Steve Purtz SP staff member in Kessenuma, Japan, blogs about meeting a Good Samaritan.

By the summer of 2011, I had been through four years of experiencing the highest of highs and a deep pit of heartbreaking loss, compounded with a series of painful events. So much so, that by June I was at a point of true desperation. I felt like the one in Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, lying on the roadside of life, beaten and bruised, robbed and bleeding, dying a slow, tortured death.

I felt passed by on the other side by those in the church and out. Counselor, friend, or family, everyone who knew of my distress just walked on by. Although some of my wounds were self-inflicted, they were real and deep. There were days that I would just hold my head and weep. I was lost and undone as everything dear to me was stripped away. Everything I gained in over a quarter of a century slipped through my hands.

At that point, when I was in my deepest of pits, something nearly unbelievable happened. Out of seemingly nowhere, my Good Samaritan came across my road of sorrows to pour out the oil and wine, to bandage my wounds, to carry me to the inn and place me in the care of the innkeeper. My new friend was a Samaritan’s Purse volunteer I had met on a disaster site.

We had volunteered in New Orleans the same week in the summer of 2010. We had never talked or even knew each other’s name. Yet a year later, while I was looking through photos of that trip, a picture of one person in the group stood out to me.

Somehow, that led to a search of who that 'tall guy' was, and one thing led to another until I received a friend request on Facebook.

What has transpired since is truly astounding. We have become the closest of friends and most trusted of confidante's. This friendship is like none other I have ever had or even heard of. Yet it is real, and rich beyond description.

This was tangible proof to me that we serve such a good God, who knows us better than we know ourselves. He promised to never leave us nor forsake us, and that He can use a simple photo to begin a search and rescue mission. I will be forever grateful to Him and to my friend, 'my Good Samaritan'.

So, I will leave you with a couple of thoughts. If you are lying on the side of the road of life, bruised and beaten, robbed and bleeding, take hope. Your Good Samaritan is on the way! And if all is well, then who will you be passing by that is crying out, waiting for you to stop with an open heart of mercy?

Samaritan's Purse , Japan , Community Development , My Good Samaritan

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