Showing posts with label faith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label faith. Show all posts

Monday, February 18, 2019

Help Herbie, WW2 Veteran, Dying Wish Come True

Fundraiser Underway to Help 96-Year-Old WWII Veteran Live Final Days at Home Care Facility


Faithwire
February 18, 2019
Friends of Gordon’s set up a GoFundMe campaign called “Herbie WW2 Veterans Dying Wish” to help cover the costs. It had raised more than $11,000 of the $35,712 goal as of the weekend.

A community is trying to give back to a hero who served this country by ensuring he gets to live his final days comfortably in the home care facility where he spent the last years with his late wife.
World War II U.S. Army veteran Herb Gordon, 96, has had multiple brushes with death, the latest being in 2017, when he broke his neck while volunteering at a medical center, he told WPBF-TV.
“They were so certain I was going to die on the operating table, but I had my family here and God listened,” Gordon said of his caretakers at the Atria Senior Living Facility in Lantana, Florida. “And here I am.”
read more here

Sunday, January 13, 2019

In the shelter of your arms

You are my shelter

Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 13, 2019

An open letter to Jesus

This is a very hard time for me because it seems no matter what I do, what I know and how much work I do, others get praised, even if they are thieves passing my work off as their own.

I have no power to stop them. I have no power to make anyone listen to what I have to say. The only power I have is to do whatever I can to help whoever seeks it.

You know what is in my heart and I know that the gifts I have came from you. You guide me to seek knowledge and share what is truth. You give me courage to bypass fear of the powerful for the sake of the flock. You arm me in spite of those who ignore all you equipped me to do.

You are my shelter. 
Psalm 91 1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
3 Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.
Psalm 91


You brought me into my veteran Father's home and surrounded me with other veterans. You brought me into my veteran husband's heart and showed me what pure love is, as well as the pain I saw in his eyes. 

Then You showed me what it was like to go beyond the times of darkness, so we could walk the rest of this journey together, still holding hands and loving the way our lives have grown beyond what others thought was even possible.

You know the hours, the heartache and you know what it is like for me when someone reminds me of why I do what I do.

You had put a voice within me that I used to gladly sing, but those years have passed and while there has been a song in my soul, it has not passed my lips because there has been too much pain within me.

So now I sing a song for You beyond the tears that came because I know, if I share this with those I am supposed to reach, they may know that others go through the same dark times, even if they believe, as I do, that nothing is beyond Your love. 
The Shelter of Your Arms
Neil Diamond 
In this cold world
No matter where I go
The crowds are all the same
To them I'm just
A pebble in the sand
A face without a name
Nobody gives a hang
For what I say or do
But you
And in the shelter of your arms
I find peace and comfort and care
For I am wanted there
In this cold world
You struggle to survive
And sometimes
You can fall
You think someone
Would lend a helping hand
They'd sooner see you crawl
But just when life itself
Seems more than I can bear
You're there
And in the shelter of your arms
I can find strength and safety and then
I rise and start again
Just give me one good reason
To go on living
To keep on trying
For what I ask you, for what
If not for you
And all your love to see me through
But just when life itself
Seems more than I can bear
You're there
And in the shelter of your arms
I can find strength and safety
And then
I rise and start again

Monday, January 29, 2018

God grant me peace with memories of yesterday

A Prayer For Heroes
Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 29, 2018

God grant me peace with memories of yesterday.

Courage to face what comes knowing I can make a difference this day.

Hope that tomorrow will be a better day.

Yesterday is gone. I cannot change what has been.

Help me do the best I can today and tomorrow, begin again.

You created me to be able to help others.

Help me to accept help from others.

You created within me courage to do what had to be done.

Help me to ask for help when the one in need is this one.

You surrounded me with people who would die for me.

Help me trust them with my heart so they may see the wound within me.

Let me accept help so that I may continue to 
do for others as you created me to do.
Kathie Costos 
©2018

When I think about regular people, like me, losing hope to the point where they commit suicide, it is heartbreaking. 

Hope is what keeps all of us from giving up this life we have. Often it is not enough to love others, if we feel as if we do not deserve to be loved.

There was a time in my life when I felt that way. While I did not attempt suicide, I prayed that God would to it for me. I lost hope, a sense of self worth, but above those, I lost faith that God even cared about me.

When the people committing suicide were those who dedicated their lives to saving others, it is beyond heartbreaking.

If you are among those in the military, veterans, police, firefighters and first responders, please read the prayer I wrote for you because after all these years of working with some of you, that is what I see within all of you!


Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Defeating PTSD Demons by Faith

Do You Still Battle Against Demons Unarmed?
Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
October 24, 2017

You may have been deluded up to this point and think the number of veterans committing suicide are just OEF and OIF veterans. You may have been convinced that only they suffer PTSD because of the stupid commercial talking about veterans being forgotten right after listing what PTSD had been called UP TO THE 70'S but they leave that part out too.

God still knows they are there even if you close your eyes.

If you want to help veterans stay alive, you better come prepared to fight for them. Considering what true demon defeaters are facing, we need all the help we can get.


You need to know what we're actually dealing with beginning with the enemy within them.

The rates of veterans batteling PTSD are: 15% currently diagnosed from Vietnam with 30% had PTSD in their lifetime. Gulf War veterans, 12%. OEF and OIF veterans between 11% and 20%. 

According the Department of Veterans Affairs, there were 16,962,000 combat veterans living after older wars as of April 2017 out of 23,244,583. 4,444,533 Veterans receiving service connected disability benefits with the majority of these veterans from prior to Afghanistan and Iraq. 

Also according to the VA, the majority of the veterans committing suicide are also from those previous wars, 65% are over the age of 50.

While so many want to run around the country pulling stunts, we're lifting them up. When they are talking about numbers, we're rescuing souls. When they are dismissing importance of the spiritual connection, we're standing by their side.

If you think there are not that many veterans with a religious affiliation, you have been deluded by people who do not know what they are talking about.

A fabulous report, yet again, from the VA, is a list of veterans believing in God and breaks it down by faith groups and states. About 19 million claim to be affiliated, while 1,198,391 are listed as "unknown."  

