What happens when the life you've built changes in an instant? Former professional basketball player Patric Young seemed to have everything ahead of him: a successful athletic career, a new job, and a wedding just days away. Then a devastating car accident left him paralyzed from the waist down and forced him to confront big questions of identity, purpose, and faith.
What happens when the life you've built changes in an instant?
Former professional basketball player Patric Young seemed to have everything ahead of him: a successful athletic career, a new job, and a wedding just days away. Then a devastating car accident left him paralyzed from the waist down and forced him to confront big questions of identity, purpose, and faith.
In this conversation, Patric shares how God met him in suffering, taught him to surrender what he could not control, and helped him discover that his value was never rooted in his abilities. Together, Stephanie and Patric discuss disability, grief, community, perseverance, and the hope that remains even when circumstances don't change.
Whether you're navigating disability, chronic hardship, caregiving, or an unexpected life transition, this episode offers biblical encouragement and practical wisdom for trusting God in the middle of life's hardest seasons.
Follow Patric on Instagram: @patricyoung4
Get a copy of Patric’s book, Sit to Rise: Turning Your Darkest Pain into Your Brightest Victory
Learn about the Patric Young Foundation
MENTIONED RESOURCES:
A Place of Healing, Joni Eareckson Tada
Win the Day, Mark Batterson
The Circle Maker, Mark Batterson
Failing Forward, John C. Maxwell
KEY QUESTIONS:
What does it look like to choose hope when your circumstances haven't yet changed?
What is God teaching you in your current season?
KEY SCRIPTURES:
James 1:2-4: "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
John 10:10: "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."
Romans 8:18: "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."
Stephanie Daniels:
Whether you're walking through disability, caring for someone you love, or navigating a season of unexpected hardship, our prayer is that you'll find hope here, grounded in biblical truth and God's unchanging grace. Today's guest, Patric Young, is a former elite basketball player whose life changed dramatically after a spinal cord injury.
What followed was not just a physical recovery journey, but a spiritual one: a journey of redefining identity, learning to trust God in suffering, and discovering purpose on the other side of loss.
Patric's story is a powerful reminder that even when life looks nothing like what we've planned, God is still writing a good story. And for anyone listening today who feels like their world's been turned upside down, this conversation is for you. Patric, we're so grateful you're here. Welcome to the podcast.
Patric Young:
Thank you for having me. Let's get into it.
Stephanie Daniels:
So for our listeners who may know you from your basketball career but not your whole story, can you share just a little bit about yourself and what life looked like before your injury?
Patric Young:
Yeah, I'll try to give the CliffsNotes version of the most important things.
I'm from Jacksonville, Florida. born and raised here, great childhood, very active. I was fortunate and blessed, um, to go to some really good schools: Basketball didn't really become a thing for me until my sophomore year in high school.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Went on to play basketball at the University of Florida under Hall of Fame Coach Billy Donovan. That was 2010 to '14. We we won a lot of games while I was there. We went to three Elite Eights, a Final Four, I won Defensive Player of the Year. What else happened there? It, it's too much. Too much happened in college. College was some of the, the greatest times of my life. After graduating, I went on to play professional. I was in the NBA briefly with the New Orleans Pelicans, and after I got cut, I made a decision to go play overseas.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
When I was overseas, I played in Turkey, Greece, Italy, and Israel, for a total of six seasons. Would've liked to play longer, but had some injuries that derailed me. Had a ACL and meniscus injury that just didn't heal correctly. Had a, infection after a surgery that...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
Uh, practically aged my knee 20 years. Once I finished playing basketball at the age of 30, I still kind of was in that space of, "What's next?" And that year was pretty incredible. This would've been 2021.
I started my job with the SEC Network, which I currently have now. And then that year I reconnected with my wife at that time and got engaged. So it was an awesome year. As I was transitioning out of one phase of life...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
Into another, really kind of, you know, "God, whatever you have next, I'm ready to roll with the punches." I just had a level of faith at the time where it was casual.
I hadn't faced anything that was so difficult to make me really understand the fragility of life. And on that day , June 29th of 2022, when I was in a car accident that left me paralyzed from the waist down, is where not only did I face the fragility of life, but just how things can change for you in a heartbeat. And...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
How little control that you have, yet there is a great amount of control that I do believe we have in our lives, not in terms of circumstances externally, but internally I think we have a great amount of control in how we end up looking at things...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
And how we decide to respond to them. I'm not saying that any of this is easy, but I am saying that it is something within our power that we can work to, cause our brains are very, moldable.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
Um, I'm sure a lot of people have heard of the phrase neuroplasticity.
What you focus on constantly, sometimes your brain has a difficulty telling what just happened five minutes ago or something you just keep replaying in your mind that happened 10 years ago. Like...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
It'll, it'll process that trauma as though it just happened. So when all of this happened, as you can imagine, I had no idea what was going on. What the future was gonna look like, and it was and has been, the greatest, challenger or molder.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
This is that point in my life.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
Where, my faith, my will has been tested so much and magnified and grown and been challenged more than anything. And I'm sure there's many a people that can attest to it, 'cause it's not like it's a problem that you, experience and you can detach from.
