04/26/2023
Here is the story behind the new men's home, Wesley House! It is an amazing story of a miracle and redemption. I recommend taking the time to read of the miracle of the house that was given to us.
The Story of Wesley House
The purpose behind this story is to honor God for orchestrating the events that led to the opening the Wesley House. There were a series of miraculous events that happened in order for this house to get going, and we want everyone who comes to Wesley House to understand how special this place is. In fact, we believe it came straight from the heart of God for men who struggle with addiction. We also believe that many will finally find freedom and an abundant life as they walk with the Lord Jesus.
For years the Selma community has seen the Joshua House that was started over 10 years ago serve that purpose. It has done great for a transitional home for people wanting to break free from addiction. It has helped many men, but unfortunately, it is full most of the time with a waiting list.
This past December, all within a few weeks of each other, multiple people began to contact Bob Armstrong about wanting/needing a transitional home to help them learn how to live drug free and to grow and mature in their walk with Jesus. But when these people contacted Bob, Joshua House was full, and there was nowhere for the person to go, except a local motel. Bob began to pray about this and after looking at a bunch of properties on line, and driving around Selma looking at houses to rent, Bob threw out a fleece before the Lord. He told the Lord, “I’ve done all I know to do, with no options open. I’m not sure which direction to take, but if you will get Jimmy Siddens to agree for us to use his office, I’ll know this idea is from you and I’ll act on it.”
So Bob called Jewel Williamson, an amazing person herself, and a realtor for Jimmy Siddens. He told Jewel that we didn’t have any money but we wanted to see if we could use Jimmy’s office at 534 Washington St. as a transitional home. Bob asked her to see if Jimmy would be willing to let us rent the house for cheap and/or buy it. Bob made it clear that we didn’t have any money.
So, Jewel called Jimmy and got back to Bob. Amazingly enough, Jimmy, and his sweet wife Leigh were really open to the idea. So, Bob called Jimmy, and they worked out a deal to be able to take immediate possession of the house, and the Siddens decided to give us the property!!
Another cool thing happened. There were 2 guys that were ready to move into the house immediately, Jason Green, and Dan Watson. They had both completed the Teen Challenge program together, had been roommates at Teen Challenge, and had even both worked together in the kitchen while they were in the program. They were already good friends. They were perfect guys to begin living in the house. And so, after lots of cleaning, working, and praying, Jason and Dan moved into the house on January 30th, 2023 with thankful and grateful hearts.
Another pressing need was for funding. When we started, we had “0” money for this house. And we had some needs. The back part of the roof had blown off in the Selma tornado and there had been leaking in the back rooms, and we didn’t have any furniture. But after a week’s time, there was $8,400 that came together for this transitional home, with zero fundraising effort! Just amazing. It seemed as if the Holy Spirit had touched the hearts of people to give unsolicited and we had enough money to get the house going. Also, we found enough furniture to have a living room and 3 bedrooms furnished, and so we opened the house. And then, on 2-18-23, Jimmy contacted Bob and said that he had a friend in Birmingham who said he would furnish the entire house with whatever furniture we needed. New furniture. For free!!! Amazing!
Still another need was to have a person who would be responsible for overseeing the home. We needed someone who would understand addiction, but who also would be spiritually mature. This person’s function would be to manage the house and help the men succeed and to experience the abundant life Jesus promised to give. Pretty much out of the blue, Joseph Parkman, who lived in Atlanta, came on the scene and announced that his heart’s desire was to help men come out of addiction, see them succeed in life, and to walk with Jesus. He also said he was feeling led to move to Selma and run the transitional home! And Joseph had all the tools needed to help this ministry flourish. Joseph will move to Selma the first part of March 2023 to run Wesley House.
And finally, it is important for each person who is involved with Wesley House, to know the incredible story behind its name. On February 9, 2023, Jimmy Siddens was in Selma taking care of some business matters, and he contacted Bob to see how the house was coming along. After talking about the house, Bob invited Jimmy to come and meet Jason and Dan, and see what all had been done. They all
met and showed Jimmy around the house, and Jason and Dan both had the chance to share their heartfelt thanks for Jimmy and Leigh’s generosity and for the opportunity to be at the house.
We had no idea the amazing thing that was about to happen. At that point, Jimmy began to talk about his son, Wesley. Jimmy told us what a great guy he was. Athletic, good looking, loved the outdoors, and just an all-round great guy. He told us about how at some point in his life, Wesley’s addiction began to cause significant problems, and he talked about the countless treatment programs that Wesley went through in an effort to beat the addiction. Jimmy told about Wesley’s struggles and that Wesley had unsuccessfully attempted su***de some years ago. Jimmy also shared that Wesley recovered from that event, and was living with Jimmy and Leigh when he finally ended his life a couple of years ago.
As Jimmy spoke, there wasn’t a dry eye in the room. You could’ve heard a pin drop. It was such a “holy” moment for us all. We were frozen. As Jimmy was finishing this story, he stopped and looked at Jason and Dan and said, “I’m glad my old office is being used for this purpose, and I only have one thing to ask of you. DON’T WASTE THIS OPPORTUNITY!’ We were all wrecked by Wesley’s story and Jimmy’s heart to help others win their battle against addiction. In that moment, we got a glimpse of the intense emotions surrounding Wesley’s death, but at the same time, we were also able to see the hope and redemption that this house represented for Jason, Dan, and for all of those who would follow. What an unforgettable moment.
After Jimmy left, Jason, Dan, and Bob just stood in silence for a minute, collected themselves, and all agreed we had just experienced a holy moment. We had been praying for the Lord to give us the name for the house, but we hadn’t gotten one yet. As we stood there, though, we knew the name was supposed to be “Wesley House”, in memory and honor of the life of Wesley Siddens, and his generous and loving mother, father, brother (Wade), and sister (Megan Leigh). Bob called Jimmy and asked for permission to name the house, Wesley House, and Jimmy enthusiastically gave it. After that call, we made it official. So..................welcome to WESLEY HOUSE, a truly special place!
