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Jim Daly
God is at work and he's calling his people to rise in truth. Truth Rising is a powerful new documentary from Focus on the Family and the Colson Center. See how ordinary Christians choose courage in a culture that needs truth. Watch Truth Rising starting September 5th and find out how you can be a part of the change and become an agent of restoration. Sign up@truthrising.com that's truthrising.com.
Chad Robichaux
They challenged me to get back in the fight, and I knew I couldn't do it alone in that isolation. I knew I needed to step out of isolation, to surround myself with good, quality people who was gonna walk with me.
John Fuller
That's Chad Robichaux sharing how challenging it was to find community when he was struggling with ptsd. Chad's our guest today on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly. And as a veteran, he's passionate about providing hope and healing to active military members and veterans as well. Thanks for joining us. Your host is FOCUS president and author Jim Daley.
Jim Daly
John, we owe so much to our veterans, and I think we have become a little apathetic about it. My brother served in the Navy and, you know, very distinguished. And I so appreciate my brother. I try to call him every Memorial Day and Veterans Day to thank him. And I think that's the spirit of this broadcast today, is to remember what these men and women have done for us. You know, I've seen clips on YouTube and things like that where sometimes these veterans, veterans are being hassled or heckled by people, and I just go, man, you have no idea what this man or woman and their family have done for us. So this program is to really help you think about that, number one. But secondly, we've got a great book, Silent Horizons. It's a fictionalized book by our guest, and it's a great resource to hand to a veteran, especially someone who's dealing with some difficulties, ptsd, things like that. So think about that as we talk today and think about getting a couple of copies to have with you so you could give them out.
John Fuller
And Chad served in the Marines. He's an expert in veteran care and related issues. As you said, Jim, this is a little bit out of the wheelhouse. We don't talk a lot about fiction books, but Silent Horizons is a terrific resource and we've got that here at the ministry. And the details are in the show notes.
Jim Daly
Chad, welcome back to focus. Always good to have you here.
Chad Robichaux
So great to see you guys. Just continued. I say it every time, but thank you guys for what you do for our Nation for the world. I focus on the family. You guys do such incredible work.
Jim Daly
Well, you know, it's a full effort, right? The Lord's kingdom coming into this world and takes everybody working on it, that's for sure. But you've done such a wonderful job. Of course we've had you here. People should go get the app and download the app so you can hear the programs before with Chad because they're amazing. What you did to get people out of Afghanistan with very little help from our government at the time and then things that you've done in the Ukraine, we're going to talk a little bit about that. But you are just the man's man. When I grow up, I want to be like you.
Chad Robichaux
I'm trying to hang on. I've always been, you know, very blessed to be surrounded by amazing people. You know, in the professions that I've done and especially in the ministry we do and you know, Mighty Oaks foundation to serve our veterans. We have such incredible. And this year, you know, I stepped down from the role of being a CEO at Mighty Oaks and stepped out of the organizational structure to do more things like books and podcasts and my own podcast, the Resilience show, some TV shows and things like that. Just to belt A because I feel like the gift things that in the place that God has me in a season is to be able to cast the net bigger, to reach more people. And because of the people I'm partnered with and in our team at Mighty Oaks and partners like you guys, I'm able to go out and reach more people and then bring them into those.
Jim Daly
Those so cool. We'll talk a bit about what Mighty Oaks does as we go through the program. But let's start with your designation. I love this Force Recon Marine Veteran and a lot of people won't know what that means. What is Force Recon Marine?
Chad Robichaux
Well, you know, all the different branches of military have different special operations. They don't all do the same thing. And you know, Force Recon, the Marine Corps has the reconnaissance community and recon is the, the entry point to that. And in about 25 of the recon community would be force recon which has a little bit more focused missions, people with a little bit more experience. My job specifically was called the AFO Advanced Force Operator. And you, you, you work in a singleton capacity by yourself with local nationals and really you just embed and live in, in those in environment non permissive to US military. You know, all the worst bad guys are going to be in places that The US Military can't or won't go. Like in Afghanistan, for example, would be in the Federal Ministry tribal areas or across the border in Pakistan. And so these tier one special operations units, when they go to capture or kill those guys, someone has to go there first to build all the clandestine infrastructure in order to be able to successfully have an operation there. And Those are the AFOs.
Jim Daly
Is it really a place in the world that we can't go militarily? I mean, with Special Forces guys, it seems to me like we can go just about anywhere we want to.
