From Rock Bottom to Redemption: Bobby Folsom’s Courageous Battle Against Addiction

Bobby Folsom’s journey is one of remarkable transformation. Hailing from Des Moines, his early life was marred by the challenges of drug and alcohol abuse, violence, poverty, and addiction. Surrounded by drugs from a young age, he became entangled in a world of criminal activity. Yet, Bobby’s story is one of redemption and renewal. With unflinching honesty and without regret, he shares his experiences and the powerful lessons they hold. His narrative is a testament to courage in the face of overwhelming temptations and the hope that springs from trust in a loving God. Bobby’s life is not just a tale of survival but a beacon of hope, guiding others towards a brighter future.

***WARNING*** This episode contains graphic language and adult situations. It is not recommended for all listeners

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See you in the next episode! Be blessed!

Full Transcript

Intro:
Welcome to Courageous by Crossroads Apologetics, a look into what motivates us to step out in courage and the everyday bravery of men and women like you. In each episode, we hear a personal story of bravery centered around this. What’s the most courageous thing you’ve ever done? And now, your host, founder of Crossroads Apologetics, Jeff Johnson. 

Jeff Johnson:
Hey, everybody, this is Jeff. Welcome to another edition of the Courageous Crossroads. Today’s episode, we delve into a story of redemption and resilience. My guest today, Bobby Folsom, has a powerful testimony that comes from a place of raw authenticity. And I want you to know I wanted to honor his journey and the reality of his experiences, so I’ve chosen not to edit out the strong language and profanity that naturally arises in his recounting. But please, please be advised that this episode is not suitable for all listeners. But I believe in the importance of presenting this story in its truest form. Reality can be rough. We all know that. And it’s through acknowledging this that we can truly appreciate the beauty of transformation. 

Jeff Johnson:
So if you’re ready to embrace the unfiltered truth of a life changed by a loving God, then join us as we step into the world of our guest, Bobby Folsom, whose story is as real as it gets. Welcome, everybody, to the Courageous Crossroads podcast. I am super excited to be talking to a new friend today, a guy that I just met through a mutual buddy of mine, Corey Ballard, who’s been on the program before, Bobby Folsom. Bobby, welcome to the podcast. 

Bobby Folsom:
Thanks for having me, Jeff. 

Jeff Johnson:
All right, so here we’re talking about courage, and I feel like I’m talking to somebody who’s got something to say about courage. So we’ll just jump into it. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah, it took a little bit. 

Jeff Johnson:
Would you tell people who you are and where you’re from? Give me a little bit of background, whatever the Lord’s laying on your heart to share with us. 

Bobby Folsom:
I’m. My name is Bobby Folsom. I. Born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa. I work for Perfect Cut companies. I am. See the senior mowing foreman there? What got me here? A lot of courage, I’d have to say. It’s been rough, you know, the last. Let’s say not eight years, but at least the first three of it was pretty tough. We. I was into drugs, you know, I guess we could start there. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah, that’s fine. No, I could. Well, let me just preface that by saying the reason why you’re sitting here is because I heard you on Corey Ballard’s Podcast the Green Grind. And I was captivated. I mean, you told a story just about who you are and what you’ve been through and all that kind of stuff, but you told it unvarnished. And it was just. It was a powerful thing. And, you know, when you hear somebody give a testimony that’s straight from their heart, you can tell that you’re listening to the truth. And it’s a powerful thing. And one of my favorite quotes, I’m going to shut up so you can talk. But one of my favorite quotes is, if you want somebody to know the truth, you tell them the truth. If you want somebody to love the truth, you tell them a story. 

Jeff Johnson:
And you were telling a story about the stuff that you had been through. And, man, you just had me from the get go. So, yeah, maybe a little bit of background. We’re going to come down to the point, I’m going to ask you the question, what’s the most courageous thing you’ve ever done? Okay, but I don’t want to get to that yet, so give me a little bit of background about. 

Bobby Folsom:
I mean, from a very early age, I was captivated by drugs. Smoking weed. When I was 12, 13, I was drinking booze. I was. I got into meth when I was about 16, 17, I started using the needle, went down super fast, got involved with the law, went to prison, and I had my first daughter. And I got clean for about 15 years and over. Now when I say clean, I mean from the meth, you know, and the heroin, the cocaine that I was doing. Well, about 25, I started getting into the pain pills and had a doctor that was giving me prescriptions for Xanax and Vicodin and a lot of them. I mean, not. Not a little bit, a lot of them. 

Bobby Folsom:
And didn’t really know that I was addicted until I ran into, you know, I met a girl, she wanted to take half my pills. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
And then at the end of the month, I started getting sick. Shit, I’m addicted to these things. Well, years went by. I mean, years went by and I thought, I need to get off these pills. And I don’t know why, I don’t know how, but meth was around me again. It was. It wasn’t in my picture, but it was in a picture that was near me. 

Jeff Johnson:
And unfortunately, your catalyst to get off. 