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
No, it's, it's physically your body, where you have to wake up in that body every single day.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah, when I think about your life and kind of what you were just sharing, I think of refining. You've been tested and gone through the fire.
Patric Young:
That is kinda exactly what it feels like.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah. Feel Like you sometimes can be God's experiment, but I know he's not experimenting on us. He has a plan and a purpose.
Patric Young:
Yeah. That's a good... Yeah, I don't think that. It's funny you say that. Do I see it as a test? Yes, but I don't see it as an experiment. I think those are, absolutely two separate things.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah. And I do think some people might look at their situations and think, "God, why, why are you doing this?" It feels like you're just, being flippant with my life or just having fun with whatever, but I'm suffering here. And I think those are the things that He's using to refine us and using to mold and shape us, and doesn't always feel good, but...
Patric Young:
Yeah.
Stephanie Daniels:
Do you think that being an athlete affected that when you were having to say, "I've gotta live in this body."
You know, you have the mental fortitude, the mental strength, the discipline to see a situation and put things in proper perspective. What if somebody's not athletic and they don't have a strong will or discipline? How do you help encourage them to see their situation in the proper light?
Patric Young:
I think just as men in general, I think God designed men to, try to be problem-solvers. if you're thinking about survival on an instinctual level, you just have to see what is in front of you and think about, "How do I conquer this thing?"
That's gonna be different in everyone, but I think God has put something in, men, as providers in our DNA obviously, I'm not saying it, it doesn't fit the, in every scenario, 'cause sometimes there's scenarios where you don't have the problem that you can solve other than just sitting there in the thing and allowing God to, work through you or not answer the problem right away, or answer it in a way that you don't want.
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
But absolutely, as being an athlete, it changes your perspective on a lot of things. You know, being a teammate, being in a community where you're working towards a common goal, understanding that- Success is rented and, you know, there's a cost every day that you have to go forth. And...
Stephanie Daniels:
Hmm.
Patric Young:
The loyalty, sacrifice, , not getting recognition, having determination, you know, uh, getting 1% better every day. You might not see the results, but you know that you just keep pushing yourself. And without a doubt, it helps so much when you see yourself on the other side, you have a vision. If I'm part of a team, we visualize that one day we're gonna be champions, that we're, we're working towards that goal. It's something that we desire so much.
Stephanie Daniels: Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
And specifically, I guess when you face adversity in life, People get so stuck and, and I've, I've been there. Sometimes you can only see the next step.
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
Right?
Stephanie Daniels:
Absolutely.
Patric Young:
Sometimes you only have enough for today. Sometimes...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
You only have enough for tomorrow. And to think about five years from now...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
To think about 10 years from now is, insane to even ask a person to think that way.
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
But, you know, one of my favorite scriptures in the Bible the first one that came to mind for me when all of this is happening, it was more so me being like, "All right, God, you say this is how it's supposed to be. I don't see it that way, but you see it that way."
So I'ma trust you," and he says, " I want you to consider it pure joy and opportunity...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
For joy when you're faced with trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance."
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
And when that endurance, like that perseverance, that not giving up, that belief that there's something behind this that, What I see around me does not align with the vision I have for my life. But if your vision, if your vision is in a place where you don't, believe that God can come through- you know, we have tens of thousands of thoughts every day.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
And if there is never a single thought that comes in your mind to think, "What if something good can come from this?"
Stephanie Daniels:
Uh-huh.
Patric Young:
Then it's gonna be really, really difficult- But just imagine, we've all gone through things in life, that we've looked back and said, " I'm grateful for that time."
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
Because it helped me to become more patient, because it helped me to become more dependent on God, because it helped me, like...
Stephanie Daniels:
Absolutely.
Patric Young:
Truly be a person of faith. one of my favorite professional motivational speakers is Inky Johnson.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
He was a football player for Tennessee. Long story short, he gets injured in college. He can't play anymore. He starts going to FCA meetings as he's navigating what's happened in his life. I mean, his dream is shattered. He was gonna be in the NFL, contract, all this money. I mean, his life was going to be something billions of people dream about.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
And he's going to these FCA meetings every week, and his dad is the one that's taking him. I don't know what the process is of his dad feeling this conviction, but his dad comes to faith because of his son surrendering to Jesus...
Stephanie Daniels:
Wow
Patric Young:
His life. And he's like, " There's no contract I could have ever signed that could equate to my dad giving his life to God."
Stephanie Daniels:
Come on. Yeah.
Patric Young:
And he said he would do it over again.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
Again not saying that it's easy ' cause Like I, I think about Joseph. We all know Joseph had to have plenty of doubts during his journey.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
I mean, my man got thrown into slavery. Forgotten about like he didn't exist. Lied upon. Did the right things...
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
And still got in trouble, and God worked through all of that for him.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
And on the other side, when Joseph has his son, he names his son Manasseh to forget.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
Which is kind of like, How are you gonna forget if you're, like you're gonna see his name, "Hey, Manasseh, forget."
"What do I need to forget? Oh, I need to forget that I just had 12 horrible years of life."
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
No, he's saying- the enemy's gonna try to attack me and remind me about my situation and what I've been through, and I'm going to choose to not remember it in a lie. I'm going to choose...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
To remember this in the truth of what God has brought me through.
