he closely identifies, 2 Corinthians 5:17 – ”Therefore, if a man is in Christ he is a new creation: old things are dead. ; behold, all things have become new.

Covin’s testimony begins while working in a coal mine. He had worked there for 32 years and was in senior management, but had grown as far as he could go without a college education. So he went back to school, to UAB, and got a degree in finance, graduating the same year as his daughter and son.

Between working full time and being a full time student, however, Covin drank every day. It all seemed to fall apart when a change of management resulted in a demotion for him; Covin and his new boss “had a bad story” that led to the move, he explained.

“It was at that point in my life that I started to reassess him, and that is when the Lord began to speak to my heart about my salvation,” said Covin.

One night on his way to work, Covin pulled up to the side of the road, bowed his head, and asked God to save him.

“A few weeks later he called me to preach. I was so hurt, so far from the Lord, when I got home the next morning, I didn’t even tell my wife (Patricia) that I had been saved. I had told him so many times that I was going to stand up, ”he recalls.

Finally, she saw that something had changed. Covin started reading the Bible and one Sunday he said he wanted to go to church with her. Disbelieving, she wiped the mist off the shower door and looked at him.

Covin’s first church plant was Mountainview Baptist Church in Chelsea, where he ministered from 2007 to 2017. Prior to the Mission, he was full-time in evangelism and prison ministry.

At the mission, he partnered with Tim Lacy and Johnny Horton, the other board members. The first Sunday service was on May 23, and the first addiction recovery meeting is scheduled for Friday, May 28 at 6 p.m.

“The Lord made it very important to me to start an addiction ministry,” said Covin. “This program is unique in that it is aimed at the whole family. We are not a 12 step program; we are a one-step program. Of course, the only step is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and become a disciple of Christ. “

The program uses the RU or “Reformers Unanimous” program, which originated at a foundational Baptist church in Rockford, Illinois. After studying several programs and settling in UK, Covin flew to Rockford and completed the training himself and purchased equipment.

“We actually planted the church with the intention of the church growing out of the addiction ministry,” he said. “The basis of the program is the Bible. We teach people how to walk with the Lord, how to study the scriptures, and how to meditate on the scriptures. “

A key verse for RU is found in Galatians 2:20, the first part of which reads: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; not me, but Christ lives in me.

Covin explained, “People are continually trying to stop their addiction by their own power, and it’s impossible, and that’s what it teaches is not to live it in your own power but to die to you- even daily and let the power of Christ live through you. . “

The program meets at 26,000 Hwy. 25 every Friday evening at 6 a.m. from a free meal, followed by the program in the sanctuary. A nursery is provided.

The Sunday mission schedule begins with Bible study at 9:30 a.m., followed by worship at 10:45 a.m.

For more information, visit Shelbymission.com, call 205-601-6986 or email Covin at [email protected] Also find The Mission on Facebook.