Bobby Folsom:
Of the pills, it was. And I. And it was cheaper. It was cheaper. There’s a doctored famous rock band. One of the. One of the players in there, he was killed by intravenous drugs. By this, the same doctor was prescribing. I mean, he was prescribing the whole east side of Des Moines. He was lighting it up, and I was one of them. And when he got busted, the town went dry. The pills jacked up in price, and I moved on to the next cheapest thing. Well, it was a bad deal. I got my dad involved in it, and he had been clean for a long time, and my grandparents had just both died, and were super depressed. We were. We were in. Living in the home that my great grandpa built, and were doing meth, and were selling everything in that. In that place. 

Bobby Folsom:
I mean, we sold the cabinets, we sold the ceiling fans, the copper. We took it all. And we knew eventually we would lose the house, so we. We came up with all these crazy plans, but it always just ended up were buying more drugs and we lose the house. I started to think about getting clean. And my dad, he was. He became homeless, and he thought that was the way to go. Well, I eventually ended up homeless as well. And my dad had sought refuge with an aunt of mine, and he was starting to do good. And I went severely downhill again. I was on the needle. I was sleeping on park benches, you know, sleeping on cricks. You know, sometimes it would because I didn’t have nowhere to go somewhere. At times it would because I did so much heroin, I couldn’t move. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. I mean. And some had to change. 

Jeff Johnson:
I shared with you when. When we met each other, Bobby, that I’m somebody that’s wrestled with drugs and alcohol myself. And I understand about that disease, that it’s over any period of time, it gets worse, never better. It’s just progressive. And you’re perfectly describing a situation where it’s just getting worse and worse. 

Bobby Folsom:
It was horrible. And my mom stepped in and said, look, I’m gonna take the kids so you don’t lose your kids. And I. Okay. So the kids went to live with mom, and they. It enabled me to just do whatever I wanted. And I was out here, you know, and, you know, I’m selling drugs. I’m. I’m. I’m doing shitty tattoos on people. I’m doing everything I can to. And I think I’m just living this life, you know? I mean, I’m a scumbag. You know, I’m like, I’m a piece of. And. And, you know, it got to the point, and I’m like, I. I don’t. I wasn’t readily and actively trying to kill Myself, But I wasn’t gonna be mad if it happened type of thing. Like, I was in that. I. 

Bobby Folsom:
You know, I get ready and I hope if I don’t wake up from this one guess it’s okay. You know, I didn’t care and then went on for so long, and I. I’m not dying. I’m not dying. So, you know, I had this. Whatever. I had this timeline in my head where, I mean, fuck, I’m not gonna live this long, right? Then I get to that point and I’m still doing it like, well, I’m not gonna live to be this long. Then I make it there. So finally, man, I’m not gonna die. And then I started getting this really weird sensation inside me that I had. There was. He was keep God. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
Was keeping me alive for something there. 

Jeff Johnson:
Now, were you a faithful person at this point? 

Bobby Folsom:
Well, I was in now. Okay. So. Growing up, I was indoctrinated, whatever the word is. I was an altar boy. I went to church every Sunday. I went when kids didn’t have homework on Wednesdays. It was because I was at. Me and my brother were. We had to go to church. You know what I mean? And. And so for a lot of years, and my mom’s very religious. For a lot of years. Yeah. You know, I mean, it was that. 

Jeff Johnson:
You had that understand the understanding, the. 

Bobby Folsom:
Quintessential the, you know, Easter and the. And we. We knew about, you know, him dying and coming back and. And all the. All the typical, you know, the stories that you listen to when you go to church for years and years of your life. Well, then get to. You get to the point. You’re like, I’m at this other junction in my life. I’m like, God ain’t real. God ain’t real. I’ve asked him. I’ve. I’ve cried, I’ve begged. And he. I’m still sitting here with a needle in my arm. 

Jeff Johnson:
Right? 

Bobby Folsom:
And then, you know. But you’re also in psychosis. You know what I mean? Like, you’re not thinking right. Did you even do meth just now? Or was it basalts? Or was it. I mean, I didn’t know. Out of your mind what I was putting in my body. And I. And I was just talking to my girlfriend about this the other day. I told her I felt like there might have been times when people actually tried to kill me because they knew that I was gonna not smoke it or not. I was gonna shoot it up. Let’s see if we can kill this guy. And, I mean, there were a few times where I don’t know how I even lived. People found me laying on the side of Village Inn one night, put me in the back of their car. 

Bobby Folsom:
And I stayed in these random fucking people’s house for days while they nursed me back to health off of drugs. I mean, there was just. There’s just so many. I don’t know how I’m alive. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. 

Bobby Folsom:
And that’s when I started thinking, there’s got to be a reason. 

Jeff Johnson:
Maybe God’s in this. 

Bobby Folsom:
Maybe. Maybe he is in this. And maybe he needed me to do something on my own. Maybe he needed me to stand on my own two feet for a while and prove to him that I was going to do it, that I was actually going to make this step. Because, I mean, I had been lying to him and myself and everybody around me for so long. How could. How could anybody. How could God believe me? How. How could anyone, you know, And. And it just. It just clicked. Yeah. You know, and I’m. I got with my girlfriend and we. When we met, we got high together, and then she went off to Bridges of Iowa and she went off to do over. Over a year of treatment, and I still was out here doing it. 