Stephanie Daniels:
That's so good.
Patric Young:
And that all of that was worth it.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
And that again, I know that's not easy, for a lot of people to grasp, but can you imagine all that you've faced...
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
One moment like that, you just say, " Thank you, God, for all that you've brought me through." That's...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
What I'm praying for our listeners here to, come to in a place one day to be able to say thank you to God for all of it.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Because he never had to give us any of it.
Stephanie Daniels:
That is so true. you know, everything you're talking about, I'm reminded of something Joni said. And she says, "I'd rather be in this wheelchair knowing God like I do than on my feet without him." And I think about everything that her wheelchair represents, which points to her accident, all that God has done through her life in that chair, in her precious relationship with the Lord...
Patric Young:
Right.
Stephanie Daniels:
Been such a blessing to all of us.
Patric Young:
Mm-hmm.
Stephanie Daniels:
So, so good. So you went from being a high-level athlete to navigating life with a spinal cord injury. When everything changed so suddenly, what were some of the first questions you found yourself asking the Lord?
Patric Young:
You know, partly, I thought about all the things God had protected me from in the past. There's plenty of decisions that I've made in my life that things could have gone differently.
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
You know, you just take for granted all that God does for us on a daily basis. And, I didn't have, this anger towards God of how could you let this happen? Of course I was upset and saddened by the situation, and overwhelmed, but mad at God? I felt like I held, a big hand in the outcomes of my life...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm
Patric Young:
That... again, everyone's situations are gonna be different. But when it came to my, perspective of my life up until that point, I had a, a level of gratitude towards all the things God had protected me from, that my life, wasn't over.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Of course, I didn't know what the future was gonna look like, that's probably where my questions were. My questions were, you know, do you still believe that God is sovereign...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
More than anything.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Do you still believe that He's in control, that He's not surprised by the circumstances, that He can still use you? Do I still believe that I could, at the time, could still be a good father, could be a good husband, could be a good son? Do I still believe in the things in my life that actually held weight, that really...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mmhm.
Patric Young:
Really mattered? 'Cause I still had great people around me that wanna be here, that love me, that were determined. And I knew it was gonna take work on my end, but it was gonna take more than anything submission, surrender.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
Surrendering the whole situation to God, Surrender is not you go check, the list one day and then you're good. It's every day.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
I'm not consistent. I'm not the best, but I do know without a doubt. It's not even just every day. I challenge you to think surrender is a mindset to have moment by moment. Just remembering, being reminded. Like, you're not always gonna be in a place where you forget and get prideful or, get overwhelmed or controlled. , obviously, whatever the moment calls for you to do, that's what you need to do. But, allowing the Holy Spirit to fill in the gaps.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
God did not ask for us to understand everything. He asked for us to trust Him... I think sometimes, oftentimes, the clarity comes after. I think the courage in taking a step of faith when you don't have the answer is when God will say, "All right, I just wanted to see..."
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
"... If you were going to trust Me." And then having that perspective again, it gave me just a level of gratitude to, try to make the most out of it.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
And instead of being so focused on what you don't have and what you can't do, focus on what you do have and what you can.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah. That's so good, and I hope that's encouraging to our listeners who might be in a similar place. What was the hardest part of that season that most people might not think about or see?
Patric Young:
The hardest part of the season. Ooh, that is a great question. I would say just submitting to the circumstance. I- in life in general- When we experience change, there's often like a little bit of resistance we might have towards it.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Not always. You know, some people...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Are better than others, and I was just so resistant to help...
Stephanie Daniels:
Ooo.
Patric Young:
Asking for help, allowing people to help. You have to submit to, the fact that I couldn't turn myself in my bed. I couldn't control my bladder and my bowels and showering, and I was just, all this stuff, it's so hard.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
You know? You're so used to that area of your life all being so private and intimate...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
To now you have so many people that are in there with you. It becomes a group activity. And, uh, I, I'm not trying to make light of it. I'm sorry. I, I use humor sometimes to try to make those things not as...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
You know, hard as they need to be.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Which honestly is a great tool I wanna help people have. for the families, for the people that suffer, find humor. Find a way to laugh in the hardness o- of this all. It helps so much. God gave us humor for a reason.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yes.
Patric Young:
Just being able to laugh at ourselves, silly things. It might not seem like a big deal. It will affect your mentality, your hormones, and your mindset, immediately.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
And I had a bunch of those laughs. whether it was, you know, in the bathroom,
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah
Patric Young:
Transferring. I remember one time when I, I was at Craig Hospital, and we have the video of it. I was working on my transfers with the therapist from the bed to the chair, and, and, you know, had to do it multiple times. And all right, we're gonna do a video. And in the video, I mean, just the, a fart from...
See, I ain't even trying to make you laugh that hard. But listen. It's relatable. And look, I laughed, the therapist laughed, my mom laughed. It was a great time. Yes, I would not do that if I had control over it, but it happened, and we were able just to make light of it.
So I don't know why that ended up coming up, just now, but I'm really glad it did because it, it is a powerful tool in whatever part of life you are. And I hope that didn't mess up the flow there, Stephanie.
