justice
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We have a strange habit of explaining away the things that should stop us in our tracks. I have carried a needle full of Hepatitis C into my body. I’ve looked down the barrel of a gun. My heart quit beating at twenty-seven. We speak about miracles as though they belong to another century. As…
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People like to talk about trauma like it’s only damage. Something to fix. Something to soften and soothe until it disappears. That’s incomplete. I wasn’t just hurt. I was trained. Not in a way I would have chosen. Not in a way I would ever recreate for my children. But training doesn’t stop being training…
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On the question of fear, ask yourself: I am seen by others? Does anyone care about my pain? I am known and seen by God. Isaiah 43 tells me, “Don’t be afraid. I saved you. I named you. You are mine. 2 When you have troubles, I am with you. When you cross rivers, you will…
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It seems a lot of the struggle in the Christian life comes down to one question: who is actually carrying the weight of change? A lot of people are trying to change themselves for God instead of letting God change them. Self-reliance says: I will fix myself. I will control myself. I will make myself…
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On the question of fear, ask yourself: Do I live in the fear of what others think? I had a dream last night that I was talking to a cousin I haven’t seen in years. We were chatting about my father. This question was presented, “Do you think he’s in heaven or in hell?” I…
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On the question of fear, ask yourself: Do you live with a love that includes fear? I have had the wrong definition of love for most of my life. Love was always hunted by fear. Love sometimes included fear. What do I mean? In my first marriage of 17 years, love and fear mingled together…
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For the next 12 days, we are returning to posts from the past that have been the most popular with YOU! Here’s our fourth post as a nod to our readers. Who Was the Murdered Woman? A cheap Saturday night took you down. You died stupidly and harshly . . . I failed you as…
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On the question of fear, ask yourself: Do I fear people I know to be abusers? Fear can be an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat. That seems like a healthy thing, doesn’t it? Then why do we have such a hard…
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A cheap Saturday night took you down. You died stupidly and harshly . . . I failed you as a talisman – so I stand now as your witness. My Dark Places, An L.A. Crime Memoir, James Ellroy I cannot bring the dead woman back, but I am a witness to her last moments on…
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THEIR GRIP DOESN’T. The abuse didn’t end when I grew up. It evolved. It didn’t pack up and leave when I turned 18. It changed tactics. The predators learned early that physical access has an expiration date. Emotional access? Psychological access? That’s where the real damage is done. The grooming scripts don’t stop because the…