Articles Music WDYL

Silence Will Kill Finding freedom for victims of abuse by Annie Smith I live a life accompanied by a silent scream that keeps me up at night ... a scream that haunts every step I take, every relationship I attempt to make. Louder, louder, louder — can you hear it? Freedom. A word used so easily, yet it invades the core of so few. Silence. What keeps so many from the restoration and joy of freedom. I've come to find that often those with the deepest scars are those who sit in silence, weeping bitterly as people walk by, unmoved by the trail of blood that stains their tears, unnoticed by the ones who think they know them best. Alone, they harbor their feelings of guilt, filth, abandonment, fear, betrayal and anger, pretending everything is okay. No matter how far down they shove these feelings, no matter what they try to fill the gaping hole inside of them, no matter how they try to forget the memories, the pain cannot be erased. They are bound by the chains of a wound refusing to heal. There was a time when I would have stopped right here. I would have dropped my pen and walked away sadly, bitterly trying to forget the reality of these words. Praise God that He is our Healer, Lover and Friend, sent to bind up the broken-hearted and set the captive free! Galatians 5:1 says, "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." You are free my friend — not can be or maybe some day will be, but you ARE free. Slavery can be the bitterness, the loneliness, the pain, the truth that you refuse to face, speak of, let go of, or receive healing for. I've heard that one in every three women is a victim of abuse. If you are one of those one in every three, can I tell you that if you are a disciple of Jesus Christ, if you have put your hope and trust in Him, grieved by and turning away from your sin in order that Christ may be glorified in your life, there is healing, peace and freedom waiting for you in the nail-scarred hands of One who has felt it all, endured it all! I believe that words like abuse, anger, bitter, lonely, unloved and scarred lose their power when they are spoken. Silence will kill you; it will keep you bound by your own unforgiveness, pain, memories and fear. You cannot make it go away by ignoring or numbing it — it has to be exposed. Lies flee when exposed to light. Darkness is no more. God's Word is the truth and light, strong and able to pierce even through joint and marrow. Derek Webb has a quote that helped me understand this. He says, "I want to shed light in the dark places so that I don't hide there anymore." Allow Light to pierce through your dark memories and pain. Stand free in the light, no longer hidden in darkness and fear. Know that you are not alone. I believe that is the biggest lie Satan feeds those who have deep pain. There are women all around you who sit in silence as it slowly kills them, dying to release the pain they've experienced and the lies they believe about themselves. Vulnerability is hard and scary but results in unspeakable freedom. Speak. Forgive your abuser. Let freedom invade your soul and heal your wounds. Seek counsel and godly wisdom from someone that you trust. Know that you are dearly loved. Beautiful. Clean. Full of worth. There is life full of freedom waiting for you in the hands of the One who died for you. Let yourself become undone before Him ... and dance before Him in His mercy as if no one were watching. Psalm 51:6-9: "Behold, you desire truth in the innermost being, and in the hidden part you will make me know wisdom. Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean, wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness, let the bones which You have broken rejoice. Hide Your face from my sins and blot out my iniquities." Psalm 32:3-7 Psalm 18:1-6 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 Ephesians 5:11-13 John 8:31-32 Hosea 6:1-3 I recommend that you get Beth Moore's book Praying God's Word through Spiritual Strongholds. Learn how to fight with God's Word, your only offensive weapon! (Ephesians 6:17)