Chad Robichaux
There's not. And you know, for the adversaries, military is out there. There's nowhere you could hide America's military. If you're an enemy of the people of America, we will come and find you. And, and we have proven time and time again that we have the ability to do that. So be best behavior.
Jim Daly
Well, we'll talk more about that. Wielding force for righteousness versus for evil. And there is a big distinction, a big difference. And you know, I'm sure nations don't always get that right. They're not operating from strictly a biblical mandate and we'll get into some of that. But boy, those virtues that are high democracy and, and lifting up women and children, those are all good things that I feel like the US has always stood for and tried to do admirably.
Chad Robichaux
It's an important part about being a Christian nation and being a nation of morality and, and being a just nation because we are the world superpower. We are the most powerful nation in the world. And, and with being that and not being a nation of morality, that would be a dangerous combination.
Jim Daly
Yeah.
Chad Robichaux
And so, you know, that's one of many reasons that America should stay true to who we are as a nation.
Jim Daly
And in our principles book Silent Horizons, your character, which is fictional, foster struggles with feelings of isolation and eventually, you know, PTSD issues. I'm sure this is an amalgamation of you and your buddies that suffered different things. You kind of put it into this fictionalized version. But like all good fiction, it's usually rooted in reality. Is that fair?
Chad Robichaux
It is, yeah. The book, book one, this up three book series. So this is book one. So Tyndale is a. If you guys don't know, Tyndale is a publisher, is a ministry. I mean they're not a, they're a 501c3 non profit. And their, their mission in, in the. What they want to do in the military thriller genre is to be able to minister to those communities. And so just like adventures In Odyssey using, you know, cartoons and. And to be able to minister children. That's same with this. And so Foster is very much a. A lot of things from me, from my life, and in book one, a lot of the things that Foster experience were things that I experienced in book one. And. And so we fictionalized it, made him tall and handsome. We. We changed the locations and operations and things like that and embellished a lot to make it, you know, fun for the reader. But there's a lot of things at the fundamental level about his life and his struggles and hardships and battles that. That are not just my story, but a story of so many of our warriors. And there's a path forward, there is hope, there is healing, and we get to be able to. The reader is going to be able to walk through that with Foster in a very pragmatic way that I don't think a lot of. Of the American culture get to see. And so really take him through that journey of the hardships and why he has those hardships. One of the cool things about this book is that Jack Stewart, who's my. The guy who wrote it with me, he's a Navy Top Gun pilot and adversarial instructor. He spent his ground time in at tier one special operations units. You know, he's a phenomenal writer, brilliant guy. And. But we made a point to really honor so many people in that book. Foster Quinn is the character. Foster Harrington was one of my best friends for 10 years and died in Al Ambar Province in 2004. Robert Cottle was another one of my friends who died in Iraq. And so Foster's pseudonym is Foster Cottle. And so a lot of the names you'll see, Seth and different names you'll see in the operators are all those who are being honored as they were killed in action and duty to our nation and defense of freedom.
Jim Daly
Amazing. Well, like Foster, you talked about in the book, this sense that he had, obviously you had and others of isolation. Paint that P for us, because those. I'm not sure I can feel what that would feel like. Help me to better feel that.
Chad Robichaux
Well, he goes through the isolation of physical isolation, of operating alone, which I spent many times alone operating in the mountains of Afghanistan or across the border in Pakistan. And when I worked in Singleton in Pakistan, I was the only one from my unit in that country.
Jim Daly
So is this that feeling of just being out there by yourself and I mean, there's no protection?
