This Story Doesn't End Well.

For a while now I thought that PTSD was only associated with people who had served in the military.

PTSD stands for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Wikipedia defines it this way "(PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that may develop after a person is exposed to one or more traumatic events, such as sexual assault, serious injury or the threat of death."

This past fall, I learned a whole lot more about PTSD and how it can effect a very intelligent young man who had never seen the inside of a military barracks.

This young man was 24yrs old living in the woods.

His upbringing was horrific!

He had hit bottom and had come to a church in Midlothian looking for help.

The church responded in amazing fashion. 

The love and compassion was unsurpassed.

Solutions and opportunities were made available to him.

The future looked bright and the possibilities were endless.

But!!!

The problem became bigger, than the opportunities.

PTSD will not just go away on it's own.

I prayed that God might heal him, but that did not happen that particular day.

The problem lied within in this man's soul.

He struggled with the demons from his past and the ones today robbing him of a future.

This young man could not trust anyone!

He could not trust those who were supporting him.

He lacked the ability to believe that someone else would have his best interest at heart.

When given the opportunity to seek medical attention he refused to take that step.

After several months he decided to go back to the life he was living before.

I know that seeds were planted in this man's life.

He got to see and feel what God's true love is.

There are many questions that will go unanswered.

There are many pieces of this story that I have chosen to leave out.

This story doesn't have a beautiful ending.

I haven't seen or heard any word from this young man in a couple of weeks now.

I pray that God will get a hold of him again and that we might be of help to him.

Seeds were planted and it might take several attempts at watering, for it to grow and blossom.

Not all stories go smoothly.

I dare to say none of these stories go smoothly, because if they did they would not have a lasting impact.

We appreciate the successes when we look back on the struggles we went through that got us to where we are.

This story may not end well today, but I am praying that some day I will be given the privilege to write about this man's success on another day.

Success would be that he would come to know and Love Jesus as his Lord and Savior.