Stephanie Daniels:
This is just one of those things. my husband, and I talk about this. We're like, " God wouldn't have made them sound like that if they weren't supposed to be funny." So...
Patric Young:
I never thought about that, but you're so right. Come on.
Stephanie Daniels:
Right? I'm like, God has a sense of humor. That's a great point.
I love that. But you know, I think about when my father-in-law when he had a stroke, and he went to the hospital, he was a very, private man.
And, I remember he he was talking to my husband about how embarrassing all of that was, how humbling it was. And I think he eventually got to the point where he could laugh about it, but it took a while.
Patric Young:
Yeah. Yeah.
Stephanie Daniels:
And so I think...
Patric Young:
I get that.
Stephanie Daniels:
It may take you a while, but being able to find the humor.
Patric Young:
Cause this is on the flip side of it, Stephanie. One of the first thoughts that might come up is like, " I can't believe I have to, th- like this person has to be exposed to this, that they have to help me. This is so embarrassing." In my journey of the places I've been and the people that I've met, praise God that you have somebody.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
Praise, praise God that you have somebody that will show up.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
I have met so many people.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
That they have no one. Yeah. They have no one that can help them in those places. Look, it's not always forever It might just be a temporary situation or it might be a longer term situation, but either way, when you can look around and it's people that love you that are willing to step into those spaces with you if you're looking for something to be grateful for, I'ma point to that for you right there.
Stephanie Daniels:
That's so good. Patric, did this injury reshape the way that you see yourself and your identity? I know we hear from a lot of people who are newly injured or disabled, and they're having a hard time coming to terms with their new reality, and they're grieving...
Patric Young:
Yeah.
Stephanie Daniels:
Their lost identity from before their injury, and they feel some anger or frustration toward God. Do you have maybe some encouragement to help them if they are newly injured, and how did you get to a place where you could see yourself as God sees you?
Patric Young:
Certainly yes, I did struggle with identity, early on. Speaking for men, there is a part of you that feels like your masculinity, your manhood in general has been, challenged. But men that are listening to this and women that are gonna send this to husbands and boyfriends and, and think of someone, you know, How did you define yourself as a man in the first place? 'Cause if it was just about the way you looked, uh, you had that in the wrong place. You know.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
It, it's about how you showed up. It's about how you cared. It's about how you love. It's about, those relationships that you invested in. The Bible says that as men we're called to let everything that we do be out of love.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
Because anything less than that is gonna be counterfeit. When I was married and was with my stepdaughter, you know, it was a lot of change for her, She moved from Nebraska. She's in Florida with me in Jacksonville. she misses home, all her friends are there, her whole life's there. She's 10 years old at the time, and she and I were just struggling in terms of getting along, it's a lot of transition in the household. God put it in my heart, "Hey man, you need to make sure you're loving her more than trying to be her authority figure." And I was, contemplating ways to do so. At the time she was really into Barbies I remember the day I asked her if she would let me play with her.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
She was skeptical as could be. Boys don't play Barbies. But I, I kept pressing her and she said, "Okay."
Stephanie Daniels:
Oh.
Patric Young:
"I'll let you play." And I played with her for about an hour straight. It was interesting to say the least. That girl had some storylines, and I just went with it. And me just investing that amount of time and meeting her where she was at, I became no longer just an outsider. I became an insider. I became Dad. She wanted me to play with her every day after that.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Because...
Stephanie Daniels:
Aw.
Patric Young:
I was doing her favorite thing and it was something she cherished. That was so impactful for me to see, because before the accident, it's not that I wouldn't have been willing to play Barbies.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
I would've probably put 10 other things on the list that I think, you know, she and I could do together before I would submit myself to getting on the floor and doing something like that with her.
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
Which, to this day I have no problem with. It just opened my mind to seeing, there are still ways to be exactly who you want to be, but you have to find, like, it's gonna take longer. Yeah. It's gonna be different. But what God put in you to make you you, you can be that. My mom said it early on in the journey of my accident. My mom's not super emotional person and she was like, " Why is everyone so worried? Everything that makes Patric who he is is still there."
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
"Yeah, he can't, jump, he can't run, he can't, play basketball anymore, but that same Patric that we know and love is, is still right in there."
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
And God had to work through me in that as well. It's great to hear it from people, but I had to spend time in scripture. I had to see-
Stephanie Daniels:
Yes
Patric Young:
What God said about me. I'll challenge you, too. When it comes to identity, this world is gonna keep throwing stuff at you. The enemy's gonna keep throwing stuff at you to make you doubt.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Just as being a human being you get marketed to all the time, we have to market to ourselves. You have to put those words, your goals, your encouragement, those scriptures, put it on your mirror, your screen. Put it on your dry erase board. Make your alarm song that comes up when you wake up in the morning, make it something positive that is...
Stephanie Daniels:
That's so good.
Patric Young:
Pointing you towards him.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
All those th- you're like, "That doesn't matter." Yes, it does.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
The enemy not only steal, kill, and destroy, he's trying to distract you.
Stephanie Daniels:
Man. That's so, so good. And as you were sharing that, you looked over. Do you have scriptures on your wall that you look at?
