Friday, November 8, 2013

How Do I Heal From Child Sexual Abuse?


From time to time, I will be posting on Child Sexual Abuse & some statistics about this type of abuse. As a survivor, this is very important to me (my novel Deaf, Dumb, Blind & Stupid confirms its importance).

This is a post from the Talking Trees: Adult Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse page (on Facebook). Check that page out.

How do I heal? If you have asked the question, then you are already healing. So from here on out the transformative question is “where am I in the healing process?” Depending on where you are in the process, you may need a lot of information, or support, or direction. Early in the healing process, you need information. If you were diagnosed with an illness, even if it is just high blood pressure, you would need information so that you could develop a lifestyle that protects you from further risks and complications. Well, there is a lot of information about being a survivor of child sexual abuse that can be really helpful too. For example, did you know that there are over 50 million survivors in America? Did you know that the average survivor has had 3 violators by the age of 18? Did you know that over 50% of survivors never tell a soul? Did you know that most of us live functional lives while we suffer in silence? Did you know that we survive on resilience, the strength of the heart, the will of the universe and the determination of the spirit, and support from one another? We also survive on knowledge. Knowledge is power.

Monday, November 4, 2013

The Attack On Women



Now I’m not sure how people are going to react to this particular post, but as I hear about what’s on TV today, I can truly say there’s an attack on women. But I’d like to take it from this point: there has been an attack on women since the times of Adam & Eve and yes, the devil will be the focal point (now I’m not glorifying him, just making that clear) and why he is so mad at women (he’s mad at men too, but I believe not to the extent of him being mad at women).

When the devil used the serpent to talk to Eve, she ate and gave to Adam. Let me move to the place where God was questioning Adam & Eve. Eve stated that the serpent made me eat. The immediate judgment that came from God was on the serpent.

As I’m reading Matthew Henry’s commentary on Genesis 3, he said this and I think this is very important (here's the first excerpt): God immediately proceeds to pass sentence; and, in these verses, he begins (where the sin began) with the serpent. God did not examine the serpent, nor ask him what he had done nor why he did it; but immediately sentenced him, 1. Because he was already convicted of rebellion against God, and his malice and wickedness were notorious, not found by secret search, but openly avowed and declared as Sodom’s. 2. Because he was to be for ever excluded from all hope of pardon; and why should any thing be said to convince and humble him who was to find no place for repentance? His wound was not searched, because it was not to be cured.

Dropping down (for this is a lengthy commentary, but I want to focus on the part where God said that he will put enmity between the devil and the woman). Excerpt #2:
He is to be for ever looked upon as a venomous noxious creature, and a proper object of hatred and detestation: I will put enmity between thee and the woman. The inferior creatures being made for man, it was a curse upon any of them to be turned against man and man against them; and this is part of the serpent’s curse. The serpent is hurtful to man, and often bruises his heel, because it can reach no higher; nay, notice is taken of his biting the horses’ heels, ch. 49:17 . But man is victorious over the serpent, and bruises his head, that is, gives him a mortal wound, aiming to destroy the whole generation of vipers. It is the effect of this curse upon the serpent that, though that creature is subtle and very dangerous, yet it prevails not (as it would if God gave it commission) to the destruction of mankind.

