A single decision at 100 miles per hour can ripple through families, friendships, faith, and the rest of your life. 

In Episode 106 of BeTempered, hosts Dan Schmidt and Ben Spahr sit down with Tony Talbert to unpack the night a drunk driver changed everything.

 What started as a celebration of his friend David’s recovery journey through addiction and service ended in tragedy just minutes from home, leaving Tony and his wife Donna carrying grief, trauma, and questions that don’t disappear when the headlines fade.  

Tony opens up about the realities of PTSD, survivor’s guilt, panic, flashbacks, nightmares, and the pressure many people feel to “move on” before they’re actually healed. 

He shares how EMDR therapy, honest prayer, and eventually visiting the young man responsible for the crash became part of a healing process that challenged everything he thought he knew about justice, forgiveness, and redemption.  

Then the conversation takes a turn none of us expected. On a freezing day in Richmond, Indiana, a homeless man asks Tony for help and leaves behind a freshly cut green crown of thorns. 

Weeks later, Tony receives a message he believes came directly from Jesus, and suddenly the nightmares stop. 

What follows is a powerful conversation about faith, suffering, purpose, and the kind of charity that restores dignity instead of creating dependency through practical support, accountability, and love. 

 This episode is raw, emotional, hopeful, and deeply human. 

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