Welcome to Celebrating Life in Recovery, 00:00:10.01\00:00:11.72 I'm Cheri your host. 00:00:11.76\00:00:12.82 I travel a lot and I'm blessed by a lot of people I 00:00:12.85\00:00:15.34 meet, and how God is loving on them. 00:00:15.37\00:00:16.82 And for a brief time I get the privilege of stepping in 00:00:16.85\00:00:20.02 and being a part of that love. 00:00:20.05\00:00:21.44 So, I want to introduce you to some of these friends today. 00:00:21.47\00:00:23.51 So come in and join us! 00:00:23.54\00:00:25.07 Welcome back, you know, it is just fun. 00:00:51.76\00:00:54.02 I love to be able to come up and say 00:00:54.05\00:00:56.24 these are some friends of mine, I have been blessed by 00:00:56.27\00:00:58.63 every single testimony, every single one of the 00:00:58.66\00:01:01.66 folks I'm going to introduce you to I have been blessed. 00:01:01.69\00:01:03.95 They have changed me so I'm not even do a 00:01:03.98\00:01:07.82 teaching today, I'm just go to start by introducing. 00:01:07.85\00:01:09.86 First of all I want to introduce you to Monica. 00:01:09.90\00:01:11.88 Monica was funny because I'm doing this Women's Retreat. 00:01:11.91\00:01:15.07 And I'm running a hundred miles an hour, I'm trying to figure 00:01:15.10\00:01:18.00 out okay the time for this, and we're doing Anointing. 00:01:18.04\00:01:20.97 You know how busy it was, every time I turned around 00:01:21.00\00:01:23.90 she's like in my face, poof. 00:01:23.94\00:01:26.03 I want you to talk about that because it cracked me up. 00:01:26.07\00:01:29.53 Well, I knew I needed to talk to you. 00:01:29.57\00:01:31.07 I needed to talk to you about all the teens I was 00:01:31.10\00:01:33.89 dealing with and you were up front all the time. 00:01:33.93\00:01:36.65 Like you said doing Anointing, so I walked outside of 00:01:36.69\00:01:40.59 the Women's Retreat, 400 people. 00:01:40.62\00:01:42.53 I waited out there and say God I need to talk to 00:01:42.56\00:01:44.76 her and I know I do. 00:01:44.79\00:01:45.96 Right then, you miraculously got out of your seat, the 00:01:46.00\00:01:49.05 other lady was speaking, you walked right to me. 00:01:49.09\00:01:51.72 And I'm like so freaked, it was so freaky. 00:01:51.76\00:01:54.94 You came right to me and I went Cheri, I no you're 00:01:54.97\00:01:57.99 really busy, but give me like 15 minutes. 00:01:58.02\00:02:00.08 Your like right now, let's do it. 00:02:00.11\00:02:01.76 So we walked over to your room, and we were able to talk 00:02:01.80\00:02:04.35 about the teens and what we're going through. 00:02:04.38\00:02:06.81 My husband and I having a new daughter, whose mother 00:02:06.84\00:02:10.15 died of cancer - when you say that, that you brought in 00:02:10.18\00:02:15.70 to your home - yeah - okay. 00:02:15.73\00:02:17.42 So talk about that because as you were talking. 00:02:17.45\00:02:19.36 Cause I'm looking at first, this kind of frantic thing 00:02:19.40\00:02:22.71 about, I've just got in a few minutes we have to talk and 00:02:22.75\00:02:26.83 as we get to the room and start talking, I realize, that I love 00:02:26.87\00:02:30.78 you, I love the fact that you are ministering to folks that 00:02:30.81\00:02:34.69 either have been abandoned, because somebody's 00:02:34.72\00:02:36.67 died in their live. 00:02:36.70\00:02:37.67 Or kids not being cared for, and all of a sudden I wanted to 00:02:37.68\00:02:41.91 grab you and say God bless you. 00:02:41.95\00:02:43.71 Where were you when I was a kid? 00:02:43.75\00:02:45.45 You know what I mean, that's for my heart was. 00:02:45.48\00:02:47.44 You know, I would have picked you up in the second. 