DOMESTIC VIOLENCE..... A SURVIVOR STORY, Patricia Ann, Originally posted Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Domestic violence is an ever increasing problem in the world today with women, children and even men living a secret life behind closed doors. It is a life filled with fear, torment and pain, often at the hand of a family member whom they love. Our homes are meant to be a shelter from a storm, but so often a fierce storm rages inside our homes - inflicting destruction on families and individual lives.
I share with you a story of survival and how Our Lord Jesus Christ is forever our strength and refuge during the trials we face.
Sea of Tears
For years she was drowning,
being pulled down in a sea of tears,
into the depths of Hell.
She tried to breathe and gasped for air,
filled with anxiety and despair.
She knew that someday
she would die before her time.
The stress would cause cancer.
Or she would be beaten to death,
her body left to rot,
just like her spirit had been.
She had lost herself, who she was,
somewhere in the madness of his desire to control her.
It was his living hell that she was pulled into,
and for so many years,
that was where she dwelled.
Nobody could find her!
Nobody could know - the fear and the hell she lived!
Then one day it hit her,
the complete and total fear of dying by his hand and
dying in his hell!
It was then that she found
the courage and the strength to call out for help.
She peaked out of her hell
and found a tremendous resource of help.
There were others just like her!
If only she had known,
she wouldn't have spent
so many years feeling alone,
lost in the hell of a man -
living a hell of his own.
Her life is changed today
with thanks to God and all of the special people who
speak up for victims rights.
She no longer sleeps in fear at night.
She is healthy and well with a desire to fight
for righteousness
with her friends out there for victims rights.
This is a true story poem of a woman who lived through over 20 years of domestic violence and how God met her in the midst of her pain and made her whole again.
God loves each of us and it is not part of His plan for any one of His children to live a life beaten down, abused and living in fear for their life.
It was a long road, but Jesus patiently carried this woman through one trial after another.
He sat with her in a courtroom while she was ridiculed and lied about.
The words in the courtroom were muffled
by the continuous softness of the voice of Jesus as he whispered,
"before they hated you, they hated me." (John 15:18)
John 15:21 states "They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me."
Another time she remembers the Bigness of our Lord as He hugged her and held her in His arms. She saw Him and felt His peace and assurance that everything would be okay.
The contentment and love that she found in Jesus Christ as Her Savior has never been matched in this world -- not in family or friends.
They often failed to show the compassion, understanding, love and patience that she found offered to her through her best friend, Jesus.
Psalm 118:8 states, "It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man."
That verse became her lifeline, as those she turned to on this earth turned her away, leaving her feeling very alone and hurting even more.
People are busy and very often too busy taking care of themselves, to find a compassion within and truly give of themselves to help a hurting friend or relative.
Jesus provided this woman with His true love by holding her when she was hurting.
He shined His light upon her to ease her pain.
It was a light so bright that the darkness - once cast away - has never been allowed to return.
What an awesome God we have!!
He loves us so much that He remains our best Friend, always there to comfort and hold when the world lets us down.
He understands our pain.
He feels our pain.
He hears our cry.
He loves us even when we sin.
He sees our imperfections,
but makes us perfect in His image, and new every day.
We have no choice but to live in this sin-filled world, but we do have a choice of how we live in this world.
This woman lived for many years as a victim of domestic violence. She lost sense of who she was, living in fear and torment at the hand of the man whom she married. She had once believed that this man was her best friend, her life partner. She never dreamed that one day he would want to harm her emotionally and physically, but he did. And she was devastated ....
Until she found the One who truly cares for her.
The love of Jesus saved her and His gentleness and compassion, love and understanding, He took away her pain.
The light provided by Jesus is now her shield
against the darkness of the world.
There are numerous types of domestic violence.
It occurs as spousal abuse, child abuse and even parental abuse where an aging parent is physically or mentally abused and used for financial gain of the abusive family member. The abuse isn't gender specific as both men and women can be abusers just as men and women both can be victims of abuse.
And this abuse most often happens behind closed doors, in the secrecy of a seemingly happy well adjusted home. Nobody knows, nobody sees, and so often nobody believes. This leaves the victim feeling helpless and all alone.
Scripture speaks to us about abuse.
In Ephesians 5:25, Paul writes, “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the Church.”
We see that tender care, loving nurture, and even dying for her is what men are to do for their wives, just as our Savior did for his Church.
Exodus 20:12
"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you."
We should look up to those whom God has placed over us (our parents), and should treat them with honor, obedience, and gratefulness.
Ephesians 6:4
Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger,
but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Colossians 3:21
Fathers, do not provoke your children,
lest they become discouraged.
Our Lord has alot to say about abuse. I believe it truly saddens the heart of God to see one of His precious creations living in an abusive situation.
Look to Him and know that abuse does not come from God.
An abused person is NOT responsible for the unGodly or angry acts performed by others.
God invites us to flee from abuse into His loving and waiting arms.
"Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength . They will soar like eagles..." (Is.40:31)
There is always HOPE for a better tomorrow.
Look to our father in heaven and Trust --
Trust in Jesus to meet you in the midst of your pain and change your darkness into light.
My prayer for today and everyday is for anyone who is living with abuse to seek our Father in Heaven and Allow the light of Jesus to become your shield against the darkness of the world. Know that God loves you. He created you to be wonderful, not abused. Seek Him and He will make you whole and create in you a beauty more wondrous than you have ever known.
Blessings to you In His loving Name, Amen
If you or someone you know is experiencing pain from an abusive situation and you do not know Jesus, pray this prayer of salvation and allow Him
to come into your life and make you a new creation.
He also provides hope for those who abuse. During His crucifixion, while feeling the full weight of His own Father’s abandonment, He reached out in love to the batterers, offering them, also, sanctuary from their sins: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." (Luke 23:34)
Prayer of salvation
Dear Lord,
I admit that I am a sinner. I have done many things that don’t please you. I have lived my life for myself. I am sorry and I repent. I ask you to forgive me. I believe that you died on the cross for me, to save me. You did what I could not do for myself. I come to you now and ask you to take control of my life, I give it to you. Help me to live every day in a way that pleases you. I love you, Lord, and I thank you that I will spend all eternity with you.
Amen
1-800-799-SAFE NATIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOTLINE
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