When a patient learns they have an illness or disease, they look for ways to fight back. When we are struggling with failure and the ability to succeed, we look for ways to go to battle. Before we can truly move forward we sometimes have to look back.

Forgiveness is one weapon that we have to use yet many would rather leave it behind. We are embattled with struggles of self-worth and the emotional pain of our past we are unable to fight.

In the release of the pain, resentment, anger we break the chains that bind us. These chains could be from the way your father treated you as a child. Maybe you were betrayed by a friend or family member. You might be holding on to secrets of your own that are like a heavy weight around your neck. Perhaps your own decisions or lifestyle burden you.

Only you can break these chains. It may be through your faith in God, your healing Father that you can forgive. Absolution of your own wrongs through the healing power of repentance.

It may be someone else that you must forgive. Your own anger interferes with your forgiveness of them. Or you don’t believe that you hold the power to forgive because of your own sins.

Forgiving and being forgiven are two names for the same thing. The important thing is that a discord has been resolved. ~ C.S. Lewis

Broken relationships between families can be the hardest to mend. Many men struggle in their marriages and relationships due to the resentment they still carry towards their fathers. Women suffer from esteem issues, eating disorders and worse due to they were abused or mistreated by the men in their past.

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Adoption is something that is near and dear to every believer’s heart, Biblical Adoption changed my life forever. Ever meet someone who appears to be standoffish?  Maybe the walls they have up are blocking you from getting to know them. Whenever you ask them how they are you get one word answers like ‘fine’ or ‘okay’. They resist seeking relationships, going after goals or things that they want. Many people consider these behaviors as odd or even antisocial. Hopefully you will recognize that these behaviors may represent more than how they appear. Do you know someone who hides their own achievements, who would rather remain in the shadows. They separate themselves from the crowds. Usually they don’t care for the spotlight. Even on their own birthdays they  are somber and would rather be left alone. I am referring to the signs that can be misinterpreted as depression or behavior issues. In fact they are simply signs of adoption. Depending on the age the child was when adopted the signs can become more evident. I speak from experience as I was adopted as a child. Lived with the feeling that I never really fit in. Always feeling as if there was something missing. Not that there really was, but the longing for more still remained. Feelings of abandonment and rejection envelopes your emotions. Buried under trust issues and loneliness. The walls get built by bricks of bad memories and hurtful insults. Anger seeps in unexpectedly and consumes your mind. Wondering ‘why me‘ and ‘what if’s‘ drown your ability to […]

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January has been designated ‘Human Trafficking’ month. Coincidentally during the same month is an event that creates a peak season. As we near the end of January, and get ready to watch the big game on February 1st. The Superbowl is estimated to bring in excess of 500 million to the Arizona area. Under the lights of the stadium. In the shadows of the dimly lit streets. A secret lies waiting. Depending on the thousands of fans attending the game’s festivities. Innocence will be lost before the game ends. A 9.5 billion dollar industry will use the national spotlight to expand its impact. While many think they would recognize a sex slave. A victim could be the person sitting right next to you. Possibly the stranger you are about to meet. Pimps will follow the money. The Superbowl will once again prove to be a premium market. However, maybe not the increase as previously touted. Any event that draws crowds become targets for human traffickers, both sellers and buyers. Human trafficking is an everyday problem, 365 days a year. One that every person should be aware of and can help prevent. California, Texas and even my own home state of Florida have the most confirmed incidents of trafficking in the US. Worldwide it is estimated to impact in excess of 20 million victims. Slavery no longer requires chains and bondage of days past. Much of it exists in homes in our own cities. A simple click of a mouse, another life sold. Pornography has become […]

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