Prison stories:"It was my corner". Yeah! The pastor's sons were also drug dealers, but they went back to church and changed, one of them became a pastor. C usually didn't say much during the small group gatherings, in fact it sometimes seemed as if he wasn't really engaged in the discussion at all. But it turned out that I had misinterpreted his quietness for disinterest.
During the session "How and why should I tell others?" he opened up and it was obvious that God was at work in his life. He told us about the church he went to...
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| Prison stories: A young Iraq war veteran's story
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Grief and loss
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S was a 19-year old when we met him at Alpha in prison. He served 9 months in Iraq, his story is sad and deeply moving. He told me: "I struggle to sleep, because I have vivid flashbacks of my time in Iraq. I am plagued by pictures of the bloodshed I saw in Iraq among civilians, US servicemen and especially of some of my friends who were killed and maimed in front of me."
I was moved and troubled by this deeply wounded young man's story The next week he was transferred to another prison, I never saw him again. I still sometimes pray for him that the Holy Spirit will open his heart to Christ so that he can experience God's love and forgiveness in Christ and that he will be freed from the nightmares that plague him.
He told me that when he got back to the USA he began to use drugs and drink heavily in an attempt to blot out these memories. He was stopped for a DUI and found to be in possession of cocaine and marijuana, foolishly he resisted arrest, and was sentenced to prison.
One of his biggest struggles is believing that God can forgive him for shooting and killing people, even though it was in the line of duty. It was a great joy and privilege to pray with him and to tell him about the depth and fullness of God's love and mercy.
After speaking with him, I prayed with him and gave him a Bible, the booklet "Why Jesus?" and a copy of the "Purpose Driven Life".
Please pray for this young man, and the many military men and women who are living with the trauma of war.
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