Chad Robichaux
Well, you realize that if something does happen, no one's coming to get you. There's no time for anyone to come to get you. Most of the time, there's no way to communicate that you need help. And so you're relying on a local national that you, you know, build a relationship with and become close to. Sometimes they're waiting, meaning they know some of the things. Sometimes they're partially wedding, sometimes they're not wedding at all. You know, I've talked in the show before about Aziz, and Aziz was my most trusted confidant, my friend, and he was fully witting of the things, but there was oftentimes I was not in those environments and spending, you know, days, weeks, months by myself. And. And so that's the isolation of that and feeling alone and. And there's nothing I know of that that will eat you, Al, than being alone and feeling isolated. Because I don't think humans were created to be alone. Yeah, they're created to be in community. So when you're alone and you're not having to be able to tell truth to anyone around you, you're living in this lie of this covert capacity. It just. It takes a toll on you. It doesn't matter how good you are, how smart you are, how trained you are, how tough you are, eventually it's going to change you and. And it's going to affect you. Then there's the isolation of. Of taking that struggle, those struggles, whatever the struggles may come from, and that could translate outside the veteran community, any struggling. And you feel like. No one feels the way I feel. No one's hurting the way I am. No one feels the hopelessness I feel. No one's marriage is as bad as my. No, you name it, no one. No one would understand. No one feels this way. That in itself becomes. You could be in a crowd of people, you could be in a thousand people, but you feel isolated because you feel like no one could connect to the way you feel. And you feel alone. And that's, you know, the work of the enemy. This. In this, you know, spiritual warfare tell you that you're alone and there's no hope. And, And. And I think that that lingering thought leads to the suicide epidemic that we don't only have in the veteran community. It's the highest in the veteran community, but we have throughout our nation, and no one really talks about this, that we're at a time right now in our country, that we are at a historical suicide high in America and globally, and no one really wants to talk about that statistic.
Jim Daly
Well, it's hard to figure out how to be effective in Bringing that number down, but getting certainly veterans to talk about their experiences and where they're at. I do want to ask you about ptsd. I mean, that term is bantered about quite a bit. If you've not been in the military, again, you may not really catch what that is. I mean, you're thinking of being gripped by perhaps fear or sounds that spark your memories of battle, you know, a loud something, and then you go into kind of an odd place emotionally. Describe for us what PTSD is like.
Chad Robichaux
Well, PTSD is post Traumatic stress disorder. And I believe there's a conflict in the name disorder, because I don't believe that it's actually a disorder. The Diagnostic dsm, the diagnostics and statistic manuals identifies it as that. But the most common definition is the body's normal response to abnormal situation. So my body's normally responding the way it was created to respond to abnormal situations, situations we were never created to.
Jim Daly
See or do and describe that abnormal situation. High stress, your life's on the line.
Chad Robichaux
Hyper vigilance, high stress, anxiety disorder, panic disorder. You're getting panic attacks. So your sensories, which we have, you know, our five sensories, I think we have more, but. Yeah, but we have five sensors that we talk about your sensories, particularly the sense of smell, sound. You may smell something that'll bring you back to that moment. So your limbic system recognizes, maybe smells gunpowder. Now your limbic system says, I remember this event last time. There's a time that we smelled this and you were about to die. And so it, the limbic system is very reptilian. Part of your brain is primal. And so the way God designed us was that fires off and you go, you. Your body has a normal response the way it was created, designed and designed to do. And all these physiological effects happen for one thing and one thing only, to protect you. Survival. And survival, right. And so now your, Your heart rate goes up, your. Your breathing changes. You're. You have like auditory exclusion in your ears. You could see things differently. And if, if that happens in a normal environment, not in a com, your body's doing exactly what it is to do, to perform, to survive. If you're sitting at dinner with your wife and kids that you're not supposed to be at that state of physiologically in that moment, so you feel is really something's off, it'll create a panic and a real discomfort. And oftentimes people will do only one thing, and that's medicate those symptoms to numb them, but they're not actually healing and so I'm not against medication. You know this Jim, from, From us talking before. I believe medication is a part of the process, but it's the only part of process. It's a bad process. Right. You should seek to find, to be able to understand what's happened to you, why it's happened to you. Seek God's word and how to live through this and bringing community around you. And then do you know what I call clinical world calls prolonged exposure? Expose yourself to environments to realize, hey, I'm not dying right now. I'm at dinner having a. A meal and the kitchen caught fire and I smelled something that triggered me and. And I didn't die. Yeah. So like, the more you expose yourself to that and realize that I'm not in danger, the more you could re. Human body's amazing and you can re. Acclimate yourself to norm. Yeah.
Jim Daly
Isn't that something? I mean, God has created an amazing machine in our bodies. Let me, let me ask you though, specifically about your journey of healing. Because you did have ptsd. Who stepped in? What was effective for you? Why did it work?
Chad Robichaux
Well, you know, all the, the advice I give, I didn't follow at that time because I didn't know it.
Jim Daly
It's probably typical of most veterans, right?