Patric Young:
In my car. I have these cards that I have on my dashboard that I, see every day. I should probably have something on my dry erase board. I wrote down, "Win the day."
Stephanie Daniels:
Okay.
Patric Young:
I got it from Mark Batterson. He's...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yes.
Patric Young:
Probably written, like, 30 books.
Stephanie Daniels:
So many.
Patric Young:
Highly recommend. Yeah. Um, you know, Circle Maker. There's so many books that, I've read during my journey. Fail Forward. Joni's books obviously. You have to... just as you can't, go to church just on Sunday and think you're covered for the week.
Stephanie Daniels:
Wow.
Patric Young:
Like...
Stephanie Daniels:
Wow.
Patric Young:
You can't.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yes.
Patric Young:
You can't.
Stephanie Daniels:
Correct.
Patric Young:
Y- you know? can you focus on that one scripture and keep meditating on it...
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
And praying? Absolutely. I'm not saying you gotta, like, do something profound, but the heart posture every single day and being reminded and seeing it, I can't tell you how many times I've read a scripture there that just, , sobers my mind from going down a path of negative thinking, and just gotten me back. Like, yeah, Pat, God is in control. God is over all of this. You c- stop worrying.
Stephanie Daniels:
That's so good. Do you have an example of one of those scriptures that stopped you?
Patric Young:
Oh, yeah. Romans 8:18 is probably one of the big ones when Paul talks about the suffering that we experience today. " For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." And I believe that to your point, how cruel would it be just to-
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
For there to be no point of all the suffering that we experience. No,
Stephanie Daniels:
It's so, so true. I'm so thankful that we serve a God that is, intimately acquainted with us, and He has a plan...
Patric Young:
Right.
Stephanie Daniels:
For us. And, we can look throughout the word and see a plan.
Patric Young:
Yes. He knows every detail.
Stephanie Daniels:
He knows it all.
Patric Young:
He wants every part. He knows it all. And-
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah ... reading through, the Bible. We're going through the Israelites crossing the Red Sea, and just looking at how the Lord orchestrated getting them out of captivity with, Pharaoh, and using Moses and Aaron, and they lead them out. And, in Exodus 2, maybe one of my favorite scriptures, where the Israelites are just groaning and complaining, and it says the Lord heard them. It said, " He saw them, He heard them, and He was moved to act." And I just think about that. Like, he had a plan for them the whole time, and we serve the same God who has a plan-
Patric Young:
Yeah ...
Stephanie Daniels:
For us.
Patric Young:
Yeah. We do.
Stephanie Daniels:
And, He's kind, He's loving. It may not always feel like it when you're going through hard things.
Patric Young:
Right. Of course.
Stephanie Daniels:
But He's there,
Patric Young:
Yeah.
Stephanie Daniels:
I love that you talked about your stepdaughter, your accident happened 10 days before your wedding?
Patric Young:
10 days, yeah.
Stephanie Daniels:
Okay, so I wanna kind of get into your family a little bit. When catastrophic injuries happen to a family, it affects everyone; parents, a spouse, children. And one of those effects you experienced was a divorce between you and your wife. How did you reconcile so much loss, process those feelings, and still believe what we just talked about, that God had a plan?
Patric Young:
Yeah, it's such a big question, 'cause, I mean, we could spend the whole podcast episode, just diving into that. But I would say, I remember, I was meeting with my mentor and going through all this. Like, all this was fresh at the time. And he challenged me to put on the lenses of eternity.
Stephanie Daniels:
Hmm.
Patric Young:
You know, just to strive to look at everything that has happened and put the lenses of eternity on. What does that mean? What we're facing and what I was experiencing was temporal. I pray the people that are listening, that you do have a belief in God, that you do have a belief that this life that we experience, that it is small.
It is not insignificant. Uh, the significance is, how we live in eternity, where we're going to be. I remember a pastor using an analogy. I mean, he had this long rope that was, like, 500 feet long- and just dipped the tip of it in some, paint and said, "This is your life and this is eternity."
How we dictate and live our life, and obviously living our life, have you submitted and given your life to Jesus for the exchange that he made for our lives?
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
Have you accepted that? Are you no longer living, separate from him? And just thinking about, all right, what you went through and experienced was so difficult and it was a death. I had a death of things in my life in terms of the injury and then...
Stephanie Daniels:
Uh-huh.
Patric Young:
There's a death in my life of the marriage and the vision that I had with...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
My ex-wife. I had all the feelings of heartbreak more than anything. Just hurt, Just sad, you know? I really... It was something I looked forward to. It was something I desired... deeply in my life at that time. And, for it just to be gone happened so fast. You know. Yeah. I had just so much happening in my life at the time that it was hard to really kind of... process. But when he said, "Put the lenses of eternity on." Is there a way I can still honor her?
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
Do I have to live angry? Do I have to look at, this person as an enemy or as someone that went through some trauma just as I did and did not know how to handle it?
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
Because when I had compassion for her, I understand it was overwhelming to her as myself. Again, not pushing aside the actions, but striving to understand the heart posture from her and-
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah ...
