Dawn's
Testimony
June
4, 2006
Psalm 100:4-6 says, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts
with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His Name.
For the LORD is good and His love endures forever;
His faithfulness continues through all generations.”
I am so thankful to the LORD! He
has shown Himself faithful to me over and over again.
In October while at a woman’s retreat the LORD brought to completion an
emotional healing He began in me fifteen years ago as a result of physical,
emotional and sexual abuse. I was
finally able to give all of the pain over to Him.
Even after being saved for so long I had always felt as if I had an
impenetrable iron door over a part of my heart.
I could never totally trust anyone. That
changed in October. I came home from
that retreat changed! The door is no
longer locked over part of my heart. The
freedom of that has affected many areas of my life, especially my marriage, in
wonderful ways.
In recent months the LORD has led me to read journals I began 17 years
ago. Until now I had never looked at
the journals. I had even forgotten
about them. But the LORD had not
forgotten! Like Joshua and the
Israelites who built a memorial out of stones from the middle of the Jordan River
once they crossed my journals are my stones- my reminders of where the LORD has
brought me up and out of.
As I read these journals which contain page after page of sorrow, pain,
anger, hatred and bitterness I am once again falling on my face in awe of the
LORD’s marvelous works- works in me!
I am blown away by the absolute change in me and my thinking.
I was out of my mind. The
enemy controlled all of my thoughts. I
heard voices in my head constantly telling me what a worthless person I was and
that I deserved to die. I had an
eating disorder and was consumed with thoughts of food and weight.
This is just a few of the examples! When
I read these journals it is as if I am thrown into the mind of someone else.
To go back and know I lived like that for so ling completely blows my
mind.
I am overwhelmed with gratitude to the LORD for my life!
To read those pages and get a glimpse of who I was and who I would have
become without Him is frightening. Truly
I can say as David did in Psalm 30 ,”You turned my wailing into dancing, you
removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to You and
not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give You thanks forever.”
I have so many things to be thankful for.
Not only am I a new
creation in Christ but the LORD has chosen to bless me with a wonderful
Godly husband and four precious children: and He continues to bless me daily!
I am so undeserving of all He has given me and all He has done in me.
I stand in complete amazement that He could take a wretch like me and
change everything, and I do mean everything about me.
I am so thankful to the LORD for taking my broken, shattered life and
giving me hope and a future, and for bringing peace, joy and love in to
my life.
Psalm 98:1 says, “Sing to the LORD a new song for He has done marvelous
things.” I truly am one of HIS
marvelous things! Dawn B.