The three largest veteran populations listed under faith are California with 1,711,106, Texas with 1,592,385 and Florida with 1,472,665.

If you still want to dismiss spiritual healing as a way to prevent suicides, then please find something else to do with your time. "The harvest is plenty, but workers are few" and users outnumber the rest of us.



"Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give."

In the 70's Vietnam veterans began the battle for the healing PTSD and it was known back then that is has to be done with by treating the three parts of the veteran. Mind-body and spirit. Too many want to dismiss the spiritual because they do not understand it, and fear it.

Last time the Constitution was read it still had the words that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

If you are really trying to help them, then first understand, they are not suffering because of God. They are suffering because of the Demon telling them what they did wrong so they forget WHY THEY WERE WILLING TO DIE IN THE FIRST PLACE and that was to save lives.


Sunday, October 1, 2017

Burnette Chapel Church Of Christ Fellowship Unbroken Faith

Nashville church tries to move forward amid shooting trauma, questions
USA Today
Holly Meyer
September 30, 2017
"I sat out here. It was early Monday morning and I was looking up and I could see Orion's Belt," Carter said. "I mean just how great — don’t understand why — but how great God truly is." Terry Carter
The sound of gunfire haunts Terry Carter.

She and the young students in her Bible class barricaded a classroom door one week ago as a masked man opened fire at Burnette Chapel Church of Christ, killing one woman and injuring the minister and six others, police said.

The shooter did not go into the classroom, but the Sunday morning mayhem clings to Carter's thoughts.

"You can’t get some of the stuff out of your head for a while," Carter said. "I’ll gradually get there. But those sounds. The pop."

Carter and other members of the small Antioch church are trying to process what happened in the violent attack. In the midst of the pain and big unanswered questions, the congregation is moving forward.

The crime scene tape is gone and so is the carpet in the chapel. The 25-year-old suspect, Emanuel Samson, is in jail on a homicide charge. They have buried 38-year-old Melanie Crow, who was gunned down at the end of last week's service. And the victims who remain in the hospital are in stable condition.

After the Wednesday night service ended, Carter stood in the church parking lot chatting. Her great-grandchildren played nearby.

"It’s kind of a relief that we can get together and have a fellowship," Carter said. "That’s what we’re supposed to do, have fellowship and encourage each other. It’s going to take a whole lot of encouragement."

She was not certain the Wednesday service would occur nor that she would want to attend Sunday. But Carter will be there equipped with plans for better classroom safety.

She remembers hearing the first shot. It sounded too close. Carter put her finger to her lips, told the children to be quiet and turned off the classroom lights. Together, they moved furniture in front of a door and she cycled through scenarios in her mind.

Carter has her own questions. She knows nothing is guaranteed in life, but her faith is strong and she believes God is everywhere, Carter said.
read more here

Andrew Nelles
Kaitlyn Adams, a member of the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ, hugs another church member at the scene after shots were fired at the church on Sunday, Sept. 24, 2017, in Antioch, Tenn. (Andrew Nelles/The Tennessean via AP)

Tennessee church suspect may have sought Charleston revenge

Thursday, December 31, 2015

God And The Service Go Hand-in-Hand

Benghazi Soldier: 'God And The Service Go Hand-in-Hand'
Town Hall
Cortney O'Brien
Dec 30, 2015
“God and the service kind of go hand-in-hand,” said Paronto. “You’re doing something honorable that’s above yourself.”
“Faith teaches you how to live with courage, how to live with honor, gives you something to strive for,” said. U.S. Army Ranger Kris “Tanto” Paronto. “To me, that’s the American spirit.”

On September 11, 2012, terrorists attacked the U.S. Embassy in Benghazi, Libya. We lost four brave diplomats. While the incident will forever be remembered as a tragedy, we would be remiss to forget the courage displayed by the six American servicemen who ran toward the fire. It is their story that is told in the new Paramount Pictures film 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi.

What was it that compelled these men to run toward danger? In a new featurette from Paramount Pictures ahead of the film's release, a few of the soldiers who defended the Benghazi compound explained that they received their strength from a higher power.
read more here

Monday, July 8, 2013

A soldier's song

'God Challenged Me:' A soldier's song
'I believed I was put on this Earth for a purpose; to take soldiers’ last living pictures.'
By Stacy Pearsall, special to HLN
Tue July 02, 2013

Editor’s note: Stacy Pearsall is a former Air Force combat photographer. She is featured in the HLN Independence Day special, “Stories of Courage: Soldiers' Songs.” The special features veterans and their families participating in a program called "SongwritingWith: Soldiers," which aims to turn painful memories into healing energy through music. Tune in for this special presentation at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, July 4.
“Beauty and the colors, the light and the shadows, I took the pictures of lives in battle,” sang Darden Smith as he gazed at me through tear-soaked eyes, gently strumming his guitar only hours after sitting down to write a song with me. Upon arriving at the Song Writing with Soldiers Retreat, I was quietly skeptical at the idea of opening up to perfect strangers about my combat experiences, especially in light of the fact that I’d barely revealed such intimate details to my own husband and fellow combat photographer, Andy Dunaway.

During the introductory dinner, I stayed relatively to myself, standing near an exit and giving caged one-word answers. The next morning at breakfast, the man behind Song Writing with Soldiers pulled up a chair next to me and just started chatting. I was taken off my guard. He had no guitar, no intimidating questions, and concentrated more on listening than talking. I shared some old military photos of my family, then some of me in combat and eventually pictures I’d taken in war. From there, it was as if the floodgate holding back my emotions had been opened and I couldn’t contain the torrent.
read more here

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Where was God?

Wars are evil things. People try to kill other people. The win comes when more of the other side have died than the side you are on and that is the mission of the men and women sent. They see so much death and destruction, civilians killed and friends die that they wonder how the loving God they always thought they knew would allow any of it. Where was He?


He was there when an Ipod in a pocket saved this soldier's life. In miracles when a bomb did not blow up. When a bullet missed. He was there when a soldier was saved by the medic. With so many bombs blowing up, bullets cutting down soldiers and lives not saved by medics it is hard to figure out how some live and some die but in living these are things we never know. How does a child die yet some people live past 100 years on this earth? How does a man make it home from combat only to die in an accident back home or a victim of a crime? To think God had forsaken them is easy but if they look they will see the love they feel for each other. In the midst of evil love lives on, stronger than anger and hatred.



