MY  STORY:

Connect Your Story to God’s Story

Your story matters at Compass Church of Monterey County. No matter where you’ve been, you belong here, and your journey is part of God’s bigger story. If you feel moved or want to talk with someone, we’re here for you.

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Reach out to us here—we’d love to listen, pray, or answer your questions. There’s a place for you in God’s story.

From Murderer  to Messenger

My name is Greg Hamilton. Looking back, I never imagined my journey would take me from the battlefields of Vietnam to the inside of a prison cell—and finally to real freedom and purpose in God.

I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. My home was a place of high expectations and low encouragement. My father always wanted more from me—go to college, be a doctor—but rarely offered support or praise. I can count on one hand the times he told me he loved me. Still, I wanted to make something of myself, so I joined the Marine Corps. Before I left for advanced guerrilla warfare training and then Vietnam, my dad told me he loved me. It was the first time I really remember hearing those words.

I survived my tour in Vietnam, wounded but alive. Someone once asked if I was wounded, and I said, “Nobody goes to war and comes back unwounded.” The physical scars faded, but the psychological ones stuck with me for years.

When I came home, everything changed. I was the kid who never touched alcohol or drugs, but suddenly I was doing every drug, smoking every cigarette, just trying to numb the pain. I became a hippie, then drifted back to Ohio, finished my degree, and started working for Budweiser. Eventually, I launched my own businesses—three in total. Outwardly, I looked successful, but inside, I was a philandering husband and a ruthless businessman. As long as life was about me, I thought I was doing fine.

But it all unraveled. My first marriage ended. I jumped into a rebound relationship, only to be betrayed again—my new partner and my business partner together, in my own home. That was rock bottom. Everything I built came crashing down. I ended up serving two life sentences and spent 38 years in prison—31 of those years in solitary confinement. My money, my influence, my smooth talk—none of it could save me. I was even facing the death penalty.

It was in that darkness that I remembered what my grandmother and mother taught me as a child: trust God. In prison, when I had nothing left, I finally surrendered. God delivered me from the old man I was and began to transform my heart. I realized it’s the condition of your heart that shapes your actions, and my heart had been dark for a long time.

Before I even left prison, I made up my mind: I needed to find a church where God wanted me. Just two days after my release, some guys invited me to Compass Church. They told me there was a whole group of veterans here who’d also done time, and that I’d find a place to belong. When I walked in, I was welcomed with open arms. I knew right away—I’d been divinely delivered to this place for a purpose.

Now, I truly believe God is a healer and a deliverer. He promises never to leave us or forsake us. If He can redeem my life after everything I’ve been through, He can do the same for you. All you have to do is trust Him.

It’s all because of Him.