Faith Sustains Wounded Policeman's Family

Teresa Neumann : Jan 15, 2013
Pat Dooris – KGW News

"As soon as I think of [how I'm going to get through 10 more years] I have to give it over to the Lord again, because I just can't go there." -Tammy Coates

(Portland, OR)—On January 9, 2003—popular Clackamas County Sheriff's deputy Damon Coates was shot in the face when 15-year-old Nick Teixeira pulled a gun on him.

The incident, which nearly killed Coates, shocked Oregonians, but today the deputy is still alive. Alive, but following a recent downturn, Coates has been forced to rely on full-time nursing care.

When Portland news station KGW did a follow-up story recently on Coates, they found that both he and his wife Tammy are relying on their faith in Christ to get through each day.

"God has a different plan [for us]," Tammy told her husband, "and I believe that Satan wants you down, but God's preserving your life for a good reason, right? We believe that a hundred percent."

Her Christian faith is also what has reportedly allowed Tammy to forgive her husband's shooter.

"You have to hang on and have to hang on with your relationship with the Lord. You can't make it really, without it. I'm not that good of a person."

Click on the link provided to see a video of this brave man and his wife and their testimony of faith in the face of adversity.