How can love live within their hearts while they are surrounded by death? It is because God is there when they are able to feel compassion, shed a tear, say a prayer and when they are still able to grieve over a fallen friend.

He is there when they risk their lives to save someone else. He was there when simple men fought to save others after they were wounded and we call they heroes presenting them with a Medal of Honor or to the families of the fallen who paid the price so that others may live.




God was there when a hand reached out to help, to comfort and when a knee was bent in prayer.




He was there when a family back home stood near a flag draped coffin and they were surrounded by love.

For Christians around the world today, Christmas Day, it is not a holiday but a holy day when the birth of Christ is celebrated but for the rest of the year we forget about one of the last things Christ did was to forgive the hands that nailed Him to the cross. God was there that day too. So many believe things they have done in their lives, especially during war, are unforgivable. The horrific memories grow stronger over the years and the tender moments when the love they felt was all that mattered are forgotten. They cannot believe God could ever care about them again, yet He does now just as He did then.

Christ made the dead live again, but they killed. He made the lame walk again but they made some lame. He made the blind see again, but they made some blind. He took care of the poor and needy but they took away homes with bombs, made widows and orphans. These thoughts take over the reason they were there in the first place. They went to fight the enemy trying to kill the people they went to save. They went in the place of the President and Congress deciding it had to be done. They went to serve the country they loved and to fight next to their brothers so that more of them would come home when it was over. They forget what was in their hearts but God did not forget that it was not out of hatred, but out of love they were willing to lay down their lives so that others may live.





John 15 The Vine and the Branches

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.

During the foreign soil wars they were sent to save lives in other countries. They were willing to die in order to do it. There was no evil inside of them in what began their journey but when they came home they began to feel as if they were. They return feeling forsaken by God, not understood by family and friends and then forsaken by the rest of the country when they have a need to be taken care of. Being forsaken becomes a part of them and love is pushed away until they find that God was there all the time right by their side when love lived on no matter what they had to do and what they had to go through.
Medic in famous photo dies after PTSD struggle
By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Jul 8, 2008 6:35:20 EDT
During the first week of the war in Iraq, a Military Times photographer captured the arresting image of Army Spc. Joseph Patrick Dwyer as he raced through a battle zone clutching a tiny Iraqi boy named Ali.

The photo was hailed as a portrait of the heart behind the U.S. military machine, and Doc Dwyer’s concerned face graced the pages of newspapers across the country.

But rather than going on to enjoy the public affection for his act of heroism, he was consumed by the demons of combat stress he could not exorcise. For the medic who cared for the wounds of his combat buddies as they pushed toward Baghdad, the battle for his own health proved too much to bear.

On June 28, Dwyer, 31, died of an accidental overdose in his home in Pinehurst, N.C., after years of struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder. During that time, his marriage fell apart as he spiraled into substance abuse and depression. He found himself constantly struggling with the law, even as friends, Veterans Affairs personnel and the Army tried to help him.

“Of course he was looked on as a hero here,” said Capt. Floyd Thomas of the Pinehurst Police Department. Still, “we’ve been dealing with him for over a year.”

The day he died, Dwyer apparently took pills and inhaled the fumes of an aerosol can in an act known as “huffing.” Thomas said Dwyer then called a taxi company for a ride to the hospital. When the driver arrived, “they had a conversation through the door [of Dwyer’s home],” Thomas said, but Dwyer could not let the driver in. The driver asked Dwyer if he should call the police. Dwyer said yes. When the police arrived, they asked him if they should break down the door. He again said yes.

“It was down in one kick,” Thomas said. “They loaded him up onto a gurney, and that’s when he went code.”

Dwyer served in Iraq with 3rd Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment as the unit headed into Baghdad at the beginning of the war. As they pushed forward for 21 days in March 2003, only four of those days lacked gunfire, he later told Newsday. The day before Warren Zinn snapped his photo for Military Times, Dwyer’s Humvee had been hit by a rocket.

About 500 Iraqis were killed during those days, and Dwyer watched as Ali’s family near the village of al Faysaliyah was caught in the crossfire. he grabbed the 4-year-old boy from his father and sprinted with him to safety. Zinn grabbed the moment on his camera. The image went nationwide and Dwyer found himself hailed as a hero.
Medic in famous photo dies after PTSD struggle

When love lives on, God is there. When they can find the ability to still care, God is there. Until the day comes when there is peace on this earth, there will be men and women stepping up out of love willing to lay down their lives for others. Pray for those we send until that day comes when man shall kill man no more.

Friday, December 24, 2010

'God is' billboard replaces controversial Lincoln Tunnel atheist billboard


'God is' billboard replaces controversial Lincoln Tunnel atheist billboard
By Emanuella Grinberg and Nicole Saidi, CNN

An atheist billboard on the New Jersey side of the Lincoln Tunnel that declared Christmas a "myth" has been replaced by a pro-Christian billboard.

The old billboard, put up in late November by the American Atheists organization, said "You know it's a myth. This season, celebrate reason."

The sign stirred controversy among Christian organizations, prompting the Catholic League to erect its own pro-Christmas billboard on the New York side of the tunnel that read, "You Know It's Real: This Season Celebrate Jesus."

The new sign, which was posted by the Manhattan-based Times Square Church, reads "God is," and includes a word cloud of religious themes.
read more here

'God is' billboard replaces controversial Lincoln Tunnel atheist billboard

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Living with PTSD like living on a roller coaster

by
Chaplain Kathie

Maj. Gen. William Grimsley, Fort Hood Acting Senior Commander wrote a piece on the rise of domestic violence at Fort Hood. Spike in domestic violence at Fort Hood.

First, if there is domestic violence in your home, get out, call the police and be safe. You can't fix this on your own no matter how much you may know, how much you love them or how much you remember they loved you. If they have changed from gentle and loving, there is something very deep and dark going on inside of them. If there was never any indication of violent outbursts from them, more than likely you're dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

There is another kind of domestic violence that is not intentional. Many veterans have ended up being arrested for domestic violence because they were in the middle of a nightmare and their wife tried to wake them up by shaking them and hollering at them. They had no clue where they were or that the hand on them was not from some enemy in the middle of battle. Wives have ended up with broken noses and black eyes because no one told them to get out of bed before they attempted to wake up a veteran in the middle of a nightmare.

