Lisa: Praying for the Girls At Daughters

This week we are repeating the workshops we did last week to a second group of girls at Daughters. Today's session was on Domestic Violence with my team mates Marty and Joy sharing from their own personal experiences. This workshop seems to resonate so much with the girls who come. They listen intently and when asked if they would like prayer, they all came up and we formed small groups with our translators nearby. I felt so blessed today as I had the privilege of praying for a few of the girls. I am struck by their heart of love despite all the bruises and wounds they have received. Many of them ask prayer for a family member. Given all that they have gone through it would be totally understandable for them to ask prayer for their own needs but like many Asian cultures, the extended family is important to Cambodians.

One girl in particular had her head down when I asked her what she would like to receive prayer for. She could barely look up and as I caught a glimpse of her face, she told me that her husband beat her all the time. To me she was the eptiome of what Jesus called a 'downcast' spirit. Her body language and her face reflected the pain of abuse, the loss of dignity and the brokenness of her heart. Her spirit no doubt was crushed from the abuse she had endured. As I was about to pray for her I asked her what her name was and told her to look into my eyes. I began to tell her that Jesus loves Her. That in His eyes she is beautiful and that He knows her pain, He hears the cries of her heart. He is not a God who is distant but who cares what happens to her and He will rescue her. She matters to Him despite what others think. As I shared this with her, she began to cry but I continued to look into her eyes, I wanted her to know that she is loved and valued as a human being. That God can still make something beautiful out of her brokenness. That her pain and suffering had not gone unnoticed. That even though she feels hopeless and helpless, this is not the way it has to be.

I feel so honored that she would share her heart so openly with me but I thank God for His Spirit that allowed our team to stand with these precious women and to say to them that we are their sisters and we share their pain. That we will walk with them just as Jesus walks with us. I am realizing more that the way satan keeps people in bondage is making them feel full of shame. Yet it is when we speak out and share our hurts that God's power is made perfect in weakness. For no longer does that pain have a hold on us but we can lay it down at the foot of the cross and trust that in Christ and with Christ, He will lift us out of the miry pit of shame and set our feet on firm places.