Gaylon and I just returned from St. Simons Island, GA, where we were a part of my sister Margaret’s eightieth birthday celebration. We were raised rough in a family with eight children. Seven are still living and all were in attendance at this celebration.
As I looked around the room, I almost teared up. There we all stood ranging from ages sixty-eight through eighty. We were no longer small children suffering from poverty, abuse, and terror. There we stood as much older adults. We had overcome! We had not just survived, but we had overcome.
Several of my nieces and nephews were in attendance. I rarely get to see these young men and women. While a few of us were telling stories of what it was like growing up, we reminisced with funny stories and sad stories. Our nieces were captivated to hear our stories. They had very little knowledge of what the Wells household had been like. They said, “We’ve never heard these stories, and would love to hear more.”
The next day at lunch we had those nieces sit with a few of us “kids” as we told them more stories. Again, they loved hearing about their ancestory. One thing we said, after telling stories, was how we had all done well in life regardless of how we had started our lives.
May I share some things that have been on my mind after this time with family?
- Share history with your family. It’s important that they know what you have overcome.
- Get together with family to laugh and celebrate.
- How you began life does not have to control how you end life.
Life was beyond rough when we were growing up. As I listened to the stories my siblings shared, there were moments of pain. But, over and over, we came back to laughter and gratitude that we no longer lived in that place! I don’t want to live in the pain I suffered decades ago! I want to walk healed and whole. From a personal perspective, I have been privileged to raise three sons, who never experienced the life I knew. That makes me smile.
I never tire of the testimony of my life! I was a broken child. A woman found me, took me to church, and introduced me to Jesus Christ.
The road to get where I am today was long and winding. The early years of walking with God produced little in my life. For many years, I was filled with anger and resentment about the past. My mind screamed about the “should have’s” and “ought to be’s.” I kept a mental list about how my childhood should have been. There were periods with no communication with family because it was just easier than facing the past…until I saw the light.
As the years rolled by, I eventually learned that I could overcome my past. The story of my past didn’t change, but the story of my future did change! I could live a “normal” life and raise a healthy family. God helped me to transform my pain instead of transfer my pain. Through the mentoring I received from great women of God, I made a decision to go all in with God, to live by His principles, and to trust Him with the healing process. I’m so glad I did!
Are you stuck in pain? That can be understandable. Both Jesus and I have compassion for what you have been through. Are you ready to be unstuck? Jesus Christ awaits you with open arms. He’s ready to walk the journey with you. There are more chapters to be written about your life. Your story is not over, and with Christ, the best chapters are yet to be written.
“For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.” – Isaiah 41:13