There are a lot of things they do that appear to be domestic violence but turn out to be part of PTSD controlled over reactions.

Living with PTSD in the house is like living on a roller coaster. It's a ride that is much easier to just get off of. You want to stand on firm ground and be living a normal life again. You see the carriage going up and up as your heart beats fast because you can't see where it is going. You know that sooner or later you're going to go down very fast as you fear crashing to the earth. Nothing makes sense anymore. Mood swings make the day totally unpredictable.

One minute they are calm and sitting there drinking coffee and the next, their hand shakes. Their soulful eyes become dark and lifeless. Their face suddenly appears to be hard as their facial muscles become tense. A flashback fueled volcano rises to the top and they explode. The trigger was something as simple as seeing the date on the calendar, when "it" happened. An anniversary date snuck up on them once again and there was no way for them to prepare because no one ever warned them.

26 years after I married my best friend and got on this ride, I can't honestly say I have no regrets. I regret the times when all of this just seemed too hard and I wanted leave especially now that the huge roller coaster rides have been downsized to a kiddy ride. Sure we have ups and downs still but our "normal" is something we're used to. It is not until I receive emails from wives new to all of this that my heart breaks remembering all the dark days.

This is what I sent to the wife of a Vietnam Vet. I don't normally get this preachy but they are involved with ministry.


I know you are in a place where it seems everything is impossible and it hurts, but "all things are possible for God" and He's proven that to me many times.

Right now I am facing very hard times, financially and emotionally. I struggle with times when I try so hard to remember all the times God bailed me out of trouble and wondering where He is right now. I've been in these darks days before yet remember when the sunlight warmed my soul and I knew He was there all the time.

There were times when my husband's PTSD brought me shaking down on my knees feeling absolutely hopeless and helpless. I prayed for him to be healed. So that one morning I'd wake up and have him back to the way he was when we met. I wanted God to do it because it just felt so right that He did, but I couldn't see tomorrow. I had no idea that while I was waiting for Him to heal my husband, He was working on both of us.

I do what I do because He helped me grow by His grace and love. I went from the darkness of praying my husband not come back home from another day of drinking to having him take my hand in the grocery store telling me "you're my best friend" because he finally understood all I did was for him. I put him into God's hands and got out of the way at the same time God used me to help him.

We are only human. We have needs and wants just like everyone else. No one would ever deliberately choose a marriage like this because with all the normal problems, this kind of marriage comes with an abundance of struggles. Don't beat yourself up over being a normal woman/wife. Even after all these years, I still pop my cork now and then because I am just human. I hear people complain about the simple, normal issues with their husbands and I wonder what they would do if they had just part of what life is like with a PTSD veteran.

The thing is, there was a day that came, after the diagnosis for PTSD, six years of struggling to keep him alive while his claim was being denied, more diagnosis tied to Agent Orange and believing nothing would ever get better, when suddenly it did.

(He) is at the point he is because you were there to help him. He will get past that point and even better because you are there with the Lord standing right by your side. What you may not notice is you will be there for others because these "dangerous toils and snares" are teaching you so that you will be one of the pastors not turning away this new generation seeking help and you will be there to help their families.

What is happening right now with the National Guards and Reservists is that in June, one committed suicide each day. We lost over 30 to suicide. They are struggling and most churches refuse to help. Most of them have PTSD, TBI and other health issues going on plus a family falling apart because they have nowhere to turn and no one to give them hope. You've been through the fire and your heart will welcome them. When (he) is feeling better, he'll join you in this because he is another one who understands the pain but will again know the rejoicing in the arms of God.


What this wife cannot see is how much has been possible with her husband because she was helping him heal. She learned about PTSD, asked questions about what she didn't understand and opened up about what they were going through. She has abundant faith in Christ and knows that miracles happen everyday, but what she needs to be reminded of is Christ often sets us up for where He wants us to go. It's up to us to stay on the ride or walk away. It is up to us to forgive and understand or hang onto anger seeking revenge for what we feel we were denied.

As a wife, there are certain things we feel we are entitled to. Love and respect are often taken away when PTSD takes over. It's not that they don't want to still show us love or treat us with respect. It's more that they can't. Not when PTSD has taken over and all the good feelings are frozen behind the wall of pain. While no one would blame us for hanging onto the bad feelings, our choice is to hang onto them or grab onto knowledge so that we can understand what changed them and what we can do to help them heal. It's our choice.

It's often easier for me to work with the veteran than it is to work with the spouse. I was an observer in my husband's life. I understood the flashback and the nightmares but I didn't feel them the way he did. I understood what Vietnam did to him but I don't understand what it felt like. Working with the spouse, I know what it feels like and I'm taken back to my own dark days when pain seemed to be the only feeling I was capable of. I remember the days and nights of prayer without finding the words to express anything yet somehow knowing God heard me when a calm rushed through my body and the tears suddenly stopped. I knew I wasn't alone and no matter what I faced I was safe in the arms of His Son.

The choice is our's to stay and we can once we understand this is something we didn't deserve any more than they deserved this to happen to them. They did not bring this on themselves but their level of compassion opened the door to this kind of pain. The very thing that made us fall in love with them was destroying them. It is all still in there and we can help it grow stronger than the pain. What we find at the end up this roller coaster ride is someone more loving and caring than we ever dreamed possible. God works wonders when love is behind what we try to do and we are not alone.