00:02:47.47\00:02:49.64 I know you would, I know you would and would have loved 00:02:49.67\00:02:52.36 me because you and your husband are just really stepping 00:02:52.39\00:02:55.04 into this ministry. 00:02:55.07\00:02:56.04 At that time, you were like it was kind of new for you, 00:02:56.05\00:02:58.69 people were just coming to you. 00:02:58.73\00:03:00.70 Yeah, we weren't asking, we had just done vacation Bible 00:03:00.73\00:03:03.95 schools in our area, which is very small like 700 00:03:03.99\00:03:07.13 people, we'd get a hundred... We now get 120 kids in an area 00:03:07.17\00:03:10.92 that has hardly any people. 00:03:10.95\00:03:12.09 But Vacation Bible schools, when she is telling me 00:03:12.38\00:03:15.21 this I am thinking, okay, that is kind of cute. 00:03:15.24\00:03:18.61 And then I literally go and speak with her church. 00:03:18.64\00:03:22.19 I see the vacation Bible school, and they have 00:03:22.23\00:03:25.74 made a waterfall slide. 00:03:25.78\00:03:27.83 That is, like, how long is that. 00:03:27.87\00:03:29.65 150 foot - a 150 foot were kids can slide down that, in 00:03:29.68\00:03:33.64 castles, I mean it literally was this entire area that 00:03:33.68\00:03:37.60 was made to this rock climbing wall, that you are 00:03:37.64\00:03:41.05 climbing up the Eiffel Tower. 00:03:41.09\00:03:42.31 So you really do hands-on stuff to minister to these 00:03:42.35\00:03:45.75 kids, to try to get them interested enough to come so 00:03:45.79\00:03:49.16 you can minister to them. 00:03:49.20\00:03:50.25 Right, since we are - and you had them build it themselves 00:03:50.29\00:03:53.70 Well some of the kids as the kids become part of our 00:03:53.73\00:03:57.63 family than they are involved in a thirty foot high rock 00:03:57.66\00:04:01.52 wall Beau built, and painted that. 00:04:01.55\00:04:04.82 Which then we turned into big Ben and 00:04:04.85\00:04:08.09 Stephanie painted it, big Ben. 00:04:08.12\00:04:09.60 We change it up every year to what it's going to be, 00:04:09.63\00:04:12.74 this year it's going to be camouflage. 00:04:12.78\00:04:14.16 It's going to be Operation Rescue, rescuing family and 00:04:14.19\00:04:18.24 friends across enemy lines. 00:04:18.28\00:04:19.70 Wow, wow! And that's what you do that's your ministry. 00:04:19.74\00:04:23.27 I kind of make up the themes and then my husband, the 00:04:23.31\00:04:26.81 mastermind, the imaginer that doesn't get paid. 00:04:26.85\00:04:30.36 Right, but you know, I just want to let people know that 00:04:30.39\00:04:33.68 for a lot of times I see vacation Bible schools, and I 00:04:33.72\00:04:36.92 see some really cool cardboard cutouts and stuff, but 00:04:36.96\00:04:40.00 you guys literally build buildings and waterslides. 00:04:40.03\00:04:43.01 I wish just like sitting there, and I thought if I was a 00:04:43.04\00:04:46.27 kid I would just be hanging out with you guys. 00:04:46.30\00:04:48.15 You couldn't get rid of me. 00:04:48.18\00:04:49.43 Well, the 100 foot water slide was actually on America's 00:04:49.47\00:04:52.39 Funniest Videos - no way - yeah! 00:04:52.43\00:04:54.33 Because my niece went down it and went over the pond 00:04:54.37\00:04:57.22 headfirst in the mud. 00:04:57.26\00:04:58.76 And she got an honorable mention, which is pretty good. 00:04:58.80\00:05:03.03 But very safe, we do get that checked out - very safe, 00:05:03.07\00:05:07.26 other than this mud bank. 00:05:07.30\00:05:08.52 Well mud doesn't hurt anything, you know. 00:05:08.55\00:05:10.86 So the kids we have been doing that for about 14 or 15 00:05:10.89\00:05:14.06 years, so I have like a base of kids that are used to us. 00:05:14.09\00:05:17.22 Can before we go there I would just like to ask you 00:05:17.26\00:05:20.42 where did you come from, that you had that love? 00:05:20.45\00:05:23.55 Because you know you weren't an abandoned kid, I mean. 00:05:23.58\00:05:28.62 I don't know, I think it's God kind of developed in 00:05:28.66\00:05:33.66 Scott and I just love for Him. 00:05:33.70\00:05:36.87 I think it automatically came, we used to run an elderly 00:05:36.91\00:05:40.32 care home and did that for 15 years. 