The neighborhood I reside in is extremely active with new construction. Seemingly overnight a vacant lot will be transformed into a three bedroom, two bath living space for a new homeowner to start making memories.
A particular home sits on a corner lot. One day it was a Burrowing Owl habitat and now it proudly displays the newest home that was built in our neighborhood. I know this because I can see it from my front yard but I also have walked past this corner at least five days a week since I moved in almost eighteen months ago.
The yard had been graded and the workers were there to install the beautiful paver driveway. Not even a month had gone by when we had a torrential downpour. Not thinking anything about it, I went for a walk the following day and just as I do every other time, I passed this house. A portion of the driveway had fallen into a newly created sinkhole.
As the days passed the hole in the driveway sat there, continuing to get worse as the rain came and nothing had been done to repair the problem. Finally someone had come out to regrade the yard, but the driveway was still sporting a hole. It took about two more weeks when finally the hole was fixed but there was a mess of what looked like concrete coming out from under the driveway onto the newly graded yard.
I cringe to think what problems the new homeowner will have with the driveway because the problem was covered up with a quick fix instead of looking for the main cause.
As I watched this scenario play out with the newly constructed home, it made me think about relationships.
So many times I have witnessed women finally finding their voice and getting out of a relationship that is toxic and dysfunctional but they didn’t take time to fix the foundation (themselves). The loneliness was too much to bear so at the first sign of someone paying attention to them, they jumped into a new relationship or even an old one with the hopes of a different outcome.
I can’t tell you how many times I have talked with women and the same statement was said “They said they were sorry.” And within six months, if it lasted that long, there was another hole that needed repairing.
The challenge is taking the time to repair ourselves because if we don’t, we will attract the same type of toxic dysfunction over and over again.
Did you know that on average, it takes a victim seven times to leave before staying away for good and 75% of women will die at the hand of their abuser as they are attempting to leave.
Also, one out of every three women will be abused at some point in her life.
Why am I so passionate about women finding their voice?
With my self-worth in the tank as a teen, if God had not intervened, my story would have been written differently. Also in 2011, I was attacked, not by a domestic partner but my injuries were the same as two women who were acquaintances of a friend, they were attacked by their domestic partners. They weren’t as fortunate as I to have lived. They both were trying to get out of their situation and became part of the 75%.
This is why I am so passionate about helping women find their voice.
Finding your voice isn’t just about getting out of an abusive relationship, it is about finding your self-worth in who God says you are.
As I became involved in our local church, I would have women remind me of God’s love, but I was advised that simply reading the Bible would solve everything. However, the real issue was that no one demonstrated how to truly connect with God or make His teachings relevant to my daily challenges. Instead, they just urged me to sort it out on my own.
This is why I love showing women how using God’s Word helps you live a transformed life. And to quote my husband it is not out of a legalistic requirement but an irresistible response for what He has done for us.
The process isn’t an easy one and it requires a lot of sacrifice.
Many times, it involves unlearning a behavior that you once believed to be normal from your upbringing. Transforming destructive patterns into healthy loops requires significant effort. You also have to realize that you didn’t just get into this lifestyle, it took years, so perseverance is required as you retrain your brain.
My life’s purpose is to empower women with knowledge, enabling them to embrace their true identity as defined by God and live authentically for Him.