Jeff Johnson:
Were you still together with her? 

Bobby Folsom:
We were in the beginning, weren’t dating. We were just kind of friends. We were getting high together. We hung out all the time. And I even remember telling her one time, were laying there and I’m like, hey, man, you know, I might not be boyfriend material right now, but don’t forget about me, because in a couple of years, I’m going to make a comeback. You know what I mean? And she says to me, she’s like, I remember that. I remember you saying that to me. And she goes, I believed you. She said, you just. I mean, any people would ask me, like, oh, man, you know, like, you get into this community and it’s all hurt people. It’s all people who have had for sure, really something really great about them. 

Bobby Folsom:
I’ve met people that you never thought of it, and they sat down at a piano and blew my mind or. You know what I mean? Like. Or they lost their kids or somebody died, or if there’s. There was something and it’s all these. And so you’re just. With all these sad people and you become a community and. And you fit in. You fit in. I might not fit in with you and your buddies, but, man, I fit in with these. These losers down, you know, that what people would perceive as losers you know, and, and so I, I held on to that for a while, you know, but then once it clicked. 

Jeff Johnson:
It clicked, and then you were done. 

Bobby Folsom:
I was, I was done. You were done. 

Jeff Johnson:
Now, how much. Now, where was this in relation to you spending time in prison? 

Bobby Folsom:
The prison was when I was young, 21, I went. And. 

Jeff Johnson:
Because a lot of times people will go to prison and that’ll be the knock on the head, you know, that will represent a bottom. They’re like, okay, now I’m done. 

Bobby Folsom:
Now look, I didn’t want to go back, and I didn’t want to commit crimes that would make me go back to prison now. And that’s where I was talking to you earlier about. I had never had a meth charge. I was so proud of that because I’d been caught 20 times with weed and I never, you know, I mean, I never got. But, well, I guess I did the first time I went to prison for. I had a lot of weed, though. But, like, I knew I had been caught with all these little amounts of weed. I knew I wasn’t going to go to prison for that. So as long as I don’t get caught with meth, I’m good. 

Bobby Folsom:
Well, you know, and then the other thing you don’t realize is if Joe, Jerry and John all bring you a stolen TV and you buy it with meth, you’re hanging out with a bunch of thieves. Yeah, I never had stolen anything from anybody in my life, but I’m getting called a thief because I’m rubbing elbows with all these fucking thieves, you know, and you just don’t realize it. Yeah, you don’t. And it goes so fast. It happens so fast. Especially with heroin and meth. I mean, they don’t call malicit drugs for anything. That’s you up. That’s, you know, I mean, they’re not good. That’s end game shit that you’re dealing with. And so. 

Jeff Johnson:
That’s. Right. It steals absolutely everything from you, Bobby. Absolutely everything from you. Now hold on right here, because I want to calibrate you a little bit on this whole courage thing, because you’ve already fired up this podcast with a whole bunch of incredible backstory stuff. And praise God that I’m looking at a sober guy right now. You know what I mean? I mean, that’s. To me, that gives me chills because I think, who, how can that happen? Because the disease is absolutely progressive. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
Unless something intervenes and that. 

Bobby Folsom:
And that. And I don’t know what intervened. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay, well, hold on, because I’m going to be talking. This podcast might go on for a little bit. 

Bobby Folsom:
Let’s go. 

Jeff Johnson:
You’re fantastic. I want to know what you think about the topic of courage. We’re just setting aside here for just a minute to calibrate. When you think about courage, what do you think about? 

Bobby Folsom:
I think about grit. True grit. You see that movie True Grit? I think about you’re faced. You’ve. You’re face to face with an obstacle that you can’t beat. But you have to beat it. And you have to go inside yourself. You can’t compare it to a video game or whatever. You know, there’s always the little. Like Mike Tyson’s punch out. It’s always Little Mac. And you’ve got to figure out. Yeah, you gotta figure out that trick or that, you know, that one special thing. Oh, you can beat it, but you gotta find it. And I mean, like I was saying before, I’ve had given up on God. Yeah. You know what I mean? And then some wild, you know, some really bad things happened after I had gotten clean. My dad died. My dad had a stroke from. From meth pills. Had a stroke. 

Bobby Folsom:
Person that was taking care of him was abusing him for his disability check. So they didn’t report the stroke. They left him laying in a bed and kept cashing that check. Well, I hadn’t heard from my dad, and by the time I did, he had already. He didn’t know anybody. He thought I was his dad. 

Jeff Johnson:
And he didn’t receive any care. 

Bobby Folsom:
Not for a very long time. Then. Then we got him in the hospital and he told him he was fine and they let him go. And so we had to take him back to the hospital. No, he’s not fine. You guys might not. And he had a loop rehearsed that he had memorized, and it was working on all these nurses. 