00:05:40.36\00:05:42.51 The love just started coming from looking at people, you 00:05:42.54\00:05:47.88 had to be aware of what they needed, they couldn't 00:05:47.91\00:05:51.41 always tell you - right. 00:05:51.45\00:05:52.52 Taking care of Alzheimer's and Dementia and in doing 00:05:52.56\00:05:55.31 that you are trying to search out what they need. 00:05:55.35\00:05:58.53 So for kids was really similar they're not going 00:05:58.57\00:06:01.51 jump out and say I really need this - right. 00:06:01.55\00:06:04.42 And they may be even acting out of anger and cussing you 00:06:04.46\00:06:07.76 out, but in reality they need you to hold them. 00:06:07.79\00:06:10.15 Well yeah, in fact we were joking last night, 00:06:10.18\00:06:12.51 Stevie was off the stage. 00:06:12.54\00:06:13.65 Stevie was saying. I remember when you first came to be 00:06:13.68\00:06:17.08 VBS, I know I was scared of you because you like beat up 00:06:17.11\00:06:20.47 all the other girls. 00:06:20.51\00:06:21.82 And I would like, Oh no Stevie's I hope they don't get in a 00:06:21.85\00:06:24.82 fight, but Stevie is like she is my main person 00:06:24.85\00:06:28.54 to organize things. 00:06:28.57\00:06:30.12 When she talks the kids listen, she is so ordained of God. 00:06:30.16\00:06:34.43 So your love literally went to these kids, and I went to 00:06:34.47\00:06:38.71 your youth group, because not only did you say 00:06:38.74\00:06:40.51 in that room telling me that you want to put this out there. 00:06:40.55\00:06:44.11 I want to ask you some questions about how God is leading us, and 00:06:44.15\00:06:47.83 I'm just so proud of you. 00:06:47.87\00:06:48.96 I'm so proud of you, and then you said we really need to come. 00:06:48.99\00:06:52.06 We have a Meth problem that kids are getting lost, I'm afraid 00:06:52.10\00:06:55.13 for them and just feel like, we actually got to come and 00:06:55.17\00:06:58.27 hang out with you and hang out with the youth group. 00:06:58.31\00:07:01.54 And I watch these kids from all over the place, from all 00:07:01.57\00:07:04.77 different walks of life. 00:07:04.81\00:07:06.25 Well, do you remember the one guy that got up in the 00:07:06.28\00:07:08.75 middle of your speaking. 00:07:08.78\00:07:09.81 It's because you made him uncomfortable, because he is 00:07:09.85\00:07:13.14 one of the dads that is really a tough dad to deal with. 00:07:13.17\00:07:16.32 In fact in our vacation Bible school - was I nice to 00:07:16.35\00:07:19.46 him? - yet you are more than nice - okay. 00:07:19.50\00:07:20.86 Good because he gets up - before you go - he gets up to 00:07:20.89\00:07:23.85 leave, and I'm thinking, excuse me, I'm not done talking. 00:07:23.89\00:07:26.67 And they look at me like I'm leaving anyway - No! no! 00:07:26.70\00:07:29.45 you're sitting down. 00:07:29.48\00:07:30.47 It's funny because my heart just says. I'm not just 00:07:30.50\00:07:33.96 saying sit down, because I'm trying to be a pain here, 00:07:34.00\00:07:37.52 but I know recovery is incredible and if you could 00:07:37.56\00:07:41.05 only give God a chance. 