As a counselor I hear many heart-rending stories from anxious, depressed or stressed-out people. Stories of emotional, physical or sexual abuse; stories from kids stuck in the middle of an ugly custody battle; stories of relationships gone sour. But recently a story that tugged at my heart sounded like this: "My young son is going to prison for a long time after a "three-strikes-and you're out" drug-related sentence. Hear what he has to say:
"By the time I was 15, I started getting in trouble with the law, suspended from schools and leaving home. I began selling and using drugs, carrying guns and womanizing. By the time I was 20, I had 4 felonies, 16 months of incarceration, a wife, 2 kids and 16 years of time over my head. ....I died twice from an overdose and should have been dead more. Trust me when I tell you those were evil, evil days."
His parents paid for bail, rehab facilities and each time he'd vow to kick his addictions. But while he swore that each crash was the last one, each was always followed by an even harder fall, leaving a strained relationship between him and his family who despaired of ever enjoying a normal relationship with this wayward son. Now at the age of 30, he'was looking at a long prison sentence, and his parents were struggling to find hope.
However, as often happens, when we're at our lowest, God steps in with his strength, solutions and salvation. And that's just what happened with this young man:
"In jail again, after only a year, hopelessness and bitterness was drowning me. Finally in July as I bottomed out, I cried out to God. At first it went something like this, "God, you know I don't believe in you. You know I think this is a crock. But if you're really out there, and your Son really died for me, reveal yourself to me, please." Three weeks later, I prayed the sinner's prayer.
"Even in the few months since, He's changed me completely. Through prayer and reading his word my whole life has changed. He's shown me what real love is, and that what I thought it was was not even close. As I've grown closer to Him, the seeds that my parents so faithfully planted as a child began to bear fruit.
"In September I prayed, 'help me bear fruit for you.' Later that same evening a guy came to my cell door and said, 'Hey man, I see you every day, reading the Bible and I've been wanting to talk to you " That night he accepted Christ, and it's been on ever since."
Now his parents thankfully and proudly relate instances of their son conducting Bible studies, of leading other inmates to Christ, and seeing miracles happen in that stark place.
"Every day hasn't been easy, some days were extremely hard. And I still have to go to prison for many years, but the future is bright and peaceful. And only through the precious, forgiving, amazing grace and power of God could an old worthless gang-bangin' junkie like me bring light into this especially dark world."
So, if you get discouraged about a distressingly long seige of an "impossible" situation - whether it's your own or a loved one's - and hear messages that say: "this will never hapen...," just remember, it's never too late! Just ask the "worthless gang-bangin' junkie" who has now discovered a whole new way of life.