Chad Robichaux
Yeah. That's why I'm on such a mission to educate and inform and reach people through every. Every avenue I can. Because I wish I would have knew that. I wish someone would reach to me. And because I didn't know, I tried to deal with it in isolation on my own, without the tools and principles, without turning the Creator to. To recalibrate my life to the life I was created to live. And so that led me in a downward spiral that led to me coming to the. The hopeless thought that maybe my family would be sad without me, but they would be better off. And I made a decision to take my life. And again, that same hopeless thought finds a home in the hearts of over 20 veterans every day. I think more like probably 50 if we're accurate on the statistics, but it doesn't matter. The number one is maybe my family be sad without me, but they'd be better off. And it was. I made a decision to take my life and my wife Kathy intervened in the. In a suicide attempt and really challenged me and asked me, you know, how could you do all the things she seen me doing, special operations as an athlete, all these things I did. But when it came to my family, that'll quit on them. And that challenge, you know, of me being Poked and being called the quitter because nothing, no more soul cutting word to me than be called the quitter would challenge me to get back in the fight. And I knew I couldn't do it alone in that isolation. I knew I needed to step out of the isolation, to surround myself with good quality people was gonna walk with me and, and I chose to reach out by asking Kathy, is there someone at this church that she was going to, not me, was going to, to help hold me accountable? That and a man named Steve Toad stepped in my life and not only led me to Jesus, but discipled me. I don't want to say mentor me, because there's a difference. Yeah, he discipled me for a period of a year and radically changed my life, my perspective and my future. And at the end of that journey was a lot of revelation and a deep burden on my heart to share those revelations with others. And that's what I do today.
Jim Daly
Chad, let me ask you this. The wiring for men, we as men, as you were saying there a minute ago, the isolation that you feel as a man, they'll be better off without me. It's heightened, I think, going through a military experience. All those things are juiced, if I could say it that way. Yet all men seem to struggle with many of these things. The business guy that's out of kilter, that overworks, doesn't see his family as something he can rest in and be a part of. So he avoids it, avoids his marriage. Speaking in that kind of general way, what do we as men need to think about when Kathy says to you, come on man, you could do better than this?
Chad Robichaux
Well, Stu Weber wrote a book called Tender Warrior. And in the book, I'm gonna misquote it, but he said the things that you struggle with in the heart of every man that you know. And, and that's absolutely true. We often as men think no one's, you know, no one's dealing with what I'm dealing with. The truth is in a different context, different job, occupation, different kind people, every man is struggling with the same things. There's nothing you face that hasn't, you know, been under the sun before by someone else. And, and so what I'd say to men that are struggling is one, make this decision to step out of that isolation into community of like minded believers, into a core group of men that'll call us out and challenge us. Yeah, and I think that, I mean, look, there's no, no second step to living the life you created to live outside of having a relationship with the Creator. That's one. But I think the next step beyond that is community. Especially men. We have to. We are worst enemies if we're outside of accountability. Like, I don't trust myself. Like, I know what if we know ourselves. Degenerate I could be. And what I'm Cap. Love of destroying. I'm my own worst enemy is I have to have community and. And every. And that's. I'm saying that honestly about myself, but I will say that to every man that's listening on the other side of this podcast. They have to have accountability.
John Fuller
Yeah.
Jim Daly
Chad, you're touching on this, but I want to pull this out even further. Your wife Kathy, a brother of someone who served in the military, if they're observing their family member or their good friend who kind of is expressing denial, I'm good. But you kind of can see where it's not healthy, you know, whatever that might be related to ptsd, isolation, loneliness, whatever it might be. What do you say to those people to be able to nudge, to encourage. Because oftentimes, guys, we're also quite prideful, you know, we're not gonna respond well, I'm fine. Don't talk to me about it. I can manage it.
Chad Robichaux
The best advice I could give for speaking to someone who's struggling. It doesn't want help. Their pridefulness. Don't want help. Is. First of all, you know, you should probably sit down and say, hey, come have a cup of coffee with me. Get them in an isolated environment where it's just the two of you, and you show you're going to be willing to give your time to them. You care enough about them, give the time, but when you approach them, it's not, hey, what's going on with you? How can I help you? How can I be your savior? That's the wrong approach and causes people to clam up. Instead, how about you tell them about time that you struggled. Tell them by the time that you fell on your face and failed and got up again and people came around you and God restored something in your life. Demonstrating that creates opportunity for them to reciprocate, and that starts the dialogue and the relationship that allows for healing.
Jim Daly
Yeah. What you have experienced, I mean, you're going into bases. You're allowed by the Pentagon to speak. People made in God's image need godly advice.
Chad Robichaux
That's right.
