Slay the fatted calf, my brother is home.

The following was originally posted back in January of this year. My brother Sam, who will be 21 this month has lived a lifetime as an addict...in just 5 years.

My brother Sam is a Meth Addict. He overdosed(which I think is a horrible word because there is no good "dose" when it comes to Meth) on Monday and is detoxing right now in a county facility in California. He is not even 21 yet and he has already been through rehab once. The hallucinations that he has had during the past 48 hours are truly demonic in nature...really scary, and a total reality that my family has to not only live through but witness. The paranoia is unreal...it alone could kill him. My parents are devastated as are all of us who call him brother. This is not a kind drug. It is horrible beyond comprehension. Worse than what you could ever imagine. I believe it is Satan's new drug of choice. It is life altering...brain damage is not unusual...and it actually changes who you are...even when you have come down off of it. It does not discriminate...rich, poor, young or old...the list could go on...it is simply death. Please pray and intercede on behalf of my brother Sam. Pray for his ears to open and his eyes be made to see. May he seek the Lord not to save him from himself but to REDEEM him for eternity. He NEEDS JESUS...and Jesus is so courting him...and we pray that Sam hears and obeys. I am begging you to intercede...please.

Well, while the whole story is far too intricate and long winded to share here, here is the gist of it all. The last two years of high school, for Sam were a blur. I believe mainly using alcohol, he barely kept his head above water, and in the end was expelled from school. (which on a side note, my mom was the principle of, just to complicate things!!!) Within two years he had been busted by the cops for drug use and a DUI, which we all hoped would wake him up. But to no avail. Finally, under pressure from the family, he entered U-Turn for Christ. A drug re-hab for men in SoCal. The program was , I think about three months long. While he made it through the program, and even entered the follow up half-way house...it was short lived. He ended up turning back to addiction, but this time it was gambling and alcohol.

Obviously, during this time, my parents were beside themselves. Sam, being the youngest, has really put them through the ringer. After the episode that landed him in the ER from the OD last January, we all hoped it would be the turning point. Once again, it was not. Each time I have interacted with Sam in the past 5 years, it has been as if it weren't really him. At least, not the Sam I remember. He has been distant at best, and at the worst of it, completely out of his mind.

Then about a month ago, my Dad hopped in Sam's car to crank it, after working on it, and was surprised to hear Christian Radio. He mentioned to me that it gave him hope that the Lord was continuing to deal with Sam in ways, that none of us could even touch.

I love the line from C.S. Lewis in Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Mr Tumnus says of Aslan, "He is not a tame lion." and Lucy replies, "No, but he is good" I have often thought of Sam when I think of Aslan. The giant beast on the move. Wild yet good. The lion and the lamb.

Well, the Lion, has truly been in pursuit. And it seems, like the Prodigal has come home. Sunday, while my family in SoCal gathered for Mother's Day, Sam gave his life to the Lord. My Mom and Sister both said, that for the first time ever, he seems at peace with it. Like, this time, maybe he is done running. Maybe he has finally been captured by grace, and freed from guilt. I can honestly say that I will NEVER forget talking to him that night. For the first time in years, I felt like it was actually Sam on the other end of the line. Not some shell of my brother, but the real thing. He told me he couldn't wait to come out and visit us, and to spend time with us as a family. And my sister , KC that lives here in MS said that for the first time Sam asked her how Kannon(my niece) was. Kannon is 18 months old...KC said it melted he heart that Sam not only asked about Kannon, but actually cared about her.

How blessed we are, to have family that not only loves us, but believes the best for us, and in us.

I can honestly say, that we all believed in Sam, even when he did not believe in himself. And that, while we waited expectantly on the Lord to do a good work through Sam, He did a good work in all of us.

I am blessed today, for I have felt the breath of Aslan, breathing new life into Sam. The roar of the Lion, the comfort of the Lamb.

Please continue to pray for him, for us.