L
eon Cottman was
ready to commit
suicide. He had it
all planned. He intended
to walk to Delaware State
Highway 113 and simply
"step off the curb in front
of the rst 18�wheeler that
came along."
No, Leon did not meet
his prearranged end that
day, and he is now a sober,
born�again believer in
Jesus Christ. But what he
wants to do with his life
now--well, that's an iRony
worth hearing.
Leon had been serious
about killing himself. He
had even chosen a nice suit
to wear to meet his death.
He slipped his coat on. His
hand was on the doorknob;
he was ready to leave
home for the last
time. It was at
that moment, Leon
says, that his German Shepherd,
Titus, "gave me a look as if to say,
`Why are you doing this? You need help!'"
Whether God would use a dog to change someone's
mind about killing himself can be debated, but you
won't be able to convince Leon otherwise.
"I sat right down and started looking through the
phone and made over a dozen calls. No one seemed able
to help someone who is both an alcoholic and a crack
addict," Leon explains. "Finally, someone asked me my
condition at that moment, and I told him that I was
dressed and ready to walk out my door to throw myself
in front of a truck."
That got someone's attention. Within 20 minutes,
the authorities were at Leon's home and committed
him to a 24�hour emergency crisis center. While at that
program, a counselor
asked Leon what he
would like to happen.
"I need some kind
of in�house treatment
program," he answered
desperately.
"You mean like The
Salvation Army?" the
counselor suggested.
Leon was told that
the Army operates
Adult Rehabilitation
Centers (ARCs) across
the country. One of the
nearest ones to him
was in Baltimore.
So off Leon went to
be admitted into the
program at the Balti-
more ARC. It was life
changing. You might
say that Leon has the
rst of two "CDLs" un-
der his belt. The rst
CDL means "Christ De-
livers Liberation."
The new Christian successfully graduated from the pro-
gram earlier this year, and he intends to stay sober and saved
for the rest of his life.
And the second CDL? That's where the iRony rests...
Leon wants to become a fulltime driver of semi�trac-
tor trailers! He intends to earn his commercial driver's
license.
"I want to show the devil that I can control the very
thing he wanted to use to run over me," Leon says with
a victorious smile.
He recognizes that becoming a truck driver would be
a sort of psychological victory, like spiking the ball into
the endzone.
"God is working on me in a mighty way," he adds.
"He's teaching me to be persistent in abiding by the
rules He wants me to follow in life."
iRony
...... ......
36
The War Cry | MAY 2015
by
MAJOR FRANK DURACHER
One CDL Down; One to Go!
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