Excerpt #3:
Here are three things concerning Christ:—(1.) His incarnation, that he should be the seed of the woman, the seed of that woman; therefore his genealogy (Lu. 3, ) goes so high as to show him to be the son of Adam, but God does the woman the honour to call him rather her seed, because she it was whom the devil had beguiled, and on whom Adam had laid the blame; herein God magnifies his grace, in that, though the woman was first in the transgression, yet she shall be saved by child-bearing (as some read it), that is, by the promised seed who shall descend from her, 1 Tim. 2:15 . He was likewise to be the seed of a woman only, of a virgin, that he might not be tainted with the corruption of our nature; he was sent forth, made of a woman (Gal. 4:4 ), that this promise might be fulfilled. It is a great encouragement to sinners that their Saviour is the seed of the woman, bone of our bone, Heb. 2:11, Heb. 2:14 . Man is therefore sinful and unclean, because he is born of a woman (Job. 25:4 ), and therefore his days are full of trouble, Job. 14:1 . But the seed of the woman was made sin and a curse for us, so saving us from both. (2.) His sufferings and death, pointed at in Satan’s bruising his heel, that is, his human nature. Satan tempted Christ in the wilderness, to draw him into sin; and some think it was Satan that terrified Christ in his agony, to drive him to despair. It was the devil that put it into the heart of Judas to betray Christ, of Peter to deny him, of the chief priests to prosecute him, of the false witnesses to accuse him, and of Pilate to condemn him, aiming in all this, by destroying the Saviour, to ruin the salvation; but, on the contrary, it was by death that Christ destroyed him that had the power of death, Heb. 2:14 . Christ’s heel was bruised when his feet were pierced and nailed to the cross, and Christ’s sufferings are continued in the sufferings of the saints for his name. The devil tempts them, casts them into prison, persecutes and slays them, and so bruises the heel of Christ, who is afflicted in their afflictions. But, while the heel is bruised on earth, it is well that the head is safe in heaven. (3.) His victory over Satan thereby. Satan had now trampled upon the woman, and insulted over her; but the seed of the woman should be raised up in the fulness of time to avenge her quarrel, and to trample upon him, to spoil him, to lead him captive, and to triumph over him, Col. 2:15 . He shall bruise his head, that is, he shall destroy all his politics and all his powers, and give a total overthrow to his kingdom and interest. Christ baffled Satan’s temptations, rescued souls out of his hands, cast him out of the bodies of people, dispossessed the strong man armed, and divided his spoil: by his death, he gave a fatal and incurable blow to the devil’s kingdom, a wound to the head of this beast, that can never be healed. As his gospel gets ground, Satan falls (Lu. 10:18 ) and is bound, Rev. 20:2 . By his grace, he treads Satan under his people’s feet (Rom. 16:20 ) and will shortly cast him into the lake of fire, Rev. 20:10 . And the devil’s perpetual overthrow will be the complete and everlasting joy and glory of the chosen remnant.

Anyway, back to the lesson, so what is the devil trying to do (to both men and women)? He’s trying to strip everything that God views as holy. As a result of the fall, blood had to be shed. When a man and woman enter to a marriage, a blood covenant is to be formed. Let me stay on this for a second. What’s the devil’s operation? To get blood to be unholy and to throw people outside of the will of God. As Matthew Henry stated earlier, God didn’t question Satan as to why he did what he did to Eve. But praise be to God for the cleansing blood of Christ! So, we as men of God, need to cover our women in prayer, and be able to intercede for our sisters in Christ. Satan’s plan to break down the marriage structure is increasing the more (marriage covenants are important to God). We can’t go on business as usual and calling what’s unholy as being holy.

Single parenthood was never the order of God (and I applaud every single mother out there). Satan is attacking women in this arena by breaking the backs of men to show that men aren’t stronger than women. As a result, they’re left with the burden of caring for the children. But praise be to God for the blood of Jesus.

So what’s the point of this post? Understand that we as humans are under attack by the devil. We need to cover each other in prayer and intercession, understand our roles as men & women and not give further access to the devil in our lives. For we can overcome these attacks if we are one accord.

Blessings:

The Mayne Man

Author Spotlight (Pamala Mintz)



I initially met this author via Facebook before meeting her in person. She appeared to be so genuine on FB, and when I met her at the African American Author Expo (held in Timonium, MD) in August 2013, I found that she's a genuine person, period! With that said, show your love for my sister & fellow author Pamala Mintz.

Pamala Mintz is a single mother of 3 children, Tiara, Brandon, and Joshua. Becoming a teenage mother did not stop Pamala’s aspirations and dreams. She graduated from Coppin State University in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts in English/Communications and graduated from University of Baltimore with a Master of Science in Health Systems Management in 2013. She will be furthering her education by entering the PhD program in Health Care Administration at Walden University in 2014. Tenacity, hard work and determination have been the driving forces that keep Pamala striving towards greater goals.
Pamala, presently, serves under the leadership of Dr. Todd Hall. It is through his prophetic mantle that she has tapped into who she truly is and the prophetic mantle that she always denied. It is through his teachings that she has gained the confidence to speak. Foundationally, Pamala was raised in the Baptist faith at Community Baptist Church of Cherry Hill under the late Rev. Calvin Thomas. As an adult, Pamala joined First Apostolic Faith Church serving under the leadership of Apostle Franklin Cornelius Showell.

Pamala has authored and published two books entitled Saved, Single Sister: Real Talk, the series with four more books yet to be released. In August, another dream took form as she began co-hosting a radio show entitled “A Different Identity” which airs Monday nights from 8pm-9pm on WXRP radio, an award winning talk radio station based in Atlanta, Georgia. This lady does not allow grass to grow under her feet too long. In the fall of 2013, she will begin production on the stage play/musical, “Saved, Single Sister: Real Talk”.