Jeff Johnson:
Your dad. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. I just want to go out and have a smoke. I’ll be right back. I got to go down here and get me a Mountain Dew. And as soon as he leaves the hospital room, I don’t even think he knew where he was going. He didn’t know himself. He didn’t know anybody. And he’d just leave and they’d bring him to my house. He was out wandering here. So then I had to get a lawyer and I had to become his guardian. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
And I had to put him. We put him in. And he was in a nursing home for. Or assisted living for some time about a year. And I think he gave up. 

Jeff Johnson:
Now that. Is that when you’re clean. 

Bobby Folsom:
I’m clean. 

Jeff Johnson:
So you’re clean now. You’re taking care of your dad. 

Bobby Folsom:
Take care of my dad. 

Jeff Johnson:
Life’s changing. 

Bobby Folsom:
Your life’s changing. I’ve. I’m. I got. Me and my. My girlfriend got. Got our first apartment. You know, we might even be in our second apartment by now. We kind of. Now we’re in a house, so we’re kind of. We’re working our way up. But, yeah, I’m clean. I’m seeing my kids. I’m. Everything’s good. We’re going up to see Grandpa. I had him actually put him in a place that was in Sioux City because he had too many people here that were trying to help him escape and take him to the casino and get him high. And. And it was weird because if you knew him and he was your dad, he was out of his mind. He couldn’t speak right. He could. Couldn’t do anything. Couldn’t articulate a thought. But these people who were getting high with them and didn’t really know. 

Bobby Folsom:
Well, that’s just normal, Rick. No, dude, he’s been up for years now, and you guys are. You’re killing him. So dad dies, then my sister’s murdered the next year. 

Jeff Johnson:
Oh, Bobby. 

Bobby Folsom:
And my sister was victim of domestic abuse. It was up in Iowa Falls. It was on the. It was all on the news. And I’m starting to have to be a beacon for this family. You know what I mean? 

Jeff Johnson:
How clean are you now? 

Bobby Folsom:
I’m clean. I’m five. Five. Six. Five, six years. This was, you know, this was a few years ago. So, yeah, I’m. I’m in. 

Jeff Johnson:
And you’re fully employed. 

Bobby Folsom:
I’m employed. I’m at perfect cut. I’m. I’m. I’m kicking ass. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. 

Bobby Folsom:
I’m kicking ass. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
And I’m in stride. You know what I mean? I’m in full stride. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
Sister gets murdered after, you know, dad dies. I’m. My grandparents are gone. I’m now here I am. I’ve. I’ve always been the favorite cousin. I’ve always been this light in my family that was dimmed for so long. And I’m thinking to myself, we need some light again. You know? I mean, what a great way and that. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. 

Bobby Folsom:
And I had. I had to show up. I had to show up. I had to show up for my kids. They. They needed a dad. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
Well, what’s God keeping me alive for? Maybe these three beautiful kids that you have that you’re neglecting the. Out of. And you’re not even there yet, thinking, you know what I mean? Like, I was so. Just. My brain was just so jaded and clouded with this mentality and. And like I said, I was. I was super intrigued with drugs from a very young age. I don’t know if it was. I mean, my dad had plants growing in the basement, triple beams in my Atari room. You know what I mean? I didn’t know what it was. But eventually you get older and you start watching movies. Like, fuck, man, my dad’s a drug dealer. How cool is that? You know what I mean? And it was glorified, my mom used to say. 

Bobby Folsom:
I used to have the coke dealer beg for the coke dealer to come tuck me in at night when I was a little kid. Can he come, please tuck me in, too? I didn’t know what was going on. It was. They were young. And then I look back and I’m like, damn, my dad was 17 when he had me. You know what I mean? I can’t even imagine what. What type of parties were popping off, you know what I mean? In the house or whatever. So it’s like it was all just normal, you know? I mean, that was just normal life. I mean, I didn’t see cocaine. I don’t remember seeing any kind of hard, illicit drugs like that or people doing it, like, any kinds of certain ways. I knew my parents smoked pot, but that was it, you know? I mean. 

Bobby Folsom:
But then, like I said, as you get older, I’m like, well, I gotta be a drug dealer too. I gotta sell weed, too. 

Jeff Johnson:
Because that’s all, you know? 

Bobby Folsom:
That’s what my dad did. 

Jeff Johnson:
Now I’m jumping in here, Bobby, but this is just. Wow, I’m interrupting you. You’re at the point where your sister. 

Bobby Folsom:
Too much? 

Jeff Johnson:
No, no, you’re great. You’re at the point where your sister has been murdered. So going back, though, you’re raised in this absolute mess. I mean, you don’t have a datum to tell you what true north is. 

Bobby Folsom:
Now, my mom, though. My mom was my. It was so. Because she was a faithful. My mom was a state employee her whole life. She worked every single day. Now, this was just going on when mom was at work, you know? I mean, dad worked overnights, so he slept all day. So I. It was just me and my brother. We were on our own. You know what I mean? 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
If there was a problem, call mom or go wake up dad. Yeah. You know, I mean. And it. I mean, we didn’t really run into problems. You know what I’m Saying. 

Jeff Johnson:
Right. 

