I was speaking with a friend who told me about years of sexual abuse from three family members for many years. She stated, "I had several options," When we face unbearable suffering and pain we do always have options. She realized she could allow herself to sink into mental illness, choose to become an addict or alcoholic, commit suicide, sink into despair or to face her demons. She had the courage to embrace counseling. God sent her an angel who saw her pain through her anger at the world, and intervened to send her to a special program for children and teens who have been traumatized through sexual abuse. This abuse is often from family members who seek to satisfy their their own twisted, sadistic sexual needs at the expense of innocent children.
I applaud her courage and am amazed at her transformation from an angry teenager, to an extremely compassionate and loving adult who struggled through unspeakable horror to immerse herself in God and offer forgiveness to her attackers. Her difficult life led her to become an educated instrument of loving counseling to lead others out of their darkness and into the spiritual light. She chose to embrace the goodness of life and make a sympathetic, merciful, tender minister who listens with her heart.
"Let us be grateful to people who make us happy: They are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom." Marcel Proust
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