Jim Daly
And we need to get to the point where we're just sick and tired of people trying to water it down to the point it does. No. Proud of you for going in and saying, hey, this is my experience. I was lost and then I was found. And you boldly point to your relationship with Christ as what saved you physically, emotionally, spiritually. But hit that again because I know you touched on it. But just the criticality, the warrior mentality that I'm not going to take somebody's imagination. This is what works. This is what's true. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
Chad Robichaux
Yeah. How would I ever stand before God and, and say you had I had the opportunity to stand in front of 600,000 active duty troops and, and sell my bill of goods without telling them the truth. That in order to be the warriors that they desire to be and they were created to be, they have to have a relationship with Jesus. Like I have no option other than telling the truth. And, and I have done that for. And God has really allowed me the opportunity to do that in a place that I was told the door would be shut to. But you touched on something that's important to know before I say unless we're allowed to have Bibles in our prisons, but not in our schools. And why not catch it on the front end? Resiliency is on the front end and an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. You could be in the front end and providing this. Why, why are we just using it to restore. We could use it to build resiliency. And, and that's where I, I took that idea and pushed it to be to the Pentagon and to the White House and to Congress and Senate to be able to be in those bases and speak to those troops and speak to them on truth because they had taken it away. And in 2010, I know, you know, we probably don't want to get too political down there, but in 2009, President Obama removed Bibles from the military. And that's a fact. That's not a political statement. That's a fact. He chose to do that. And that's a fact of a State. Since 1775, every U.S. service members had a Bible until 2009. And then we see this radical increase in suicide from 13 a day, 14 a day, 16 a day after he at the time that President Obama signed the executive order removed faith in the community programs from the VA to 22 a day. Right. This in two years, rapid 16 to 22 doesn't sound like a lot a day a day. Right. So yeah, six more in a day is a lot. And, and that's, and that was directly as a result to me, because of the legislation in Our government that we the people, allowed elected politicians to do without, without speaking up. And so I made my way to D.C. and stood against this and asked candidate Trump in 2016, if you become. Because I was allowed to ask him a question at a town hall, if you become president, will you by executive order, turn this around? He said yes. And then I held him to it. In 2018, he did. And I, since then, I've testified before Congress and Senate to fight to get faith based programs back in the VA and then at the DoD level at the basis our chaplains are able, were able to talk about spirituality in a universal sense. But me having a testimony, I was able to go there and speak from it for my personal testimony. And the military talks about resiliency and four pillars, mind, body, spirit and social. They do a great job of mentally training the guys, physically training them socially, putting them the right teams. But the spiritual piece, they're too scared to touch. And so we've been allowed to. Me myself at Mighty Oaks go and I've spoken to almost 600,000 troops now and see, speak to them about the spiritual resiliency that comes from our relationship with Jesus and how it's not weak and how there's not nothing more masculine that a man could have on the battlefield of combat or life than being a man of God. And, and I've seen it firsthand. And I mean, people, men of God that will stand up and fight for, you know, would they believe at the core.
Jim Daly
Yeah.
Chad Robichaux
At their foundation.
Jim Daly
I mean, think of that. It's just, to me, it's profound because there's so much more to us, as you said, the spiritual dimension and it's like modernity. We've just kind of looked the other way. We don't, we don't want to touch it. Everybody has their own opinion and that whole thing.
Chad Robichaux
Let me, I think one more thing I want to say with that is I think as, as listeners are here, the one thing we all could do, right, we, not everybody's gonna get a platform to go stand in front of a couple thousand troops on Campbell Line, but the one thing we all could do is continue to vote and our biblical beliefs and elect our leaders. Who are people going to make decisions that are going to do the right thing for our country and our community and our troops.
Jim Daly
The right thing to do for sure. Right at the end here. Let me just bring it all the way back around to Mighty Oaks because in your effort with Mighty Oaks, you are helping veterans to find purpose and identity in scripture. We've touched on that, but let's just hit it again right at the end. The mission of Mighty Oaks.
Chad Robichaux
The mission of Mighty Oaks is to save lives, restore families and change legacies for eternity. And those aren't just bullet points for me to repeat for an elevator speech.
Jim Daly
We like those though.
