A friend of mine from the Florida Keys called me not long ago and told me had watched my testimony on the internet. He then began pouring his heart about his only daughter. She was doing well with her life, and he sent me a video of her promoting her fitness business. She was a beautiful girl and obviously had worked out and was incredibly fit. Unfortunately, she got into the wrong crowd and soon became a heroin addict.
Not long thereafter she lost her profitable business, and he sent me a photo of how she looked after becoming an addict. It was as though a lovely flower had been exposed to herbicide and wilted. He had sent her to rehab several times, but shortly after completing her stay she always returned to the drugs.
He asked if I would talk to her about my experiences and how I got off drugs and counsel her, and of course I told him I would. I told him I would be in the Keys in February and if he so desired I volunteered to fly down and meet her before that trip. He told me that would not be necessary, and he would plan for her to fly down from Boston when I came down.
Last week I wrote him to setup our meeting but there was no response and in a few days his wife wrote me and told me his daughter had passed and they were in Boston making funeral arrangements. It was too late for her. I sent my condolences and the next day he wrote me and was understandably devastated and told me that he would never be the same.
In part here is what he wrote:
“I appreciate your kindness and your words, unfortunately she didn’t have the chance to meet with you. After listening to your story, the first thing that came to my mind was that you can be a great inspirational person for her to listen to, unfortunately my daughter, a very wonderful and successful woman got trapped by the Evil and bad people and as you know drugs.
I fought for 12 years to help her. Gods knows I did the possible and impossible to help her, but unfortunately the outcome is dark and has devastated me and my family, maybe you can explain why if I am a good father a good person that always is looking to help others, I have to go through this devastation that has left scars that will be with me for the rest of my life.
If God is our Savior and is good, why I am being put in this hellish situation? Maybe you can explain, I am devastated broken in millions of pieces, that was my first and only child, my little girl.”
My response was as follows:
I have endured much tragedy in my life and know what you are going through. Like me, my brother was heavily involved with drugs and alcohol and though he got clean a couple of times, like your daughter he always went back to them. He eventually committed suicide and I was devastated. I loved him and tried everything I could think of to help him, but sometimes the people you love the most cannot be helped. He knew sin was destroying his marriage, health, relationship with his children, and life but he gave it all up for the evil.
God gave me what I needed to overcome that evil lifestyle and Jesus transformed my life, BUT I had to do my part and through His strength and my faith I was able to resist Satan. He tried as I’m sure your daughter tried, but evil overcame good.
It is important to understand that sin doesn’t come from God but Satan. We do have a choice to either sin or avoid it. This is called free will. God will not force anyone to love Him; we must choose to follow him and not this evil world with its drugs, pornography, alcohol, perverted sex, wars, violence, etc. Satan tempts us to sin, and he is successful in too many cases, (just look at this evil world). It is Satan whom you should aim your anger and not God. The Bible tells us that God loves us but there are consequences for sin. Just like throwing a rock at a window will shatter glass as a direct consequence, sin can and will shatter our lives as a direct consequence. God has warned us about the consequences of sin since the dawn of creation. Adam and Eve would not listen, and sin, at the behest of Satan, caused our downfall. This is still occurring to us today.
God understood sin and its destruction and sent Jesus from His throne to die for our sins. It is our one and only hope for reconcilement with God and seeing heaven where there is no sin, no tears, or sadness. Instead of running away from God we should run to Him at times like this. He is our singular hope at filling the hole in our hearts after a tragedy such as your daughter’s death. Let me know when and I will be happy to discuss it with you further and pray with you. Regardless please know I am praying for you and your entire family. May God have mercy and compassion on you and somehow give you peace.
As I drove through the keys yesterday across the beautiful expanses of turquoise water and saw the gently swaying palm and coconut trees and sea birds diving at bait pods, I shook my head at my blessings. But for the grace of God, I would have stayed trapped in my misery and passed on like so many other of Satan’s victims. Not a day goes by that I don’t thank Him for delivering me from the claws of the beast Satan. I left that lifestyle over 50 years ago now, but I remember it just like it was yesterday.
If you have a loved one similarly trapped, please keep praying and doing what you can. Remember no one ever set out to be a drug addict or an alcoholic. Getting angry with them helps nothing, because no matter how disappointed or angry you might be at them, those suffering from addictions are far more disappointed and angry. Love them and pray for them and let them know that there is hope in Christ.
Gal. 6:2
“Carry each other’s burdens and so you will fulfill the law of Christ.”