Patric Young:
Trusting God. This is not a black and white explanation. It is something that is continually gonna have to be worked in through my life. Again, it's the death of something. But, going back to one of the first things, that we talked about with Joseph and Manasseh, I choose to remember it differently.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
This is another big one if there's another nugget to grab from this time. I believe- The best days are in front of me.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
They are in front of me. There were some great days that I had behind me, but I believe that there are some really great days heading forward in my life because God can, He will, He already has. And it helps so much when you have things to look forward to.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
When you have community, when you have little small goals. I was in the hospital for a long time with an infection. sometimes my small goals were just to go outside for 45 minutes. That was it. Okay. Just to go outside. your only way for you to get better and get through that was to attack it, was to go after it, was you know, God showing up and helping me in my obedience at that time when I-
Stephanie Daniels:
Right ...
Patric Young:
When it was really hard. He just said, "All right, Pat, big picture. Can you see it the same way with all of this?" And again, I'm not perfect at it, but that is what I'm going after.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah. that's very encouraging. And like you said, I hope, our listeners grab some nuggets from that, 'cause you said a lot, we wanna put on the lenses of eternity. I'm taking that one. Patric, who were the people that God used to carry you through when you didn't feel strong enough?
Patric Young:
In 2023 is when I got really sick with an infection. I was in the hospital for 128 days.
Stephanie Daniels:
Wow ...
Patric Young:
And I would just say the, people that showed up in my life at that time, mom, dad, sister, grandparents, friends. Three of my really close friends all told me they were having their first kid while I was in the hospital. And they were like, "Uncle Pat has to be there. Has to be there for these little girls." And, that challenged me so much.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
It pushed me. when I was clinging for a why. Fortunately, I never had any suicidal ideation, but it was like, " All right, God, if you wanna take my life now, I'm good."
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
That's kind of the thought process that I was going through. And, when those men and women stepped into my life and, spoke and shared that with me and cried with me, and the nurses, just that experience gave me so much hope and will to fight because I needed it.
Stephanie Daniels: Yeah.
Patric Young:
I, I needed it so much. And, I don't know if those men and women will ever know how much they affected me or in the life that they saved, but, here I am.
Stephanie Daniels:
Wow. There's so much in that, I think, to, people who can be that community to somebody who needs it. I encourage you to step into that place and, and...
Patric Young:
Yeah.
Stephanie Daniels:
To love on people. But also to the people that might be dealing with suicidal ideation and feeling like, " What do I have left to live for?" I don't know if you wrestled with the "why me?" question, but just could you maybe encourage those listeners who feel like life has been derailed by this hardship, this disability?
Patric Young:
There's so many, directions to come from, for this, topic. But I pray that you can look around and focus on the things that you have in your life. Even in your circumstances, there's people that would switch places in a heartbeat. thank you, Lord, for the inspiration. I was at Brooks Rehab, here in Jacksonville, Florida, and I was doing some intensive physical therapy at the time.
I was at breakfast at the cafeteria before going back to start therapy, and that was kinda like taking my time to go get to PT. I was really milking being in there and breakfast and I don't know how this guy, I'd never, I've never seen this man before, I've never seen him after, I don't know why he decided to spark up a conversation with me.
Somehow we, we were conversing and he brings up, "Patric, do you know how many people would switch places with you in a heartbeat?"
Stephanie Daniels:
Wow.
Patric Young:
And I'm like, "I don't know." Say, it's "You know how many people in the cemetery would switch places with you in a heartbeat?" Wow. I had nothing to say.
Stephanie Daniels:
Hmm.
Patric Young:
You still have the choice to make what you're going through not be the thing that ends you. The most egregious thing any of us can do is let somebody else, whether you have a disability or not, this is, anybody, let somebody else tell you what your story is gonna be. Let somebody else tell you who you are.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
And the more you focus on it, the more you marinate on it, and let those things be in something that is good, that is true. I thank God every day that I'm alive. That gets me out of my thinking- And I have days, them days where I'm struggling and I'm like, " Lord, I thank you that I can feel this."
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm. I'm
Patric Young:
Not thankful for the sickness... but I'm thankful that I get a chance to feel this.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Cause it helps me when I have those really good days, and I pray that those that are listening, we have our ebbs and flows, that you really soak in it when you have those good days.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
That you don't forget, that you don't forget when those days are good, 'cause the bad days come, too.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
You appreciate those good days so much that when the tough ones come, you're like, " I'ma be better in a few days. I'ma be better tomorrow."
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
"We're gonna be back at it." I'm giving you permission to feel bad. to allow yourself if you're having a bad day, to have a bad day.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
But I will not give you permission to live every single day in a bad day. I will not give you permission to stay there. Because staying there is, what separates us and isolates us and absolutely puts us in a place where those thoughts get really tough. There is absolutely something you can cling to to give you some joy, and I pray that there's something that you hear from me today that can put a little bit of spark in you.
Stephanie Daniels:
Amen. I feel encouraged and ready to, like, go do some burpees right now, and I hate burpees.
Patric Young:
In sports, you say, " I'm ready to run through a wall."
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah. That's how I felt as you were talking. I love it. Okay, so we live in a have-it-your-way, right-away world. Waiting can be so hard. I mean, you put your order in at Chick-fil-A, they are so fast.