00:07:41.08\00:07:42.24 I think that for the youth to because I just want to 00:07:42.28\00:07:45.01 say, and I'm getting bold up here because I love him. 00:07:45.05\00:07:47.96 But if you want to give God a chance, I know that your 00:07:47.99\00:07:50.86 life would be just incredible. 00:07:50.90\00:07:52.61 So I hardly let people leave the room, so I feel bad and 00:07:52.65\00:07:56.01 think was, I mean, did I make him sit down - it was 00:07:56.04\00:07:58.56 really good and he was really the one I could tell the 00:07:58.60\00:08:01.09 Holy Spirit is trying to get to. 00:08:01.12\00:08:02.09 Was he the one that went to the bathroom when I said do 00:08:02.10\00:08:03.97 you want us to wait? - yes - did he get back? 00:08:04.00\00:08:05.96 Like I can stop talking until you come back in the room. 00:08:05.99\00:08:09.10 He was like, no! no! and go ahead, would you leave me alone? 00:08:09.13\00:08:12.21 Actually when you spoke at the school, you picked up to 00:08:12.24\00:08:15.76 Kevin, a guy in the audience. 00:08:15.80\00:08:17.35 Kevin and that was so God ordained, because I knew you 00:08:17.38\00:08:22.11 had no way of knowing it. 00:08:22.15\00:08:23.34 But his little 3 kids had been praying, and my VBS and 00:08:23.37\00:08:28.14 every day, I was there when they would pray. 00:08:28.17\00:08:31.23 In their prayers, the kids were like 4, 6, and 8. 00:08:31.27\00:08:33.95 Would pray for their dad in rehab, and then you picked him 00:08:33.99\00:08:38.00 out of the crowd. 00:08:38.04\00:08:39.10 What is really interesting about picking out Kevin is 00:08:39.13\00:08:42.95 that God so told me here is somebody that is 00:08:42.98\00:08:45.58 lost in his addictions. 00:08:45.61\00:08:47.00 Really losing everybody's losing because he is so 00:08:47.03\00:08:50.14 vacant, not present for them. 00:08:50.18\00:08:51.44 God wanted to call him home, and he is still not in a 00:08:51.47\00:08:54.46 place, he is still struggling. 00:08:54.50\00:08:55.87 And I knew even picking him out, and sometimes I just 00:08:55.91\00:08:59.85 want to say, can't just grab you by the face and beg you 00:08:59.89\00:09:03.80 to walk out of that. 00:09:03.84\00:09:05.96 And you know with what Kevin was really interesting is 00:09:06.00\00:09:09.05 when he was picked out that I knew for a minute 00:09:09.08\00:09:12.74 he heard me - yes he did. 00:09:12.78\00:09:15.02 He did try some recoveries, just it was tough - yes. 00:09:15.05\00:09:18.25 That's what you made a big deal about my husband and I 00:09:18.29\00:09:21.42 loving them, the truth is it is God doing it because believe 00:09:21.45\00:09:24.97 me on a Saturday you know I have all the kids home at my house. 00:09:25.00\00:09:28.15 I would like to just do a few lay activities that every one 00:09:28.18\00:09:31.92 else does, but I can't because there's a pond outside, they 00:09:31.96\00:09:35.68 are all jumping in, or we have got to go help somebody. 00:09:35.72\00:09:39.39 That night, Saturday Night Live are youth group, and we 00:09:39.43\00:09:43.07 have to prepare for that. 00:09:43.10\00:09:44.09 Music we've got just fun things we do for that, but yet 00:09:44.13\00:09:47.57 what I'm trying to explain to the kids is that we are 00:09:47.61\00:09:50.97 not trying to entertain them. 00:09:51.00\00:09:52.04 I can't entertain them. I'm not an X-box I can't do all 00:09:52.07\00:09:56.09 these things, but they actually know where they can go 00:09:56.13\00:10:00.11 when something is bad. 00:10:00.15\00:10:01.35 That is the most important thing, if something is 00:10:01.39\00:10:04.72 happening at home, I can call Monica. 