A Heart for Multiplication

Writted by Bethany Jarmul, Reach Northeast.

After being set free from his painful past, Tim Wynn was called to the ministry, but he experienced frustration and lack of clear direction. Tim joined CityReach Network, caught the church planting vision and the vision for his life and ministry. His life and his church have never been the same.

Broken Beginnings

Tim grew up in New York City, in a broken home. His mother was a drug addict, and Tim and his siblings were sent to foster care. “I grew up resenting my mom,” Tim says, “I made a vow that I would never go down the same road of drug addiction and dysfunction. But, I didn’t keep that vow.”

While in high school and college, Tim began using recreational drugs and drinking. From there, Tim’s addiction escalated to more serious drugs. He married into a dysfunctional relationship and had a baby at 21 years old.

“Life got really hard for me. I had an unstable family. I was raised by the streets and so was my wife.” Tim was also struggling with his drug addiction and health issues. “My body started shutting down on me. I was in and out of the hospital.”

Take Away the Pain

Tim had a coworker, Roger, who agreed to bring him to work after his car was impounded. In 2007, after one of his episodes in the hospital, Tim dragged himself into Roger’s car. “I was hurting so bad. All I could do was cry.” Tim turned to Roger and said, “I can’t take this anymore.”

Roger responded, “Brother, you need Jesus.”

“If Jesus can take away all of this pain and suffering, then give me Jesus,” Tim said.

Roger invited Tim to church that evening, and Tim gave his life to the Lord. After his conversion, Tim’s drug addiction began to diminish. “I started feeling like I didn’t want to get high anymore. One day it came to a halt. I said, “I’m done!”

The issues in Tim’s marriage climaxed when his wife attempted to take his life. Tim’s marriage ended, his wife was sentenced to jail, and he was left as a single father.

“I decided I was going to go to church more. I got into the Bible and Jesus. Within a few months I had stopped everything – drinking, smoking, clubbing.” Eight months later, Tim’s pastor approached him and asked him to become a deacon. “I didn’t fully know what that meant, but I said ‘yes.’”

Pastor Tim has been pastoring CityReach Church Tampa Bay since 2014. This fall, he will be launching two campuses: CityReach Church Seminole and CityReach Church Ybor.