You drive around, and if there's not a line, I mean, you got it. You're out of there. What does it look like in real life to choose hope when circumstances haven't changed yet and you have to wait?
Patric Young:
To choose hope it, takes you to controlling what you can control. I'm in a circumstance I've been dealing with some wound issues, and I know there might be some other people that have as well. maybe you're tired of the doctor's appointments. Maybe you're tired of the process of certain things.
And, part of what patience is, is accepting the present. stop resisting it. I've had to say, "Hey, for now, this is the way." Even before dealing with the wound issues and whatnot, , as a disabled person, I lived even more independent than I am now.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
And there's been a mindset of like, "Oh, man, it was so much easier back then, and then I could do this and that." I have to accept where I am now. Can I get back there? Certainly. I'm grateful to have that sample size of before the infection But instead of living in this mindset of, "I can't do," and, " This is so much ha-" I talk to myself.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Before I even give myself a chance to start thinking the negative thoughts, I'll be like- " Pat, you got this." I'll forget, something in my car, and it's not like I just go in my garage in and out. I gotta go around the house, tss, Pat, you got it. Let's go get it." Learned helplessness was something I learned about early on.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm.
Patric Young:
That when you learn this, " I'm not gonna try. It's too hard. I can't unless somebody else all the time," your life expectancy goes down.
Stephanie Daniels:
Ooh.
Patric Young:
I mean, just think about your self-esteem. For one, I wanted to help my parents make their life easier. I said, "I can control." Like, hey, it might be harder, it might take me longer, but I'm gonna do it. That's one thing off their plate.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
And then I thought this too, one day they're not gonna be here. What if they aren't here?
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
If I need to get something done, if you need to get something done, so what if it's gonna take you an hour to do it? the more that I've done the things that are very difficult, that took me long and whatnot, the easier they've become. It's been like clockwork. And look, again, I have those days where I'm like, I didn't sleep good. It's the same thing if I didn't have the disability. You have days where you wake up and you didn't sleep well or whatever.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yep.
Patric Young:
And you're tired. Hey, you just find a way. you hit that snooze button a few times, but determine in your mind that you're going to get it done, and that's what I've-
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah
Patric Young:
I fortunately have been able to do to this point.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah. I love that, and I, I'm gonna adopt that, just, cheering myself on.
Patric Young:
Cheer yourself on.
Stephanie Daniels:
Encouraging myself-
Patric Young:
Encourage yourself
Stephanie Daniels:
... when I gotta do something.
Patric Young:
You got this.
Stephanie Daniels:
You got this, Steph. Yeah.
Patric Young:
It, it work. It works. It really does. I'm about to get these dishes done. Let's go.
Stephanie Daniels:
So John 10:10 tells us that the enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy, whether it's our joy, peace, hope, whatever it is. And isolation is real, and it's a big tactic. Like you said, the enemy uses distractions. He uses that to bring destruction to our lives. What has community meant to you in this journey? Your family, your friends, your church, your teammates.
Patric Young:
Fantastic question. Everything. Everything. Out of all the areas, I think in your life that you need to focus on and have fulfilled, community is probably gonna be number one for me, because I think you can get all those needs met: spiritually, physically, emotionally, mentally.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
When you lose the ability to walk three miles per hour, your life expectancy decreases drastically, but not for the reason that you think. People get discouraged when they aren't able to move around that much. Because it's harder, it takes longer, it's seen as a chore, you end up just staying home.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
End up just staying home, staying on the couch and not having real human interaction. And when I heard that, I was like, "I wanna have holy constraint and have balance, where I understand I have limitations." I'm not 20 years old anymore, where I can on two hours of sleep, pop out of bed and go and...
Stephanie Daniels:
Right.
Patric Young:
Work a full day.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
But also, like, I need community. And not just community. I need people that are sharpening me, pushing me, filling me with love, encouraging, humor...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Laughs. As I said, things to look forward to. Friends that I can just hang around and do nothing with. that has probably been so huge for me because there's been times where I, I might feel like I'm isolating myself and pushing away, and then at the right time, somebody will reach out.
We'll talk on the phone for a short amount of time, and then I'm back. And, um, you know, that's probably been the most heartbreaking among the people that I've met through my foundation, is when they have no one, that's there to, to, to provide that light. They don't a lot of friends or great relationship with their mom or dad.
And, that's usually my number one prayer, for people that face this type of hardship, that, you have at least one person that you can rely on that helps you to just be yourself and that you know you're loved by them and it's unconditional.
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm, I feel like that is definitely, a place that the church can step into and help the people that are walking through seasons like this, where they need support. They can step in and love people when they're just in a space where, they're isolated.
Patric, I would love to just, you know, ask you this question here, but then when, when we get done, have you pray for our listeners.
Patric Young:
Yeah.
Stephanie Daniels:
Is there something that God is teaching you in this current season? Something that you didn't expect?
Patric Young:
Yes. I love this question because coming off the heels of the previous question, I hope for the most part we all understand everyone cannot be everything for you all the time, right? Whether it's your mom, your dad, your best friend, your wife, your girlfriend, they cannot be everything for you all the time.
Stephanie Daniels:
Right. Right.