To the one who's dreams are falling all apart
And all you're left with is a tired and broken heart
I can tell by your eyes you think your on your own
But you're not alone

Have you heard of the One who can calm the raging seas
Gives sight to the blind, pull the lame up to their feet?
With a love so strong He'll never let you go
No, you're not alone

You will be safe in His arms
You will be safe in His arms
'Cause the hands that hold the world
Are holding your heart

This is the promise He made
He will be with You always
When everything is falling apart
You will be safe in His arms

Did you know that the voice that brings the dead to life
Is the very same voice that calls you now to rise?
So hear Him now, He's calling you home
You will never be alone

You will be safe in His arms
You will be safe in His arms
'Cause the hands that hold the world
Are holding your heart


This is the promise He made
He will be with You always
When everything is falling apart
You will be safe in His arms

These are the hands that built the mountains
The hands that calm the seas
These are the arms that hold the heavens
They are holding you and me

These are hands that healed the leper
Pulled the lame up to their feet
These are the arms that were nailed to a cross
To break our chains and set us free

You will be safe in His arms
You will be safe in His arms
The hands that hold the world
Are holding your heart

This is the promise He made
He will be with You always
When everything is falling apart
You will be safe in His arms, safe in His arms

Safe in His arms
You will be safe, you will be safe
When everything is falling apart
You will be safe in His arms
http://www.songlyrics.com/phil-wickham/safe-lyrics/


He held my heart just as He does now. When the world tells me what I have is not normal, I thank God for it. How could a marriage to a PTSD veteran be considered normal by anyone? A nation with over 300 million people has less than 24 million veterans and even less have seen combat. What do they know about any of this? What do they know about the magnificent soul in any of them "willing to lay down their lives for the sake of their friends" as we know them? What does the world know about battles being fought everyday in our homes when they were not interested in the battles they fought in Korea,Vietnam, Kuwait, Somalia, Bosnia, Beirut, Afghanistan or Iraq? What does the world know about unselfish love that seeks nothing for self but everything for someone else?

We can go to church and hear the sermon about devotion, love, compassion, mercy, forgiveness and the love of Christ and actually know what the pastor is talking about. We've lived it because we allowed Him to guide us, strengthen us and help us heal.

We know what it's like when the uniforms come off and together we can stand strong against all odds. Half of the regular marriages end in divorce so the odds of us staying married with PTSD in the house are not very good, but if we made it this far, we've already beaten the odds. This tiny minority of this nation's people are stronger than they will ever understand because we stand side by side ready to help each other thru any trial.

Reading this blog, you've read how many stories about veterans coming home and ending up setting up support groups for other veterans, starting charities to help others, volunteering at shelters and churches? This few others understand and it's something I wouldn't miss for the world. This ride came with a high price of admission but it is one ride I am glad I got on. I know I'm safe in His arms just as I am safe with my husband's love.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Through many dangers, toils and snares

by
Chaplain Kathie

"Through many dangers, toils and snares" is one part of this song that gets me every time. It makes me look back at other times in my life when I just didn't think I'd ever overcome what I was going through. It makes me remember when everything seemed just too hopeless and I, I was not worthy of being helped by anyone, especially God. God however graced my life and saved me despite myself. I have made such a mess out of my life so many times it is beyond reason I am still here. You'd think that after facing death so many times, not from combat but from illness, accidents and violence, I would be thankful for each day upon this earth, but so many times I wished for the end of the struggle, longed for the end of the pain in my soul and tears that fell far too many nights. I was too focused on what I lacked, what I could not do and how other people treated me or judged me unfairly without knowing what was inside of me.

I fell into every trap, was cut on every snare, fell prey to every person hoping to take advantage of me and I knew what it was like to hate, to want revenge and to rejoice over the grief of someone else that hurt me. It was in one of my darkest moments that I handed my life over to God knowing full well that He knew all of me. The good and the bad could not be hidden from Him any more than I could hide pain behind anger. Little by little, He worked on my, softened my temper, opened my eyes and let me see what I had been missing all along. This lifelong Greek Orthodox woman with faith once as much a part of my life as breathing was, was finally seeing God through the eyes of love the way Christ came to confirm it.

Did He take away all of my burdens? Take away all my tears? Remove all my fears? No. He did however give me what I needed to get through all the bad life has to offer as well as rejoice with all it provides.

Listen to the words of Amazing Grace sung by Judy Collins. Then read on.




The lyrics to Amazing Grace change depending on the singer but the meaning of this song never changes.

Amazing Grace

Lyrics

John Newton (1725-1807)
Stanza 6 anon.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.


T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear.
And Grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that Grace appear
The hour I first believed.


Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far
and Grace will lead me home.


The Lord has promised good to me.
His word my hope secures.
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.


Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

When we've been here ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun.
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Than when we've first begun.




Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.



Through many dangers, toils and snares I have already come;'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far and Grace will lead me home.


Maybe it's because I've felt so much pain in my own life and have lived with the pain in my husband all these years, I am able to understand the pain felt by the men and women in the military who become our veterans. I am not one of them. I do not know what it is like to be willing to willingly place myself into the position where I know I may have to lay down my life as well as take a life in order to save others. That is a burden few understand but we can understand what it is like to be a human wanting to do what we are called to do and the struggles we face in order to do it.

This is our link to them. This is our chance to understand the price they pay after and it is our calling to help them heal.

The dangers and toils and snares, they have already come. They were saved by the grace of God and we cannot explain why He allows some to live on while He embraces the others home. We can only know the men and women who survive, survived for a reason only Heaven knows. Coming home is the hardest part for them because their danger days are supposed to be over. No longer are they subjected to bullets and bombs or witnessing the worst that man can do to man. No longer are they trying to save the lives of their friends or mourning the loss of others but they are left to question every day of their deployment, every action, every deed and every word they muttered from anger and fear. It is the part of war that came home with them that they need to fear the most.

What part of them escaped the horrors of combat? What part of them is still sweet, loving, kind, humble and sensitive? What part of them is still strong and beyond regret? What other parts of them are frozen behind the wall terror built? What will it take to bring that wall down so they can heal?

It all begins with forgiveness. Forgiving themselves for all they felt they lacked and all they believe they did that was wrong. No matter how many times you try to convince them that they did what they had to do, they will always be blaming themselves for having done it. They will blame everyone else for all that went wrong and they will blame the enemy. All understandable and all human reactions to what they went through but not very helpful at all when they are trying to recover the best parts of their nature. They were not allowed to feel because of where they were and what was happening so it all comes rushing in on them.