Bobby Folsom:
But it was. Yeah, it was just. Was normal. I don’t want to make it sound like I lived in some drug den as a kid, because it wasn’t. I mean it. I do. We just. My dad smoked weed. Yeah. I mean, maybe it was. 

Jeff Johnson:
So, I mean, I guess it depends on your perspective, right? 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
A lot of people, a lot of our listeners would say, yes, that’s exactly what it is. Drug dent. But, but the point being, you started off with examples in your life that were a little bit jaded, a little bit different. So I’m curious back to this theme of courage. Then, you know, you’re talking about the true grit thing and being able to face it down and walk through it. How do you get to that point where you need to take the needle out of your arm? You need to take the glass pipe. 

Bobby Folsom:
Out of your mouth? There’s a defining night. Yeah, there’s this defining night. 

Jeff Johnson:
Is this the most courageous thing you’ve ever done? 

Bobby Folsom:
This leads me to it. 

Jeff Johnson:
Tell it. 

Bobby Folsom:
I tell it. 

Jeff Johnson:
What’s the most courageous thing? 

Bobby Folsom:
I’m out of house. We’re doing methods. Dude locks me out of his house. I mean, it’s minus 40 dead winter. I got nowhere to go. This. I’m supposed to be hanging out with this guy and he end up. Ends up locking me out of his house. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
I start walking because my body needs to move or I feel like I’m going to freeze to death. When you’re on meth and you’re. You’re depleted already. You haven’t slept, you haven’t ate, you don’t have nutrition going through your body. You’re pumping it full of poison. So I’m near death anyway. I mean, I’m. If I’m 190 now, I’m 130 then, you know, I mean. And it’s all out of my face. It’s all out. I mean, I’m. I think I’m going to die if I. If I don’t move. So I get to move and I’m over by the fairgrounds. I get to move in and I get to walking around and I’m crying and my tears are freezing in my face. And I went to, I waited and I walked until that get and go there on the corner, turn their lights on. 

Bobby Folsom:
I went in, I bought a cappuccino. I walked into the bathroom and I sat down on the bathroom floor and I texted a girlfriend of mine. I said, I’m in the bathroom at this get and go early early. 

Jeff Johnson:
In the morning, very early. 

Bobby Folsom:
I said, I’m not coming out until you get here. And I fell asleep. I. I had come down. All my drugs were in this guy’s house. He took my. He locked me out part. Had a party without me, you know, I mean, yeah. And I. So I don’t got nothing. And I’m. I. All my wears off. I fall asleep in this bathroom, and I wake up to that friend knocking on the door. I’m here. Come on, let’s go. And I started to. That’s when I. You know what I mean? And like I was telling you about earlier, I went to jail. I had a 300 bond, and I’m supposed to be this big dog in town, you know? I mean, I got all these drugs. I got all these people that. That depend on me and that. All these friends, colleagues. Yeah, yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
And my bond’s 300. And they sat me there. Nobody came to get me. Nobody called me. Nobody put money on my books for, you know, almost two months. So when I got out, that was it. I wasn’t doing meth no more. I had been clean already for a couple months. I asked my mom, can I come live in your basement? I. I’ll stay clean. You know, Mom. 

Jeff Johnson:
Mom wasn’t having back because you had this understanding all of a sudden that you are alone. And these people that you thought you were close with or thought were friends or thought were people that would. 

Bobby Folsom:
I say this back. 

Jeff Johnson:
They didn’t. They didn’t. 

Bobby Folsom:
When I was out here living in. I’m living in abandoned houses on. On the west side. That on over by Drake, the whole neighborhood’s full of abandoned houses. Literally, all you got to do is find one, walk in, fall asleep. So that’s what I’m doing. I’m living in random abandoned houses. I’m setting cans on fire. I’m doing what I got to do. I tell. And I tell my mom, I’m not going to get high anymore. Can I please come stay in your basement? She’s like, no more chances. This is it. I don’t need anymore. Yeah, I’m done. I stayed clean. I stayed clean. I get out. I rely. I. I am clean for like three, four months. And then I had this job and they fired me. I. I went in. It was factory job. 

Bobby Folsom:
Went in one night, and he’s like, we fired you Friday. Don’t even know why you’re here. I went. Got high. I. I didn’t. I didn’t know how to. 

Jeff Johnson:
Just a refill. 

Bobby Folsom:
Just a reaction. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
I went and got high. Overdosed. As soon as I did it, I. I’m in the bathroom, I’m throwing up. I overdosed and I went right back to my mom’s. Yeah, that was it. That was the last time. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. 

Bobby Folsom:
And praise God for that. It was like. 

Jeff Johnson:
So then what happened with the overdose? Were you hospitalized? 

Bobby Folsom:
No, I was just at a hotel with a lady. Got high, puked until. I mean, you know, an overdose is anytime your body rejects the drug. You’re throwing up, you’re whatever. You’ve had too much. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
And no, I just wrote it out. You know what I mean? Like, man, I guess if I die here. And then I then different form. Courage for me. Courage for me after that night was every single decision that I made after that, I did the opposite. So it’s. That’s how. That’s how flawed and distorted my thinking was. Okay. Big decision comes up. The first thing that comes to my mind, I’m doing the opposite. Next thing, I’m doing the opposite. 

