Who is Liam Husband?
Liam Husband is the minister at HOPE Community Church, Winton (formerly: Centrepoint Elim). His testimony reveals a life that had been a spiral of running away from home, living on the streets, and a future with no hope in sight. But God stepped in, turned his life around, and called him to be a pastor, and administer His grace to people. He is now a happily married father of four, with an unashamed passion for Jesus. He describes himself as 'a trophy of Gods grace!'
Liam was born in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk in 1980, but moved to Askern, a small pit village near Doncaster in South Yorkshire, at very early age. His father worked on the offshore oil rigs as an engineer in the North sea so was away much of the time on contract.
In fact, his father only returned home once each month for a week at a time, and therefore the family only saw him 12 times a year, and then "he was down the pub for most of the time as he was a drinker", says Liam. These times were difficult. It was his mother therefore who raised Liam, and his older brother. The small community they lived in was a close-knit community surrounded by fields and orchards where the young lad played and spent most of his time. He loved being in the great outdoors.
Life at home became very unsettled and his parents were soon divorced. This period of time was extremely unsettling for the boys as they moved with their dad to live with a lady he had been having a affair with down the pub, and her children. The new family moved to Intake, a suburb of Doncaster, but things remained difficult, increasingly so. Not long after Liam's older brother was put in care leaving him on his own in a family he never wanted. Liam was just ten.
A Slippery Slope:
Kings Lynn:
Aged 19, Liam was banned from Kings Lynn and bailed to a hostel in Norwich awaiting trial for robbery and kidnap. It was here he first tried Heroin which later took over his life. Three prison sentences later, and after seven years of Heroin and Crack Cocaine abuse, Liam didn’t think his life could get any worse so again tried to kill himself by overdosing on all the heroin he had - injecting it directly into his arm... everything faded to black.
Little did he know this was going to start a journey that would change his life.
Willowdene Farm:
When Liam awoke, he had questions: "Where am I?", "Dead? Alive?", "Why am I still alive?", "What was life about?", "Why had he lived?" He determined that day to find the answers to that last question, and the first thing to do was to get himself clean so he could think.
He enrolled in the methadone program, and a few weeks later his chemist handed him a leaflet about a Christian drug rehabilitation centre in Shropshire called Willowdene Farm 1. Unbelievably alongside getting clean, they were offering a chainsaw course and tip to South America! That was the clincher! He decided to enrol! A few weeks later aged just 26, he walked into Willowdene Farm.
Liam admits that he fell out with everyone at Willowdene because he was such an angry young man. Yet there was one man who was there who had been a drug addict for over 30 years and who was clean - plus there was something different about him. Something that he couldn't put his finger on. So one day he asked him what it was, as he wanted it. "It's Jesus" he was told. Liam realised that this chap had what he had been searching for all his life and decided to start going to church with him - even though he wasn't ready to commit to anything. Little by little things began to change.
Salvation's Plan:
In late 2006 Liam listened to the international speaker and evangelist George Miller preach. Miller spoke about the story of the 'thief on the cross' - and at the end of the sermon he gave an altar call to which Liam responded. Liam tells us what happened:
"I'd seen enough and done a few Alpha [course] to know that I was ready, there and then, to give my life to this fella called Jesus. I was sat down in a place like this, a church, and I fell to my knees and gave my life to Jesus that day! That was in September 2006 and I was baptised in Guyana in April 2007!"
Redcliffe College:
On his return to the UK, Liam spent time searching for, and visiting, bible colleges; and Redcliffe Mission Training College 2 in Gloucester seemed to tick all his boxes. Not long after, Liam started his theological training - which was a miracle in itself seeing he had left school with nothing - and began to learn more about his faith, his God, and himself!
"[Recliffe] was the best three years of my life, God did more work in me as a person, than He did academically wise. I left school with nothing, I was kicked out of school a month before everybody else finished, but God turned my life around and gave me a loving wife and now a family too! And I love Jesus with all of my heart!"
Bournemouth Bound!
In early 2019 Centrepoint changed its name to reflect the hope we have in Jesus. Its new name is Hope Community Church 3. Liam unashamedly loves Jesus and loves to share the gospel with those around him.
Liam and Hannah have four children. Samuel aged eight, Zachariah aged seven, Elizabeth aged four, and Beatrice aged one. Away from ministry Liam is a passionate England and Gloucester Rugby fan. As a family they love to be out doors, and being around a table with each other - as a family; now that is precious!
Liam has been free from addiction for 12 years now.
Ed.
From an interview with Brian Edgeley
Footnotes:
- Willowdene Farm: See - https://ritesocialenterprises.org.uk/
- Redcliffe College: See - https://www.redcliffe.ac.uk/
- HOPE Community Church, Winton. See - https://www.hopeis.life