Patric Young:
It's not possible. They need to get filled up. They need the ability to go have their friends, their hobbies, the things that they like. Let them do that thing because it helps them become a better version of themselves. So what I've learned in this season of life is how intentional with your community you have to be. if you have a certain person in your life that is fantastic with conversation and emotional intelligence but they're not into sports, it'd be dumb for you to rely on that person to be your sports talk person. Fill in the blank. And, it might be silly, but you got your five buckets of areas: physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, social. You have to know which areas and what people can...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Do those things with you. I hope you can see that there is so much more depth to this because especially when you have a disability where it can be isolating and start to push you away, you need to know how to be strategic in your life. To know when to call that friend. To realize that you need to go do this thing, or that you haven't been to church in this time. You need to be in the men's group. I don't know what those things are gonna be for you, but it's vital, because you may be in an environment where your greatest needs that you feel are not gonna be met with those people that are immediately around you.
It is up to you. I don't know if you need to use your television for, sermons every day. There is something you can do. It might look different, but there's a step that you can take to strive to get... ownership in your life to be consistent in taking care of those places in your life that are the most important to you.
So, I love that question. And, Stephanie, you want me to close out in prayer?
Stephanie Daniels:
I would love for you just to pray for our listeners who might be in a season of hardship just an encouragement prayer.
Patric Young:
Good and gracious Heavenly Father, we're just so grateful for the opportunity to set our eyes on you. I wish we did this more often, God. You are thoughtful of us all the time. You care about every detail. You know every detail. You love everything, about us that you, created in us, Lord.
You don't love everything that we do, Lord, but you love us. You see us, our flaws, the good things that we do, the bad things, we do, the areas where we're lacking, the areas where we have abundance, God, and you see the whole picture. You see how we're connected, how we're connected to you.
You know exactly what we need. Lord, I pray right now for the brokenhearted, for those that have been affected by adversity, that you put a hand. You bring your presence to them, God. Lord, we do know that just your presence, it can change everything.
It can change the atmosphere. It can change everything about us, God. Right now I pray for hearts to be softened. I pray for them to be opened. Lord, what I am praying for is for your glory, for you to be recognized, for you to be loved more from us, God.
We don't, we don't need to ask you to love us anymore, God. But we need you to work in our hearts to see you more, to submit to you, to believe and trust that everything that you've allowed in our lives has a purpose, Lord, that this is not our home. you know that it's difficult, and because we are limited human beings.
We are not powerful like you. We know, Lord, that your word says you have made us in your image, but we are not you, God. And we just ask that you intercede, that you come and meet the hearts where they are broken, that you lift spirits, that you capture thoughts that are unbecoming...
Stephanie Daniels:
Mm-hmm.
Patric Young:
That are not bringing people towards you, God, that are-
Stephanie Daniels:
Yes.
Patric Young:
Making them think that this is the end, that there is nothing more. Lord God, I, bind those thoughts up.
Stephanie Daniels:
Yes.
Patric Young:
Right now, God.
Stephanie Daniels:
Jesus' name.
Patric Young:
The thoughts that people think that they are broken goods. No. We bind that up in the name of Jesus.
Stephanie Daniels:
Thank you, Father.
Patric Young:
Lord God, you are using all the things that happen in our life for your good. God. You care about every detail. And we just thank you for the opportunity to hopefully point people towards you, to-
Stephanie Daniels:
Yes, God ...
Patric Young:
Set our minds on you, to, to pray towards you and ask you for help. 'Cause Lord, we know that as a good father you are, you want to bless your children, God. Your timing...
Stephanie Daniels:
Yeah.
Patric Young:
Is perfect, it's impeccable, and we're just so grateful, Lord, that we have the opportunity to come to you. Thank you for the blood of Jesus.
Stephanie Daniels:
Thank you. Yeah.
Patric Young:
May we never forget how priceless it is and that you owe us nothing. But God, we thank you that because you owe us nothing doesn't mean you don't wanna give us everything, Lord, and you have. Thank you, God, so much. In your holy name I pray, amen.
Stephanie Daniels:
Amen. Patric, thank you so much for praying. That was such a precious prayer, and if people wanna know more about you, where can they find out more?
Patric Young:
It's Patric without the letter K, so PatricYoung.com is my website. And then PatricYoung4 is my social media.
Stephanie Daniels:
I'm sure people will wanna know more, 'cause you're so encouraging. And I know you have your foundation, but they can probably find out more...
Patric Young:
Thank you.
Stephanie Daniels:
About that on your website. So we so appreciate you for joining us today and all...
Patric Young:
Yeah.
Stephanie Daniels:
Of the beautiful wisdom that you've shared. thank you so much for joining us.
Patric Young:
Thank you. Thank you for having me. I really appreciate it.
Stephanie Daniels:
Well, we hope that this episode encouraged many families walking the journey of disability and inspired churches to continue growing as places of belonging and support. I just wanna encourage any of you, think of ways that you and your church can get out and get into the community. meet the types of families you wanna welcome into your church. Thanks for listening and we'll see you next time.
We hope this conversation touched your heart today. If it did, consider sharing it with someone who might be encouraged as well. And don’t forget to follow us on your favorite podcasting app so you never miss an episode. See you next week!
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