A Story of Redemption
- March 24, 2024
Today’s Daily Cross is from Brad, a disciple of Jesus Christ.
I was introduced to pornography at an early age by my paternal grandfather who also started molesting me at age 4 (1967). This continued until I reached 14. I became an expert at keeping secrets and telling others nothing that my grandfather was doing to me. I don’t remember everything but every once in a while, a memory comes back to me. Lying became second nature to me. On the other hand, my maternal grandfather was the best grandfather one could ever have but he knew nothing of what was happening to me. Looking back, I realized that if it weren’t for him, things could have been much worse.
My paternal grandfather died in 1978 with no sympathy from me. However, I looked for those magazines as often as I could. I became very insecure around females my own age. I started drinking at 14 which made things seem pleasant. At age 20, I joined the military, and things changed. I was no longer as insecure as I was in my teenage years. Pornography and alcohol were forever present. At age 26, I met my wife-to-be. I had been out of the military for a couple of years by then. By now marijuana had been added to my alcohol consumption. I tried to limit all those evils around me. It worked for a bit but pornography reared its ugly head every now and then. I injured my left knee (1998) and had to make trips to a hospital two hours away. I then discovered body rub parlours. That went on for some time as I came up with excuses to go to larger cities where I could satisfy my newest addiction. It finally came to light as God revealed our sins. There were some near misses before that but I was able to wiggle my way through it.
My wife insisted on a disclosure and a polygraph to follow. I believed I could trick my way through it. I lied on the disclosure and the polygraph proved I was lying. I was booted out of the house. Two weeks later, I told the truth, which was very difficult, but for my wife, it was probably the worst day of her life.
I had a friend who was a Christian who knew enough of my story that he wanted to help me. I went to his house a few times. He gave me bible verses to read and talked about the harm I caused. I went to Christian counselling which helped. I then had that aha moment in a dream where Satan was in my dream offering all the women I could ever want but I stood up to him and said NO, GET AWAY FROM ME SATAN. That began my life to freedom from my wicked past. I turned to the bible twice a day and prayed as often as I could. God put other Christians in my life who helped me get through some of those tough moments. Temptation was present but God was more present. I turned to Psalm 23 whenever I felt Satan tugging at me. If I had to recite that psalm 10 times to ward off Satan then I would say it 10 times. I have been free from my past bad choices for five years now. Our Heavenly Father is a major part of my daily routine. I do not go a day without Him. My wife invited me back but it has not been easy for her. My past is her present. We are working at getting to a point when trust can finally be restored. When that trust is restored, I do not know, but I do know what saved me from the pit and that was the Love of God. Everyone can have that love if they allow God to be part of their life by establishing an intimate relationship with Him.
BecomElects Ministry
I was introduced to pornography at an early age by my paternal grandfather who also started molesting me at age 4 (1967). This continued until I reached 14. I became an expert at keeping secrets and telling others nothing that my grandfather was doing to me. I don’t remember everything but every once in a while, a memory comes back to me. Lying became second nature to me. On the other hand, my maternal grandfather was the best grandfather one could ever have but he knew nothing of what was happening to me. Looking back, I realized that if it weren’t for him, things could have been much worse.
My paternal grandfather died in 1978 with no sympathy from me. However, I looked for those magazines as often as I could. I became very insecure around females my own age. I started drinking at 14 which made things seem pleasant. At age 20, I joined the military, and things changed. I was no longer as insecure as I was in my teenage years. Pornography and alcohol were forever present. At age 26, I met my wife-to-be. I had been out of the military for a couple of years by then. By now marijuana had been added to my alcohol consumption. I tried to limit all those evils around me. It worked for a bit but pornography reared its ugly head every now and then. I injured my left knee (1998) and had to make trips to a hospital two hours away. I then discovered body rub parlours. That went on for some time as I came up with excuses to go to larger cities where I could satisfy my newest addiction. It finally came to light as God revealed our sins. There were some near misses before that but I was able to wiggle my way through it.
My wife insisted on a disclosure and a polygraph to follow. I believed I could trick my way through it. I lied on the disclosure and the polygraph proved I was lying. I was booted out of the house. Two weeks later, I told the truth, which was very difficult, but for my wife, it was probably the worst day of her life.
I had a friend who was a Christian who knew enough of my story that he wanted to help me. I went to his house a few times. He gave me bible verses to read and talked about the harm I caused. I went to Christian counselling which helped. I then had that aha moment in a dream where Satan was in my dream offering all the women I could ever want but I stood up to him and said NO, GET AWAY FROM ME SATAN. That began my life to freedom from my wicked past. I turned to the bible twice a day and prayed as often as I could. God put other Christians in my life who helped me get through some of those tough moments. Temptation was present but God was more present. I turned to Psalm 23 whenever I felt Satan tugging at me. If I had to recite that psalm 10 times to ward off Satan then I would say it 10 times. I have been free from my past bad choices for five years now. Our Heavenly Father is a major part of my daily routine. I do not go a day without Him. My wife invited me back but it has not been easy for her. My past is her present. We are working at getting to a point when trust can finally be restored. When that trust is restored, I do not know, but I do know what saved me from the pit and that was the Love of God. Everyone can have that love if they allow God to be part of their life by establishing an intimate relationship with Him.
BecomElects Ministry