A United Front Testimony: Joy

Setting Captives Free has many mentors that work with us, volunteers who enjoy assisting others to freedom in Christ. Joy is a mentor candidate who has finished A United Front mentorship course, and is now requesting to become a mentor with Setting Captives Free:

I would like to apply to be a mentor for the United Front course. I recently completed this course, and have gone through the 21-day mentorship course. I would like to encourage other women as I have been encouraged here. I came to this course broken, bitter and distrustful. After discovering my husband's sexual impurity, I had lost my joy and I felt like I was being tormented by the lies of the enemy. As a result, I was robbing my children of quality time. I was so busy listening to the lies and running over the situation in my head, that I was not giving them the attention they needed. I was deeply hurt and that hurt was manifesting itself in anger and bitterness toward my husband. At that time, I found it difficult to have respect for him and to submit to him.

I continued to remain close to God, but I didnt know where to begin. I needed someone to show me the way. I remembered reading an article regarding Internet pornography in Today's Christian Woman. I went to their website and found the address of your website. I initially looked at it as a resource for my husband, but God showed me that I was going to need help, too. I did not like who I became in the days following my discovery and I wanted to be healed of the brokenness that I felt. After reading a few testimonies, and being contacted by my mentor, Bethany, I was in awe. They spoke of hope and healing, two things that were elusive to me at the time. There was a part of me that didnt believe it could be true, but that did not stop me from wanting it.

Throughout the United Front Course I learned about forgiveness, grace, true submission, about my responsibility as a wife and how I was created to bring honor to my husband. The Spirit convicted me of many things, and I realized that though my husband had sinned against me, there were ways that I had sinned against him. I realized that there are no degrees of sin, sin is sin. My bitterness began to melt away, and I began to have a repentant heart and to see the grace and forgiveness that God has given me and that I needed to extend to my husband. I also learned about idols in my life. While I didn't think I had any, God showed me that my husband was an idol in my life, my children, but most of all my expectations of them and the way I wanted to be treated was a terrible idol in my life. One of my greatest lessons was that, instead of putting all of my hope and trust in these things, I needed to trust in him. My security and hope had to come from Him.

The things I learned at Setting Captives Free changed the way I look at life. It opened my eyes to who God wants me to be as a wife and to how I can best support and encourage my husband to a deeper relationship with God. My skepticism that there could be healing and hope beyond the discovery of sin has vanished. I now believe that through God's word there is healing and restoration. I long to share that with others. I remember the pain that I felt in the beginning, and if I could help even one woman to move beyond that pain into the healing that God has for her, I would be so blessed! I believe that God allowed me to go through this experience for a reason. I don't think I fully understand that reason yet, but I pray that I can start here at Setting Captives Free mentoring women into a deeper relationship with Him, into freedom from bitterness and into a life of healing and wholeness. Thank you for your consideration and for your faithful stewardship of such a wonderful ministry. It has enriched my life.

Sincerely, Joy