Jeff Johnson:
And it worked because up until now. 

Bobby Folsom:
I’m making bad choices. 

Jeff Johnson:
Man, that makes it so easy, Bob. 

Bobby Folsom:
It made it so easy because everything I was doing was. Was so up and everything I was doing was. Was for drugs and was for everything but me staying alive. So it’s like, okay, super easy. Do you want to live? Do the opposite. And I just, I want to go. 

Jeff Johnson:
I want to go get drugs. And I don’t have any money, so I need to steal some money from somebody. Okay, wait a minute. 

Bobby Folsom:
Nope. 

Jeff Johnson:
Maybe instead I get a job. 

Bobby Folsom:
That’s exactly what I did. That’s exactly what I did. And I talked about on that other podcast when that These are the answers I gave. Now to imagine you’re an employer and you say, oh, man, there’s a nine year gap in your employment. What you been doing? I said, I’ve been selling drugs. That’s what I told him. I mean, I, I still. And I had been clean a year at that point or maybe a little bit more, but that’s still my brain. Was it that. I don’t know. If it manipulates you, it brainwashes you. 

Jeff Johnson:
For sure it does. 

Bobby Folsom:
It’s all, it’s all you think about. And I mean, I’m telling you, it took some things, man. Nobody. All you people, you’re not gonna get me out of jail. And then it’s like it was there for you. 

Jeff Johnson:
If that was the thing that took you getting the. I think I was just fed up. 

Bobby Folsom:
I think I was just. Man, like, I Said, tired of it. I’m not dying. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
This is. 

Jeff Johnson:
Like I said, I’ve heard people in recovery, people that I really admire that have walked this journey with me, they would say, you know, we always say in recovery, it’s either death, jails, or institutions. And the people that are the old timers that have been sober for a long time, they say, yeah, that’s true. Death, jail or institutions is the natural result of continuing to use. But they said there’s one more. And one more would be status quo. They would be more afraid that they just wouldn’t die, that they just continue to live like that. That’s what it was to their life in a. I couldn’t do it. Tragic mess. 

Bobby Folsom:
I couldn’t do it. Yeah. And I. And you know, a lot of guys at. A lot of times at work, people will ask me things like. Because they know that I’ve been, you know, down these roads and I’ve rubbed elbows with all these people. I was just talking about. They were talking about the homeless camp the other day. Man, do you think them guys got money? I said, I used to drive down there and sell them an ounce of dope every three, four days, and they’d come out on their bikes and they had a whole pile of money. You know what I mean? Like, yeah, it’s a choice. They. There’s a difference between homeless people at the shelter who are using the services that our state provides them to help get back on their feet and there. 

Bobby Folsom:
And the people who are living in camps and getting high and bumming money all the time. Two totally different people. And. And normal people, they don’t see the difference there, but there’s a difference. It’s a. Those people want to be. They don’t give a. 

Jeff Johnson:
You can tell when people are done. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
And. And they want to clean up and they want to change their life. There’s a transformation that happens there, and I think that’s. I think God has everything to do with that, Bobby. And you just seem like. Well, like I said, I mean, I don’t want to. I don’t want to slobber on you too much, but, you know, you just. You radiating. I mean, there’s something wonderful that’s happened with you, and I know that it’s happened over a period of years now, you know, so you got some time underneath your belt here. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
But. But wow, what a unbelievable backstory. 

Bobby Folsom:
It just keeps. And it. Like, what. And okay, so it hasn’t planed off, like, meaning steadily. My life is steadily getting better. Every. Every step I take and every ounce of work that I put in, it’s so. God, I wish I would have learned this when I was 20. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
You know, like, it’s not a new concept that if you put love into yourself, you’re going to get love out and things are going to be good for you. You know what I mean? And I. 

Jeff Johnson:
Where do you think? 

Bobby Folsom:
I fought it for a long time. 

Jeff Johnson:
Where do you think? Okay, so the most courageous thing. I’ve done a terrible job as an interviewer asking this question, but the most courageous thing you’ve ever done then is live, Come back to life, turning around the other direction. Yeah, man. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
What can be more powerful? So I want to know. I want to talk to you about this God thing, Bobby. So buckle up. 

Bobby Folsom:
All right? 

Jeff Johnson:
What do you. Where do you. What do you think he’s got planned for you? Why do you think he saved you to. 

Bobby Folsom:
I’m doing it right now. I’m. And I. 

Jeff Johnson:
Talking to me. 

Bobby Folsom:
And I’m doing it right now. And I think. I don’t know if I had ever told Corey or Matt. I told Matt Bowman that I really wanted to. You know, I’ve joked, man, you guys need to write a book about me. You know? I mean, I’ve said it tons of people, right. I’d like to write a book about myself, but I can’t get the damn date straight, you know? I mean, my mind’s all messed up, so it was like. I try to. I don’t know, man. Most courageous thing is. Yeah. Being a dad. Being. Doing the things. For me, the most courageous thing is just be doing what normal people just do. Do normally. Like I go to work, not get high. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
You know, not. There’s still things that make me that trigger me. Not really, but every once in a while, I’ll throw an episode of Intervention on and it’ll get me sweating. You know what I mean? Why am I watching this? 