00:10:04.75\00:10:06.51 In fact, one girl and my daughter Stephanie were on a 00:10:06.55\00:10:10.52 merry-go-round before Stephanie, my daughter 00:10:10.56\00:10:12.20 before her mother died. 00:10:12.23\00:10:13.24 They were on a merry-go-round and Stephanie pushed really 00:10:13.28\00:10:17.44 hard and hit Lori on the tooth and the tooth broke - no. 00:10:17.47\00:10:20.99 And she didn't call her parents, she called me and Scott 00:10:21.03\00:10:24.40 It was on a Friday and I'm like what am I going to do 00:10:24.44\00:10:27.78 and this girls crying. 00:10:27.81\00:10:29.29 I said we will come pick you up, and we took her to a 00:10:29.32\00:10:32.79 nice Adventist dentist who on a Friday night and fixed 00:10:32.83\00:10:36.26 her so she wasn't embarrassed to meet the world. 00:10:36.29\00:10:38.60 It was just amazing, because I need them to know there 00:10:38.63\00:10:42.05 is some place to run - Amen! 00:10:42.08\00:10:43.29 I want to, I'm going to introduce every single body, but 00:10:43.32\00:10:47.33 I just want to say, I have blessed your passion, and I 00:10:47.37\00:10:51.77 am blessed by the fact that when you reach out to youth 00:10:51.81\00:10:56.18 it's a harder group because they are so abandoned. 00:10:56.22\00:11:00.08 And in their abandonment they are so angry that you 00:11:00.11\00:11:03.90 really have to let them go through that before they trust 00:11:03.94\00:11:06.77 you enough to say, okay, we can play and just be kids again. 00:11:06.80\00:11:09.59 Well usually, they are pretty mad at me, usually they 00:11:09.63\00:11:11.35 don't like be at first - right. 00:11:11.38\00:11:13.02 Because I'm like in their face, a little bit - yeah, 00:11:13.06\00:11:15.60 I can see that. 00:11:15.63\00:11:16.80 But it is just because I know they need something or 00:11:16.84\00:11:21.02 they want to tell me their way of life is okay. 00:11:21.05\00:11:24.16 So I'm saying, how's it going for it - it's not working- yeah. 00:11:24.20\00:11:27.76 Amazing, I want to bring Stephanie up so Stephanie. 00:11:27.80\00:11:31.13 When you talk about Stephanie, you call her your 00:11:31.17\00:11:34.47 daughter, which she is. 00:11:34.50\00:11:35.80 Then Stephanie, she talks about your mom and your mom's death. 00:11:35.84\00:11:41.11 So how did you meet Monica and what happened to your mom? 00:11:41.14\00:11:46.43 Actually, I Monica through VBS, through that same girl 00:11:46.46\00:11:51.71 who broke her teeth. 00:11:51.75\00:11:53.02 Lori, she convinced me to start coming to, she's like oh yeah, 00:11:53.05\00:11:56.98 if you go to their VBS they will get you to go to camp 00:11:57.01\00:11:59.93 for free, I was like I've never been to camp, sure. 00:11:59.96\00:12:02.84 You know for free that will be fun. 00:12:02.88\00:12:05.26 So I started to go and I started becoming 00:12:05.29\00:12:09.56 better friends with them. 00:12:09.60\00:12:11.34 I would go to the night groups and everything to the 00:12:11.38\00:12:19.68 Saturday Night Live and then my mom started getting sick. 00:12:19.71\00:12:23.12 Sick from - sick from pancreatic cancer - okay, wow. 00:12:23.15\00:12:28.60 She was at first, in her pancreas, and then 00:12:28.64\00:12:33.12 moved to her liver. 00:12:33.16\00:12:34.38 Did she have drugs alcohol or any of those kind of issues? 00:12:34.42\00:12:38.35 You know I never really had that close relationship with her 00:12:38.38\00:12:42.98 I only know that she smokes cigarettes and did marijuana. 