Jennifer’s Powerful Story of Redemption
There are many blessings to living in the United States. Yet, like any country, it faces injustice, turmoil, and inequalities. We live in a fallen world full of sin so evil reaches every corner of the world. But God wrote my powerful story of redemption!
Growing up, I truly didn’t have any aspirations because I spent my childhood surviving and raising my younger siblings. On one occasion, when my mom wasn’t home, her boyfriend molested me. When she arrived home, I told her what happened. She didn’t believe me. Instead, she said I was lying and forced me to apologize to the man that had harmed me.
From that moment, I held onto anger and hurt then learned to become what my mom said I was: a liar. I was a 9-year-old when this happened to me. I had the realization at such a young age that maybe if I lied, I could protect myself and avoid pain and hurt. As I grew older, I mastered this skill, and even when I didn’t need to lie, I did it anyway. As an adult, my family labeled me again as a habitual liar. No one trusted what I said because of my past actions. Even when I spoke the truth, no one believed me.
But God
At this point in my life, I had found Christ and accepted Him in my life. However, I continued with my lying habits. I knew I was wrong and needed to change. But every time I tried, I tried with my own strength. That was never enough, and I would fall into the same habits as before. I thought that I could break something that took years to be. How naive to think that.
I hated being labeled a liar. Then, one day during my nightly prayer, I asked God to take it away and help me be a better person. I had suppressed the earlier incident from my memory for so long. But, at that moment during my prayer, God revealed to me the root cause of my struggle.
That night I opened my heart like never before to the Lord and cried until the veins on my face popped. All the hurt, pain, and injustice that I had suppressed flowed from my heart and manifested itself in uncontrollable tears. That night, I was freed from a bondage that had held me captive for many years. The Lord of the impossible began working in me. He fought for me, beside me, and with me.
Changed
Not only did God redeem me from this but he also healed my pain and allowed me to forgive. I now have a great relationship with my mother and by the grace of the Lord, my words have value. Now, I serve as the Youth Pastor at my church. As Joseph said to his brothers, what was meant to harm me, God turned it for good. I can now use my testimony to speak of God’s everlasting love and mercy. With such a privilege to work with the next generation, how better to do it than by sharing the goodness of the Lord.
After finding Christian Leaders Institute online, I chose this course. I needed to equip myself better to further help the teens that attend our church’s youth group. Everyone is faced with wildfires daily and having the knowledge to handle them in the correct manner will determine the outcome. The outcome is not what we seek but what God intends as His will. Thank you, CLI!
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