A Difference Maker
Pastor Mike Scott has been a staple around the halls of Adult & Teen Challenge Ohio Valley since 2010 sharing the Word of God in chapel and teaching in our Education Department. He actually taught our very first graduate, affectionately known as “Day One Dave.” But in September, Pastor Mike joined our staff full-time as our Campus Pastor and we couldn’t be more excited!
When asked what he loves about this place, he said, “Men and women are challenged to be better – they are challenged to change. It’s not just to get to get off drugs and be sober or lead a non-destructive lifestyle. It’s like coming to a church and getting saved – you meet Jesus but you also learn to live a holistic life. It’s a well-rounded program that incorporates Christ.”
When did Pastor Mike know he was a difference-maker at ATCOV? “It was when I started running into different guys that had graduated the program and they always told me how I impacted them and how they remembered the things I said or taught. How I helped them make it through a tough time in the program and looking forward to hearing what I had to say. It was the feedback from them out in the community leading productive lives. Some I keep in touch with or call me on a regular basis. The fact that they have given me positive feedback – that is what makes me know that I am making a difference.”
His challenge is to make sure that men and women don’t return to the program. “I would hope that God would help us do whatever it takes to lower that rate – that is what I would like to see. Behavior only has lasting change when it originates from a mental and heart change.” That challenge motivates him every day to see lives truly changed.
Pastor Mike is always open to what God will bring in the future. “I will contribute at the level that God gives me. I will make plans but I make them with an eraser – I never write them in ink!” That fits hand in hand with his favorite scripture, Ephesians 5:14, “Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead and Christ will give you light.” He says, “God awakes us from a lot of things in life that we become comfortable with – our comfort zone. We have to be aware of what God is doing next in our life because if we’re not awake, we’ll miss it.”
Along with his wife of 45 years, Wilena, they have been the pastors of Lighthouse Covenant Ministries in Youngstown since 2009. They are true servants serving both their LCM and ATCOV families and we are so grateful for them.