Chad Robichaux
Literally what we do. We literally save people's lives that are in a moment of hopelessness. They're taking their lives. We restore families that are broken and partnering with Focus on the Family. I mean, you guys have been a partner in the marriage piece of it. And then most important thing is we change legacies for eternity through leading people to a return relationship with Jesus and then the reciprocal effect that has on the the world around them. So many people have come out of Mighty Oaks and not just been talked off the edge of suicide, but become community leaders and ministry leaders and reach thousands of people themselves. You know, I think of a guy like Reed Hasty who couldn't even get on an airplane because his PTSD was so bad to come to Mighty Oaks program. Eight years later is on on an airplane flying across to Ukraine to make it all the way across to Kharkiv, where I was in Kharkiv, to minister to people there. Like they didn't just get well, they got in a position to be a world changer and kingdom builder for others. Wow. And that's what we do at Mighty Oaks. And, and, and any ve responder, spouse listening, active D service member. If you are facing any kind of hardship in your life or there's zero criteria besides you say, raise your hand. Bad conduct, discharge, we don't care. Whatever your hardship is, wherever you are, if you're complete catastrophe or just trying to get in the right direction, get in the website, apply to Mighty Oaks. Everything's paid for. We even pay for travel. And that's because of a grateful nation of Americans that love our warriors and take care of them. And, and so anybody does want to support, they can also go to Mighty Oaks.
Jim Daly
That's fantastic. And what a great spot to end at Chad. Thank you again for all you've done and all you continue to do in our country for veterans. It's awesome, it's inspiring and I love this book, Silent Horizons, a great fictionalized version of what really happens.
Chad Robichaux
Thanks for letting me do it. I know you guys don't do a lot of fiction, but it is a ministry tool between Tyndale and our ministry to reach a broader audience of people. And in my show, the Resilience show podcast, and this is all efforts we're just doing a cast out as far and wide as we can to reach people just like you did.
Jim Daly
And it's so good. And we'll link over to Mighty Oak so people can get there from our website to check it out. And if you can make a gift of any amount, we'll send you a copy of Silent Horizons as our way of saying thank you for being part of the ministry both for Mighty Oaks and for Focus on the Family. And what a great testimony like Reed's who came from that dark place of PTSD and then overcame it through Mighty Oaks and is now ministering to people and changing the world. That's what you're talking about.
Chad Robichaux
Yeah.
John Fuller
Well, get in touch with us today. We'll have the link to Mighty Oaks foundation and certainly get a copy of this book when you make a generous donation to Focus on the Family today. That gift will enable us to continue reaching out and providing programs like this one. The details for all of this help is in the description below or call 800, the letter A in the word Family 800-232-6459. On behalf of the entire team, thanks for joining us for Focus on the Family with Jim David Daily, I'm John Fuller inviting you back as we once again help you and your family thrive in Christ.
Jim Daly
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Chad Robichaux
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Jim Daly
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Chad Robichaux
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Jim Daly
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Focus on the Family with Jim Daly: Episode Summary
Episode Title: Supporting Our Heroes: Reaching Out to the Military Community
Host/Author: Focus on the Family
Guest: Chad Robichaux
Release Date: June 20, 2025
Duration: Approximately 27 minutes
In this compelling episode of Focus on the Family with Jim Daly, host Jim Daly welcomes Chad Robichaux, a Marine Corps Veteran and founder of Mighty Oaks Foundation. Chad shares his profound journey from military service to becoming a beacon of hope for fellow veterans grappling with PTSD and isolation. The episode delves deep into the unique challenges faced by military personnel and their families, offering insightful discussions on healing, community support, and the pivotal role of faith.
Jim Daly opens the conversation by emphasizing the nation's duty to honor veterans, stating:
"We owe so much to our veterans, and I think we have become a little apathetic about it." [01:02]
Chad Robichaux responds by expressing gratitude for the work done by Focus on the Family and highlights his transition from CEO of Mighty Oaks to focusing on broader outreach initiatives:
"I stepped down from the role of being a CEO at Mighty Oaks and stepped out of the organizational structure to do more things like books and podcasts and my own podcast, the Resilience Show..." [03:44]
Mighty Oaks Foundation is introduced as a ministry dedicated to saving lives, restoring families, and changing legacies through spiritual and community support.
