My name is Robert Růžička and I would like to share my life story with you.

My life was full of drugs. I started smoking marijuana and ended up on heroin. In order to have money for drugs, I had to earn my living through crime. They were mostly thefts. I stole everything I could so I could sell it and have money for drugs. I also spent my whole life in prison because of that. I always started working out in prison, gained muscle mass and had nothing to do with drugs. After I was released, this decision lasted me a week at most and I met my friends who were also drug addicts again. Because of that, I didn't have money to pay the rent, and I ended up in a squat where I lived among rats and homeless people.

An unexpected visit to the squat...

After a few months of living on the squat, we received an unexpected visitor. A car full of people arrived, I thought it was some drug dealers or skinheads who decided to attack us. But to my surprise, they were acquaintances who had already approached me several times and invited me to church. They got out of the car and asked a homeless man "Isn't Robert here? Robert Ruzicka, is he here?" The guys called me out and when Marek Nový and his team saw me they hugged me and said "God sent us to this place today to find you and tell you that he loves you and doesn't want you to live like this." That got me. Plus they brought food, soup, pastries... I was very hungry. I ate, and also the people who were on the squat with me.

They prayed with me and told me that my door was open and that I knew where they were based, so I could come anytime. It took me two days to decide whether or not to go. And finally I decided to come. I knew that Věstonická offered a hot meal for the homeless every Friday and had a service for them. So I had the courage to go to this service. When I arrived, I was shocked to find that the people who served there welcomed me with open arms and showed genuine interest, love and enthusiasm that I had come. They told me "We have been praying for you, we are glad you are here." The service started and I just kept my head down the whole time. After the service was over, the local pastor, Matěj Nový, asked me if I would like to invite God into my life and ask Him for forgiveness and to start all over again. I didn't wait long and said "Yes I want."

I can't say that right after the prayer I started doing well and everything was fine. Even after this I fell several times, made a lot of mistakes, but by the grace of God I always got back up until the doctors found a tumor in my head. Even though I'm a big guy, I felt like a baby at that moment. I was out of it. I will die?... So I started praying like this: "God, I know it's my own fault, I've lived a terrible life, but please, if you save my life, I promise I won't do it again. I'll try to live the way You say." Surgery was scheduled, the tumor was to be removed this way, with the doctors warning me that some nerves might be damaged and I might become paralyzed, or my face might fall

off, I might not walk, etc. However, I wanted to have the operation, so I signed a consent to take this risk. They took me for a pre-operative exam and I prayed during that: "God save me, guide these doctors." After the examination, the doctor came and said, "Mr. Růžička, the operation will not take place because there is no reason. The tumor is gone, it's not there. You're healthy." "You're... what? Did you take a good look?" "Yes, the tumor is gone, look." And indeed the tumor was gone. I was praising God, thanking Him: "You are really alive." And so God made Himself known to me again and showed me that He cared about my life and that He wanted to save me and not condemn me.