They need to know there is nothing they cannot be forgiven for and suggesting to them they did nothing wrong is dismissing that pain. Remind them Christ forgave from the cross and then tell them there is nothing God cannot forgive them for. Forgiveness is between them and God so get out of their way. Help them to forgive others and let go of what they have no control over. Forgive them for what they do while trapped in pain and then hold them accountable as they heal but only after you become aware of where it is all coming from. And then, then forgive yourself for the time in your life when you just didn't know any better but did what you could with what you knew in that moment.

All of the "person" they were before is still in there but just as the rest of us humans arise on the other side of life with yesterday tagging along, they have combat tagging along inside of them. If you look at your own life honestly, then you will see how each day has played a part in the person you are today. Then you will understand how they have become the way they are as well. None of this is hopeless for them any more than life is hopeless for the rest of us. Begin today to believe that God's grace will help the person you love come home all the way to you and they can heal.

PTSD lives off of everything negative and eats away everything positive in their lives. This is why addressing the spiritual part of their lives matters enough to predict the outcome of any kind of therapy. The negative energy needs to be defeated. This is a painful process because as every negative emotion is reduced, the painful ones gain power and releasing them feels as if they are getting worse until they understand that pain is rushing out instead of being trapped inside. That release is freeing their soul so they can build in more good emotions to rejoice with and sing a song of Amazing Grace that saved a wretch like them just as it saved one like me.

Friday, November 6, 2009

God, the Army, and PTSD

The problem is not that they are Christian. It is more they forget about one is when they see the worst man can do to man. They wonder how the loving God they knew would allow all of it to go on. They wonder if their faith was in a real God or not. They question what they lived their lives believing in and this, this is the worst part of faith when they live through the evil.


God, the Army, and PTSD
Is religion an obstacle to treatment?

Tara McKelvey

When Roger Benimoff arrived at the psychiatric building of the Coatesville, Pennsylvania veterans’ hospital, he was greeted by a message carved into a nearby tree stump: “Welcome Home.” It was a reminder that things had not turned out as he had expected.

In Faith Under Fire, a memoir about Benimoff’s life as an Army chaplain in Iraq, Benimoff and co-author Eve Conant describe his return from Iraq to his family in Colorado and subsequent assignment to Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He retreated deep into himself, spending hours on the computer and racking up ten thousand dollars in debt on eBay. Above all, he was angry and jittery, scared even of his young sons, and barely able to make it through the day. He was eventually admitted to Coatesville’s “Psych Ward.” For a while the lock-down facility was his home. He wondered where God was in all of this, and was not alone in that bewilderment and pain.

In a 2004 study of approximately 1,400 Vietnam veterans, almost 90 percent Christian, researchers at Yale found that nearly one-third said the war had shaken their faith in God and that their religion no longer provided comfort for them. The Yale study found that these soldiers were more likely than others to seek mental health treatment through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) when they came home. It was not that these veterans had unusually high confidence in government or especially good information about services at VA hospitals. Instead, they had fallen into a spiritual abyss and were desperate to find a way out. The trauma of war seems to be especially acute for men and women whose faith in a benevolent God is challenged by the carnage they have witnessed.
read more here
http://bostonreview.net/BR34.6/mckelvey.php

Sunday, August 23, 2009

3 kids, no job — relying on God

3 kids, no job — relying on God

By Jim Stratton

Sentinel Staff Writer

August 23, 2009
FRUITLAND PARK - The faith of Charlie Thompson fills a room.

He has been jobless for seven months, can't make his mortgage payment and may lose his car. He and his wife are raising three kids — all with Down syndrome — and have already lost three others to neurological disorders.

Yet, as I sit on his couch, his daughter playing next to me, he says that, ultimately, he feels lucky, that God is protecting his family.

"Maybe that's just looking for something positive," Thompson, 53, says quietly. "But I really believe it."

A moment later, his wife, Barbara, breaks the silence.

"From our experience," she laughs, "we've learned you don't pray for patience."

It's tempting to say the recession has taught Charlie and Barbara Thompson about what really matters, but they've had a pretty good sense of that for a long time now. Married 31 years, the couple have endured enough pain for two lifetimes, yet managed to keep bitterness at bay.

They've filled their lives with children — four adopted, three biological — and faith, leaning on both when times were bad. They take little for granted.

"We had two children who never rolled over on their own," says Barbara, a fourth-generation Floridian. "So seeing these three be naughty is a treat."

"These three" are Luke, 18, Ashley, 14, and Billy, 13. Their oldest child, 30-year-old Charles Byron, is married, living in Lady Lake.
read more here
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-jobless-search-082309,0,5417699.story

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

I love God but not the church II: Wounded, but not broken

Reading this article brought to mind of why I do what I do the way I do it. Over the last couple of years, I've been trying to get the local churches involved with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder to help people heal, especially our veterans. The biggest part of PTSD is the loss of faith. The problem is, no matter how hard I try, no matter how many churches I visit or talk to on the phone, they just don't want to get involved and that's a shame.

They are not serving the Children of God the way they claim they are when they turn their backs on the wounded in spirit, especially when they happen to be among the few willing to lay down their lives for the sake of others.


Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
John 15:13


This quote is the headline of my website at Nam Guardian Angel. It's there for this reason alone. They never really see it this way. If Christ said this, then what is the problem with the churches when they want to ignore the price paid by so many doing exactly what Christ said was the greatest love of all?

I just did a post about Des Moines police officers, firefighters and emergency responders setting up peer support groups to help recover from what they have to do as part of their jobs. They are willing to lay down their lives for the sake of others, but the churches seem to want nothing to do with being part of their healing. National Guards and Reservist serve side by side as citizen soldiers with the military but return home to families and jobs left alone to cope with what was asked of them but again, the churches fail them. Veterans left alone years after war suffered in silence when they could have been healing but again even though we knew about PTSD after Vietnam, the churches have turned their backs on these walking wounded. Why?

Would Christ have ignored them? Would Christ have said He didn't have time for them or the staff to take care of them? Or would Christ weep again as He did for the sister of Lazarus before He raised him from the dead? I'm sure Christ would have taken all the time they needed to help them heal and restore their faith in His Loving Father.

