From Violence to Victory

    

“We have victory in Christ Jesus not because we are His children; rather the essence that HE is Victorious,” is a statement I hope to emphasis over and over again for people to grasp the true meaning of a life in Christ. Yes, not everything is red roses, smiles, and kisses; however, even in trials we can experience joy and peace. We endure these tribulations with the certainty that at the end of this difficult situation we will be victorious.

    As a preview into my life’s journey, I want to openly and bravely declare that I come from a domestic violence home where my father was the aggressor, and my mother his prey victim. I want it to be clear that I am not attempting to gain people’s pity and take the events of my life out of context in order to recruit likeability/popularity. Believe me, every time I ponder on all the sacrifice my beautiful mother has tolerated for me and my siblings- words aren’t enough to express the emotion. If somehow, I could have prevented my own mother from ever meeting my father, I would have done so in a heartbeat.

       Let’s begin, my father himself is originally the victim of my grandfather’s alcoholism. It’s due to alcoholism that I lost the opportunity to have a grandfather in my life and also the main reason behind considering myself paternal-less. My grandfather died on a drunken night around 2:00 am in the morning, plus his other medical conditions, when I was only 8 years old. I barely remember him or ever spending time with him either. He passed on his illness/addiction to alcohol to my father from the age of 7 years old. As the years progressed, my father not only became an alcoholic, but a violent one too. Before my mother came along, he had physically battered several other women and my mother did not become the exception.

    The exact details are gruesome to even talk about, but it is also worth noting as an avenue to understand how wonderful God’s grace and mercy towards us is comprised of always, even as unbelievers. On a side note, I believe one of God’s many talents awarded to me is my ability to remember vividly – sort of a mild photographic memory. I recall a day where I found my mother crying as usual in the kitchen, I was only about 2 or 3, and this time she had her hand over her nose. At that time in my early toddler years, I could not have conceived what just had actually occurred. Over the years, I have been able to bond with my mother and our in-depth conversations have enlightened the past. That specific day my mother had received a physical assault so badly her nose was broken. To make matters worse she never received medical treatment due to our impoverished living arrangement. As a toddler, the only thing I did that day was comfort her with my kisses and tell her in my soft child-like tone “don’t cry mommy, I love you.”

    What is my point to this domestic violence summary? Simple, as a non-believer God’s grace and mercy reached out towards my mother and siblings enough to spare us from dying in those violent acts. My mother suffered domestic violence for over 5 years on a weekly if not daily basis; the abuse was not only physical but verbal to the point my mother was terrified of my father and had a low self-esteem. God knew this could not go on any longer, so he made a way to liberate us from this domestic violence by bringing my life-changing accident. From my accident, not only did I come to Christ as a child, but my mother found a new beginning in the Lord as well. She regained her self-worth and was never again to suffer at the hands of any man’s brutal strength for violence.

    So, this is just one of several beautiful turn arounds Jesus has done for me and my family. I came from a domestic violence home to being in VICTORY as now a professional college graduate working my way up the latter one step at a time. No, serving the Lord is not easy by any means, but His promises will never fail you. He loves the sinner and in my story, it is vividly clear: when God has a purpose for your life no one or nothing can interfere in His plans for you. I encourage you today, take a close look at the past not to think about the regrets we may have, but to reflect on how far we have come in God’s mighty hands.  

    “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ”

I Corinthians 15:57  


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