Jeff Johnson:
Right? 

Bobby Folsom:
What. What do I need to know, right, that they’re. That I don’t already know? What are they going to tell me? I. 

Jeff Johnson:
Let me ask you this, Bobby. There’s a scripture in the book of Romans, in The Bible, chapter 11, verse 29, that says God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. And what that means is that the things that God has given you from the time that when he knew you, when you were in your mother’s womb, before you were even walking around. 

Bobby Folsom:
Right. 

Jeff Johnson:
He sent you here with certain gifts and certain abilities and things that are unique. There’s never been another Bobby Foy. Now I’m preaching out here right now, but there’s never been another Bobby Fson ever. And it says God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. So what do you think? What do you think your gifts and your call is, Bobby? 

Bobby Folsom:
I mean, you’re saying I’m a leader. I’m a leader. 

Jeff Johnson:
Come on. 

Bobby Folsom:
When I, when I get out of the truck at work, everybody gets out of the truck at work. I don’t have to say on delay. I don’t have to do nothing. I mean I, I think even as a kid when I was in the boys homes, I was always the group leader or I. People look up to me. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
I, I don’t. I think it’s because I have empathy and I treat people fairly where in some situations people don’t. You know what I mean? Like I really, I used to think I was kind of like psychic. Not really psychic, but like I, I know when people are lying. I don’t. You can say I know when you’re lying. 

Jeff Johnson:
That’s a form of empathy. 

Bobby Folsom:
And I’m pretty sure a lot of these things that I have, these skills I have acquired came from being in the belly of the beast. You’re around, you’re around. You know what I mean? Liars, thieves, cheaters, scumbags. They’re doing every single thing they can to fast talk you and get it, get one up on you and tell you a sad story so that you can. And a lot of. And then I was in a lot of boys homes. I was in treatment 12 or 13 times as a kid. I was in prison. I’ve been to a lot of, you know what I mean? Even camps. When I, when I get into that group, I thrive. I thrive. My mom thinks I should have been in the military, that I would have thrived in the military. Because it’s just how you’re a natural. 

Jeff Johnson:
Leader and the kings of the underground are not going to fool you. 

Bobby Folsom:
No. 

Jeff Johnson:
Because you can read them like a book. 

Bobby Folsom:
I can. 

Jeff Johnson:
I think that’s right. That’s a God given gift right there. That’s enormous. Has enormous benefit for the rest of the body of Christ is the gift of discernment. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. You’re not going into a room. And you know, at this point, like if guys at work, you know, my manager, old. Oh, this guy said this. No, he’s not. I guarantee you it’s this. I’m always right. I’m all right. I’m dead on most time. I’m dead on. Well, I bet this happened. And this and this, I mean, I can do. So like, if I get a new partner, I’ll tell him, hey, look man, I’m really good at telling if you’re lying. So if you get drunk on a Friday and you’re not going to come in on a Saturday, you need to tell me that you got drunk. 

Jeff Johnson:
Right. 

Bobby Folsom:
And that you just can’t do it. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
Because if you come in on some and I know you got drunk, I’m riding you, dude. You know what I mean? Like, I’m just tell me that. I just want the truth. I just want. I. And because man, it really, it makes me feel a certain type of way when I know somebody’s lying to me. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
You know what I mean? Like I can feel it, their energy. I just. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. Who, who do you look up to for courage? Like when you think about courage, is there an example in your life of somebody that has a lot of courage? 

Bobby Folsom:
I don’t know. Not like, not really, like kind of look up to myself. I, I, like I said, I didn’t really have. I mean, my grandpa was a good role model. I mean, I don’t know that he did anything ever like super courageous that I ever saw or you know, he might have in his life. Yeah, but like, you know, the normal people that you look up to, your dad, your grandpa, your. You know, I mean, but like, I don’t know man, like right now like I look up to Corey and Matt for sure. I mean, and not like from a business, but like they were, you know, from what I understand, they were maybe not as far back down there as me, but. But like there’s a certain brain and when your brain has it has it. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
There’s one’s too many, thousands, never enough, you know, it’s the age old story. 

Jeff Johnson:
That’s right. 

Bobby Folsom:
So. And when you meet people who have that, you know it. Yeah, there’s no. I don’t know if I’m. You’re not in the group yet. Yeah, you’re not in the gang, dude, because we know. And I look up to them. I look up to. There’s guys at work that I look up to even that are younger than me just because they didn’t. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
Like there’s one guy I look up to because he never got into drugs and he’s the little manager and he’s getting after it, you know. I mean, man, I wish I didn’t fuck my life up. Where would I Be. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah, if. 

Bobby Folsom:
If that type of thing, you know, I do that sometimes. 

