Category: Home and Family

When ignorance isn’t bliss. by Bette Nordberg   When Nita moved in across the street, Susan was delighted to find that her new neighbor was also a full-time mom. Over time their friendship grew to include carpooling duties and occasional morning coffee. Though Susan had never known anyone in a violent relationship, it wasn’t long…

Singing, serving, smiling — but looks can be deceiving. by Don Cox as told to Muriel Larson   In my home, I was the king; my family members were the peasants. At least that was the way I saw things. Whenever there was the slightest resistance to my will, my violent temper could assert itself….

A new adventure of biblical truth. by Betty Smith   Sixteen-year-old Angela struggled to find the chord among the piano keys. She pressed a combination. The sound made me cringe. “It’s okay,” I assured her. As I reached for the keyboard, I felt my heart quickening. My hand trembled as it hovered over the keys….

by Beth Swain   Relieved, I watched the counselor gather his papers without asking me that dreaded question. Then, as if an afterthought, he asked, “Oh, was there any sexual abuse?” There it was. “You mean with me?” I asked, attempting a casual facade. Still, my quivering voice betrayed me. “Yes, with you.” His kind…

Finding forgiveness for the deepest hurts.  by Shirley A. Reynolds   On a concrete bench in a mausoleum courtyard, I tried to muster courage. Shaking my fist at the foliage, I said, “I’m not leaving until I’ve emptied my heart of this anger toward my mother.” Oh Mama, I thought. Why did you use a…

The suffering of Christ gives newmeaning to a suffering man. by Douglas Hainer as told to Marguerite Tustan   My earliest memory is being struck in the head with the butt of a rifle. It was my fourth birthday. My older sister, jealous of the attention I was receiving, hit me so hard that I…

A mother’s pain leads to helping others. by Ginger Green as told to Sherri Langton   A sunny redhead, an honor student: Not the type of girl you’d expect to see lying still and pale in a coroner’s room. But on Monday, May 13, 1991, there she was — our daughter, Margo, dead at twenty-two….

The providence of God in overcoming an abusive past. by Sandra Carlson* as told to Calvin Burrell   At seven, I walked; at fifteen, I talked; at fifty, I began to live. Everything about my childhood was painful – right from the start. I was born physically and mentally slower than my five brothers and…