Episode 28 - Todd Sylvester
In this episode I had a great conversation with Todd Sylvester. He has such an incredible spirit about him, and his story is so inspirational. One of my favorite things he said was at the beginning. “I really believe that life happens for us. And when we have that perspective, sometimes it's really difficult when you're going through it. But looking back, we can always go, man, I'm glad I went through that because look what I get to do now and and look who “I am now kind of thing.” I really love that! It’s what my podcast and blog are all about. Using the hard things in our lives to catapult us into a better future.
Todd shared that he had his first sip of alcohol at 11 years old and ultimately was a full blown drug addict for almost 10 years of his life. Because of it he lost the thing that he loved most in his life - basketball. He had deicded he couldn’t go on any longer, as was going to take his own life…until he heard some girls at lunch talking about fasting and prayer. That changed the trajectory of Todd’s life. About a month later he shared an experience he had with his friend Rich. ““He finally takes his deep breath, and he turns to me, looks me in the eye, and he said, Todd, the Lord came to me last night and said, we need you on our side today. And Carly, I don't know how to explain it, but I felt something inside my body and every cell in my body that I had never felt before in my entire life. I can explain it now that it was love. I mean, the easiest, most simple way to say it was absolute love. It was so intense though, it actually scared me. We're just sitting there. And I told him “Hey, I fasted about a month ago for help. And Rich gets in my face and he goes, this is your help.” Todd wrote a book called ”Recovered,” and I read a part of it on the podcast. i want to share it here too:
“I felt like I had finally stumbled onto a paved road after wandering around through thick prickly sagebrush for years. It felt like more than seeing light at the end of the tunnel. t was more hopeful than that. Life wasn't going to get better eventually. It already felt better. Like there was an immediate turning on of lights, not a harsh difference in light, and definitely not a bright light, but enough light to make me realize that I had been living in a very dark place, comparatively speaking. I'd grown used to living in this darkness of misery and hopelessness, but now suddenly someone had turned up the lights, and instantly I was more okay than I had been.”
Todd shares so much more of his story on the podcast. He is an inspiration to me, and I highly recommend listening to his story below.
