In this episode of Redeemed Through His Blood, Scott and Deb sit down with Nick and Crystal to share a story that honestly should not have worked out—at least not on paper. Nick grew up in “Happy Valley, UT” served in the Church, and still spiraled into years of addiction and alcoholism that tore his family apart and ended in divorce. Crystal was left to pick up the pieces: raising kids, going back to school, working any job she could find, and learning how to breathe again while feeling like she was drowning. Nick, meanwhile, sank so deep into addiction that he fully expected to die or end up in prison. Then God stepped into both of their stories—through detox, The Other Side Academy, AA, the big book, the Divine Gift of Forgiveness, and a new, personal relationship with Jesus Christ that had nothing to do with box-checking and everything to do with grace.

Seven years after their divorce, against every earthly odd, Nick and Crystal are remarried—and they are painfully honest about what it took to get there: surrender, gut-level honesty, daily reliance on Jesus Christ, and a long, messy process of forgiveness that even included welcoming another child from Nick’s “wreckage” into Crystal’s circle of love. They talk about what it feels like to be the addicted spouse and what it feels like to be the betrayed one trying to survive, pay the bills, and not poison the kids against their dad. Crystal shares how God taught her to “quit swimming” and trust Him in the dark, and Nick testifies that the best place to start is when “the fight has been beat out of you.” If you’ve ever felt like it’s too late, too broken, or too far gone—whether you’re the one in addiction or the one trying to hold everything together—this conversation will whisper to your soul: you are not alone, and Jesus is willing to get His hands dirty in your story too.