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Facing the Abuser

Shelley Hundley suffered abuse at the hands of a minister in the community, which turned her away from the faith and made her become an atheist – believing that the pain she suffered was proof of atheism. An encounter with Jesus Christ changed her life and gave her freedom to forgive and meet face to with her abuser:
As we sat down, I told him I forgave him for the specific wrongs he committed against me. Then I placed my hand on his shoulder and began to pray for God’s blessing on him. I spoke with my whole heart, “Jesus’s blood is enough for everything you have done to me and to others. I speak that over you as one of the ones you harmed. His blood is enough!” I felt such a heavy burden lift from my heart, and my countenance lit up with joy, I remember asking him, “Can I wash your feet?” I had to ask him twice because it was so shocking for him to hear that from me. He nodded and looked baffled as I ran to the bathroom and came back with a basin of water and a towel. I felt so much joy and exhilaration. I remember thinking, “These are the most beautiful feet I have ever seen!” Jesus’s love had made my abuser’s feet beautiful. I hope to have many glorious moments with Jesus in this life, but if I see the dead raised or millions come to salvation, I doubt it will feel any more precious to me than the moment I washed the feet of the person who hurt me the most. I looked up to heaven with an expression on my face that only my Father could fully read. Only He could know the magnitude of that moment when my heart was free to display the mercy of Jesus.
From A Cry for Justice: Overcome anger, reject bitterness, and trust in Jesus who will fight for you by Shelley Hendley. When our hearts are set free by God and we begin to see ourselves through the lense of grace, we begin to see our abusers from a different vantage point. Pain is now seen through different light. As she observes in her book, "Rather than disqualifying us from intimacy with God, pain escorts us into it". It is a remarkable picture of pain - an "escort". 

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