This is one of the biggest reasons I became a Chaplain. Too many churches are not doing what they are supposed to be doing. I've talked to enough pastors and church elders witnessing their eyes glaze over as they politely send me on my way and ignore what they need to be doing for the sake of those wounded and doubting they are loved by God. How can they believe God loves them if the churches turn their backs on them?

I love God but not the church II: Wounded, but not broken
Carla Roberson

Newark Spirituality Examiner
July 28, 11:35 PM

Emotional hurt; we have all experienced it in our lives at one time or another. Anguish, feelings of betrayal and spiritual bruises; these words can only skim the surface of what agitates deep inside as the wounded, attempt to gather the pieces of their wilted spirits. They go on in their lives, many times bearing a significant weight of insecurity and distrust on their shoulders. They are the emotionally wounded; but they are not broken. Fret not; for we serve a God of redemption, healing and restoration. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you {1 Peter 5:7}.

The first segment of this article was written roughly a week ago, resulting from my own experiences that I encountered in visiting various churches. I have been in attendance of my own church for close to 7 years now and a member for about 2 years. Although my church is relatively large, consisting of approximately 10,000 in multitude; I have esteemed my church honorable. I am getting spiritually fed and I am always graciously enamored by members of the congregation, making me feel welcome and giving me a sense of joy. But approximately 3-4 months ago, I started feeling restless in church. I could not understand why I was feeling this way but I knew that God was up to something.


I began to visit other churches and I quickly realized that many churches were not operating the way that God would intend for them to. God instructed me to write about the churches and their erroneous ways. It was then, that I recognized that being a part of my own church was a blessing. I knew that I was extremely fortunate to be a member of an organization intricately designed and operated by the Lord. My own church, an imperative element in God’s purpose has proved to be a significant component as a result of my observation; by which God desires to pour out His spirit.
read more hereI love God but not the church II

Friday, December 19, 2008

PTSD Is Not God's Judgment but is it your's

I've made a lot of videos on PTSD, but this video shocked me after. While it was intended for combat veterans after listening to them all these years, it has been used to help police officers and firefighters. It came after many arguments with myself and what I believed God wanted me to do. I kept finding reasons to not make it.

One of the veterans I had been trying to help had emailed me one morning. When I responded to his comment about God forgiving him, I knew I had to do the video.

What I have to deal with now is the fact I had to stop trying to help someone that had become a friend. He was at the angry stage, pushing me away and not listening. The fight had gone out of him and he was blaming everyone. Not that I can blame him. He lost everything. He couldn't get his claim approved. He couldn't get into treatment because he couldn't get his claim approved. Although it was a legitimate claim, he just couldn't get it approved.

He was involved in this



Capture and Release of SS Mayaguez by Kmer Rouge forces in M...
Mariner Heroes from Military Sealift Command ship participate in rescue attempt of SS Mayaguez which was caputured by Kmer Rouge Cambodia forces.

This happened in May of 1975, while most people in this country simply assume the deaths due to Vietnam stopped in 1973. If you look at the Vietnam Memorial, you'll see the year 1975. Before this veteran contacted me, I thought the last two Marines had died in April of 1975. Even I didn't remember this.

When the veteran sought help, some people didn't believe him. Some said he was not a real veteran because, after all, it ended in 1973.

I tried to send him help, help I knew I could not give him but he had become unable to trust anyone. It was not his fault. He had been conditioned to not being able to trust other people. Most of us reach a point in our lives when we get our hopes up that someone will finally help us, then break down when we discover people are really great at promising things they never do. It's almost as if once the conversation ends, they never think of us again. (It happens to me all the time.) Well, he was left with a boat load of crashed hopes and buckets filled with excuses. The fight had gone out of him.

The stress I was under was added to by my frustration with myself. No matter what I did or how many people I contacted, no one could help him. I was having nightmares about my failures and crying way too much. It was affecting everything else I did. I knew I could do no more for him and had to force him to fight for himself. While I still hold him in my heart and pray for him, we have not been in contact for months. I have no idea what happened to him and that breaks my heart all over again. I just couldn't go on failing him.

There is only so much I can do. My end of all of this is to provide education of what PTSD is and offer what little support I can give. I cannot diagnose or treat them beyond my own abilities and sometimes the veterans come to me expecting a lot more than I can give. There was something about this veteran that I broke my own rules about getting attached and I contacted everyone I knew to help him because I knew it was beyond what I could do. That's the most frustrating thing about all of this for anyone trying to help.

If the VA would honor the claims when they are presented since the vast majority of them are legitimate ones, it would go a long way of saving the veterans lives, their families and actually proving this country is grateful for their service by accepting responsibility for the wounds they carry.

While the veteran I was trying to help wanted to give up in less than a year of fighting, he didn't want to hear that we had to fight to have my husband's claim approved for six years. One of my husband's friends took 19 years. No one wants to hear that someday the claim will be approved when they are suffering and trying to survive. While it may be wonderful to see a really large check for the years of fighting to have a claim approved, it is torture between the time help is sought and when it is finally delivered. I know too many people still trying to have claims approved years and years after the claim was filed. It's also one of the biggest reasons I get so frustrated when people leave comments about "the veteran has to prove the claim" because most of the time they have and yet they are still turned down.

How can anyone go thru all of this and not believe that God has abandoned them and they are suffering because of His anger? After years of hearing preachers spout out about how God's wrath seeks vengeance, they believe that is why they are suffering. They cannot understand that God has mercy but people are jerks at times. Things get twisted up in the minds of humans and they begin to feel hopeless. Removing hope from someone is taking draining what is good in them out of them. It adds to the suffering.

If they understand that God has not abandoned them or condemned them, it returns hope to their spirit and that goes a long way in healing them.

Anyway, that's what was behind this video. I ended up getting an award for the videos from the IFOC and this was the one most people talked about.