Jeff Johnson:
But then people can, like that can be great examples, are great examples of career. See, my contention is here, Bobby, that everybody has courage in them. And in fact, I think I can ask anybody out on the street, what’s the most courageous thing you’ve done today? And they can answer that question. Now, there’s some people that’ll fuss around with it and say, I don’t think I’ve ever done anything courageous, whatever. But if you really. If you really sit with that for a while, you know, it takes great courage to get up in the morning and go to work when you don’t feel like it. It takes a lot of courage to say no to something when you feel like everybody else wants you to say yes to it. And we have those kind of choices inside of a day. 

Jeff Johnson:
So it’s all around us all the time. Yeah. What’s the next. What’s the next 5, 10, 15 years for, Bobby? What’s the Lord laying on your heart about that? 

Bobby Folsom:
I mean, I’m trying to get married. I have proposed to my girlfriend. She’s gonna listen to this. It’s time to get it going, you know what I mean? I want to get married. I want to buy a house. I want to start doing a little bit of traveling. Maybe nothing crazy, but like, I. I’m due to be married with a woman who’s never even left Iowa, except for once now that I’ve. I took her down to Florida and Key west and all that. So, yeah, I’m trying to get her seasoned up, you know, show her some things. Show her what type of. Who wants to be. I don’t want to show her what I was showing her in the beginning. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
You know, and we both have just. She’s. It’s the same thing. It’s the same kind of story with her, you know, and she’s booming, doing great. 

Jeff Johnson:
That’s wonderful. 

Bobby Folsom:
And together it’s, you know, a lot of people, you know, don’t get. Don’t get a boyfriend or a girlfriend in treatment or don’t wait the first year of your sobriety before you. Yeah, man, we had plants and dogs and were doing just fine, you know what I mean? Like, I think were both ready. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
And I don’t know, man, I just. Some good. Hopefully, you know what I mean? Like, you know, I’m. I’m hoping to some milestones, you know what I mean? Like, I’ve never owned a home. I. I’m working on that right now. I’m trying to get. I mean, my ducks are in a row. I just. We’re just waiting a little bit longer. We got some time on this lease or whatever that we’re in, but just, you know, things that may seem small to people, but. 

Jeff Johnson:
Well, you’re saying you’re. You’re saying you’re hopeful, Bobby. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
And before you were telling me, you know, when that needle was in your arm and you chewed up, you’d be like, if this is gonna kill me, I guess that’s okay. Wake up. I wake up. If I don’t. That’s different than the man that’s sitting in front of me right now where you’re like, I want to get married. I want to treat her right. I want to do all the. All the right stuff. 

Bobby Folsom:
Right? And I just. I can’t. I don’t. It’s so crazy from. To. To look back at it like that. 

Jeff Johnson:
To. 

Bobby Folsom:
To go that time span, and it’s just crazy. 

Jeff Johnson:
And isn’t it better being on this side of it? 

Bobby Folsom:
It’s so much easier, you know, you would think. I used to think, oh, man, it’s so hard to have a job and pay bills. Oh, man, I’m not paying that. I’m not paying that child support. Man, when I got clean, I was so far in the hole. Yeah, I mean, 30, 40 grand in the hole. You know what I mean? I’m like, look what you’ve done now. I’m. I’m out a hole. I’m caught up. I don’t owe the state. I don’t know any child support. I’ve worked hard to get out of that debt. I was like, good for you. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay, let me get you out of here on this one, Bobby. 

Bobby Folsom:
Hey, we can always do part two. 

Jeff Johnson:
We’re going to do part. We’re going to do part 10 with you. I’m telling you. So there’s somebody sitting out there that’s Bobby 10 years ago, who’s having a hard go of it. And from the perspective of courage and what God can do to change your life, what kind of encouragement would you give them? 

Bobby Folsom:
It’s got to stop sometime. And like you said, there’s a few different ways you can get out of it, and I haven’t in 43 years. I mean, and let’s just call it 30 years of getting down hard on drugs. I’ve never found any other way out besides those four. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. Jail, institutions. 

Bobby Folsom:
And if you feel. And if you’re Bobby 10 years ago. 

Jeff Johnson:
Y. 

Bobby Folsom:
You’re all four of them. You’re just tripping on a shoelace waiting for one of them to happen. Get some. You can do it. Want it. Get up every day and want it. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
Because. Want it. Like you wanted to get high. Do the opposite. Flip the script. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
You know, I mean, like, make a small goal. Courage. Yeah. I mean, it’s every day. Like you said, you can ask someone. Every single day I do something courageous. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Bobby Folsom:
Every. No. Depends. Could be way different levels. But like you said, sometimes just getting out of bed. Gotta do it. 

Jeff Johnson:
Keep doing it. Bobby, thank you for being on the program. 

Bobby Folsom:
Yeah. Thank you. 

Outro:

Thank you for joining us today on Courageous. If you’d like to hear more about the work and ministry being done at Crossroads Apologetics, please visit our home on the web@crossroadsapologetics.org Would you or someone you know like to be featured on Courageous? Send us an email at info@crossroadsapologetics.com or info@crossroadsapologetics.org telling us about the most courageous thing you’ve ever done.