Chad delves into the psychological toll of military service, particularly focusing on isolation experienced by special operations personnel:
"He goes through the isolation of physical isolation, of operating alone... Humans were created to be in community. So when you're alone... it just takes a toll on you." [08:52]
Jim Daly and Chad discuss the profound impact of PTSD, with Chad offering a nuanced perspective:
"I believe there's a conflict in the name 'disorder'... the body’s normal response to abnormal situations." [11:29]
Chad explains the physiological and emotional manifestations of PTSD:
"Your heart rate goes up, your breathing changes... in a normal environment, it creates panic and real discomfort." [13:58]
Chad candidly shares his battle with PTSD and the pivotal moment that led him to seek help:
"I made a decision to take my life... my wife Kathy intervened... she challenged me to get back in the fight." [14:16]
He highlights the importance of community and mentorship in his recovery:
"Someone named Steve Toad stepped into my life and discipled me, radically changing my life and perspective." [15:59]
Chad underscores the critical role of accountability and community support for men struggling with similar issues:
"Make this decision to step out of that isolation into community of like-minded believers... you have to have accountability." [17:59]
Chad introduces his fictionalized book, "Silent Horizons," co-authored with Jack Stewart, designed to minister to veterans through engaging storytelling:
"Foster is a lot of things from me, from my life... there's a path forward, there is hope, there is healing." [06:30]
He explains the book's foundation in real experiences and its role in honoring fallen comrades:
"Foster Quinn is the character. Foster Harrington was one of my best friends... Robert Cottle was another one of my friends who died in Iraq." [07:45]
Jim Daly encourages listeners to acquire copies of the book as a resource for veterans:
"We have this here at the ministry. And the details are in the show notes." [02:02]
Chad discusses his advocacy work to reintegrate faith-based programs within the military, highlighting the removal of Bibles from the military in 2009 and its correlation with rising suicide rates:
"In 2010... rapid 16 to 22... six more in a day is a lot... directly as a result of legislation in our government." [20:11]
He details his efforts to influence policy, including testifying before Congress and holding leaders accountable:
"I held him to it. In 2018, he did... testified before Congress and Senate to fight to get faith-based programs back." [21:00]
Chad emphasizes the importance of spiritual resilience as part of the military's four pillars of resiliency:
"The spiritual piece, they’re too scared to touch... spiritual resiliency that comes from our relationship with Jesus." [22:00]
Chad articulates the transformative power of faith in overcoming PTSD and isolation:
"Resiliency is on the front end and an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure... Providing this... to build resiliency." [23:25]
He shares success stories of individuals transformed through Mighty Oaks, such as Reed Hasty, who overcame severe PTSD to become a minister in Ukraine:
"Eight years later is on an airplane flying across to Ukraine... to minister to people there." [24:22]
Jim Daly reinforces the importance of a holistic approach to healing, integrating mental, physical, social, and spiritual support.
Chad invites listeners to engage with Mighty Oaks, emphasizing accessibility regardless of one's background or struggles:
"If you're facing any kind of hardship... get on the website, apply to Mighty Oaks. Everything's paid for." [24:03]
Jim Daly concludes by encouraging listeners to support Mighty Oaks and Focus on the Family through donations, offering a copy of "Silent Horizons" as a token of appreciation:
"We'll send you a copy of Silent Horizons as our way of saying thank you for being part of the ministry." [26:05]
The episode wraps up with contact information and a heartfelt endorsement of Mighty Oaks' mission to transform lives and support military families.
Acknowledgment of Service: The episode underscores the importance of recognizing and honoring the sacrifices of military personnel and their families.
Understanding PTSD: Chad Robichaux provides an in-depth look at PTSD, challenging conventional definitions and advocating for a holistic approach to healing.
Role of Community and Faith: Emphasizing the necessity of community support and a relationship with Christ as foundational elements in overcoming isolation and trauma.
Advocacy for Faith-Based Programs: Chad highlights the critical need for spiritual resiliency programs within the military and his efforts to restore these essential services.
Resources and Support: Promotion of "Silent Horizons" and the Mighty Oaks Foundation as vital resources for veterans seeking healing and purpose.
Jim Daly:
"We owe so much to our veterans, and I think we have become a little apathetic about it." [01:02]
Chad Robichaux:
"The mission of Mighty Oaks is to save lives, restore families and change legacies for eternity." [24:03]
"There is hope, there is healing, and we get to be able to pave that journey together." [08:22]
Jim Daly:
"Jesus is the way, the truth and the life." [20:11]
Chad Robichaux:
"Men have to have accountability. We are our own worst enemies if we're outside of accountability." [17:59]
"You have no option other than telling the truth." [20:11]
For more information and to support the mission of aiding our heroes, listeners are encouraged to visit the provided websites and consider making a donation.
End of Summary