At this time of year when we are celebrating the birth of Christ and the miracle of love, feeling charitable and thinking of other people instead of ourselves, I thought it was a great time to remind people that all is not lost and we are not alone in this world no matter how much we feel as if we are. When bad things happen, God has sent people into this world to help and show His love thru them. Is He talking to you right now? Is He trying to get you to help the veterans? Is he talking to you and trying to get you to heal your own marriage, reach out to a family member you abandoned because you didn't understand what was wrong with them or why they came home differently? Then answer Him and help by doing, not wishing, hoping or talking. If you do not do it with actions now, you will forget about wanting to help before this day is done.


from http://www.namguardianangel.com/

PTSD Is Not God's Judgment

by Chaplain Kathie

Sometimes doing the right thing comes with a price. When it comes to the men and women serving in the military and National Guards, that price is paid when they begin to serve, away from family and friends, and all too often, continues to be paid long after they are safely back home.

Humans tend to twist things up trying to make sense of our lives. Our brains will not allow the obvious to remove doubts. Heroes are born into this world with a mission deeply ingrained in their souls. Some are sent to minister to others and take care of strangers. They enter into fields of service. Doctors, nurses, emergency responders, councilors, firefighters and National Guards. Others are sent to protect their countrymen. Law enforcement from police and sheriff departments, intelligence services like the FBI and the military. All ready to lay down their lives for the sake of others.

Laying down your life does not always mean your physical life. Sometimes it means your personal life. The things you would rather be doing when you are torn between duty and want. Setting aside times of enjoyment for times of service because someone needs you.

When it comes to those serving in the military and National Guards, they are asked not only to defend, but to attack. They see horrific events unfold before their eyes, friends die, strangers die and wounds suffered by survivors. Then they question everything after. Why were they there? Why did they have to do what they did? What they could have done to have saved a friend? Did God judge them for what they did or did not do? Did God abandon them?

When they begin to suffer from the events in the form of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, they do not allow the fact that the basis of their service was answering a noble calling. Even when they were drafted into the military, they see only the horrors of war and not the purpose for which they were there.

Ever since the beginning of time, God's will to provide mankind with freewill, has required those who would defend the weaker. Before He created man, God created a warrior angel, the Archangel Michael. He is always depicted with a sword in one hand and scales in the other to show the balance between war and protection.

Reading the passages of the Bible you can clearly see the affects following war on the warrior. Page after page shows how the war changed the warrior from King David to Judges and Kings. Historical accounts of warriors from all nations and generations have shown the war lingers in the minds and souls of the humans participating in it. While we here in America glorify the Revolutionary war, we tend to ignore many of Patriots suffered from it.

We cannot judge those believing they need to be forgiven for what they had to do. In those cases, we need only point to an event in the Bible itself. It was during Christ's walk upon the earth. Given the fact Christ knew how His life would end and by whose hands, a Roman Centurion approached Christ and begged Him to heal his beloved servant. Christ not only knew this man would be part of the occupiers to nail Him to the cross, He also knew that this Centurion prayed to pagan gods. He was not a believer in His Father. Yet Christ saw into his heart and the love he had for a servant. Nothing else mattered at that moment. Christ did not ask the Centurion to convert or to follow Him.

Christ did not ask him to renounce his position of power among the Romans. Christ simply honored the Centurion's plea. If Christ could find compassion for someone like this Centurion knowing what he had done and what he would do, how can anyone not understand that Christ can see into the hearts and souls of all warriors?

We end up wondering how God can forgive us for what we do instead of wondering if we can forgive ourselves. To understand the kind of love God has for all of His children, no matter what faith they claim, is beyond our ability to understand. We know how we judge others and that prevents us from understanding that God can see inside of us and not just what we do or hear what we say. He takes it all into account.

When warriors leave the battle, they take it all with them. What is pushed into the backs of their minds is the basis of why they were there. What was in their hearts when they joined? What was in their minds pushing them? Was it evil intent or was it noble? Was it to protect and help or was it to kill and destroy? Even if it was for this reason, they fail to see that God can forgive them and heal them. He can turn around all they have done in order to help others if they are willing.

PTSD is not a judgment from God but the result of traumatic events. God does not cause war. Man does. Still God knows there needs to be defenders to protect others. I believe that is why God has called some to do this and enabled them with the courage to provide defense.

We've all heard the expression "God only gives us what we can handle" or words similar, but this thought it wrong. It implies God sends terrible things into our lives instead of God providing us with what we need to get thru it. When we believe God has sent these events into our lives or sent us into them, we then believe that what comes after is God's judgment of us. If we pay with our troubled minds not letting go of what we endured, it is as if God sent ghosts to remind us of it all. It is the human mind wounded by traumatic events because of how God created us. The same ability we have to inspire us to care about others, also wounds us.

We've heard the expression "survivors guilt" and when we are left standing when others did not, when we survive what killed others, when we see what we did not suffer, we feel guilty over it. We judge ourselves unworthy.

The video I created PTSD Not God's Judgment is about this. The song I selected is You Raise Me Up because the words have more meaning to the purpose of this video than any other song I could find.


You Raise Me Up

When I am down and, oh my soul, so weary;

When troubles come and my heart burdened be;

Then, I am still and wait here in the silence,

Until you come and sit awhile with me.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;

You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;

I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;

You raise me up: To more than I can be.

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;

You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;

I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;

You raise me up: To more than I can be.

There is no life - no life without its hunger;

Each restless heart beats so imperfectly;

But when you come and I am filled with wonder,

Sometimes, I think I glimpse eternity.



We need to remember that the warriors suffering from PTSD need to be treated as they are with all they come with. Their minds, their bodies as well as their souls. Reconnecting them to the faith they had or to the spiritual tugging they had, is just as important as addressing their psychological condition. It will not matter how much medication they take or how much they talk about what they endured if they still believe their suffering has come from God. If they believe they have been condemned and judged, no amount of therapy will heal them. While therapy and medication will alleviate some of their symptoms, spiritual counseling will do deeper healing and miracles follow.

There have been cases when Vietnam veterans have reconnected with children and children have forgiven their parents for the way they acted while PTSD was taken over their lives. Understanding what PTSD is and what it is not has healed, not just the veteran, but the entire family.

Click the video above on the picture of the soldier holding another solider in his arms.(On my web site at above link or on the side bar of this blog) This is the video link to PTSD Not God's Judgment. We need to hold all of them in our arms and help them to heal but we can't unless and until we understand how deeply this wound goes and all that goes with it.

In between now and then, we need to do what we can to help them. After all, someone has to.


"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation."

- George Washington