00:12:43.01\00:12:47.57 I'm not sure that she did anything else, but my mom 00:12:47.61\00:12:52.01 does, Monica knows, some of her friends that she did 00:12:52.04\00:12:56.41 hang out with did do that. 00:12:56.45\00:12:58.02 I remember a lot of times that they were going to a room 00:12:58.05\00:13:00.75 and be in there for a long time. 00:13:00.79\00:13:02.91 I know she didn't like alcohol, but she did once in awhile. 00:13:02.95\00:13:07.03 Okay, so her cancer kept getting worse? 00:13:07.07\00:13:10.82 It got worse and it was really hard. 00:13:10.86\00:13:14.54 I slowly, I watched her slowly die - I can't imagine that. 00:13:14.57\00:13:19.82 It was, I wanted to run away, I didn't want to be 00:13:19.85\00:13:24.24 around, seeing her die - didn't want to feel that. 00:13:24.27\00:13:28.62 I didn't know what to do - yeah. 00:13:28.66\00:13:30.13 I her face, she was always very heavy, and when she 00:13:30.17\00:13:37.71 got sick. We had a hospital bed inside of our house 00:13:37.74\00:13:40.13 because she didn't want to go to the hospital. 00:13:40.16\00:13:41.66 She was very skinny, she was so skinny, her jaw line 00:13:41.70\00:13:48.03 was, I mean, you can see everything. 00:13:48.07\00:13:50.41 She was just yeah, just lost it all, everything her rib 00:13:50.45\00:13:54.99 cage seem to start sticking out more because of all the 00:13:55.02\00:13:59.53 cancer on the inside, and it was really hard. 00:13:59.56\00:14:03.47 One thing I really wanted to, I feel guilty now, I hate 00:14:03.50\00:14:09.47 it, that I did not want to be there. 00:14:09.51\00:14:12.82 But now when I think about it, I cry because I wish I 00:14:12.86\00:14:16.85 had gotten in that bed and laid down right next to her. 00:14:16.88\00:14:20.18 You know - and you know when you say that, that it is 00:14:20.21\00:14:22.74 really tough because my heart just breaks for you 00:14:22.77\00:14:25.26 because I know what you are saying. 00:14:25.29\00:14:26.49 You know, I just buried my dad in December. So I am just 00:14:26.53\00:14:30.25 accepting the cancer and stuff and I want to say that I 00:14:30.28\00:14:33.96 am sorry that you didn't get to but I understand 00:14:34.00\00:14:36.39 your feelings is I just wanted to run. 00:14:36.43\00:14:38.42 You just couldn't deal with the fact that all this is happening 00:14:38.45\00:14:41.53 and I have no control. 00:14:41.57\00:14:42.70 Yeah, it was really tough for me. 00:14:42.73\00:14:46.58 I never really had a relationship with my mom because 00:14:46.61\00:14:49.91 she was very into many guys. 00:14:49.94\00:14:53.94 So it actually was her second husband, I found out was my dad. 00:14:53.97\00:15:00.65 I never got to know him, he liked beat me when a was a 00:15:00.68\00:15:06.09 baby. So my mom used another guy to get away from him. 00:15:06.12\00:15:10.89 And in doing that she felt obligated to stay with that 00:15:10.93\00:15:15.66 guy, because then she had my sister. 00:15:15.70\00:15:17.96 So, she was with him for a while and then she was with 00:15:18.00\00:15:23.80 another guy who molested me for a long time. 00:15:23.83\00:15:27.43 Then when she started getting sick, she was with two 00:15:27.47\00:15:31.82 other guys - do you think anybody has any idea the 00:15:31.85\00:15:36.13 different things that you have had to deal with in your 00:15:36.17\00:15:39.43 life, that you have buried in your heart. 00:15:39.46\00:15:42.81 Did you think, to me when you first started talking the 00:15:42.84\00:15:45.46 first time I met you and you started telling me some of 00:15:45.49\00:15:48.37 this stuff, I just looked at you and thought I had no idea. 00:15:48.40\00:15:51.24 You look beautiful and grounded in Christ, 00:15:51.28\00:15:55.96 and I know you love God. 00:15:56.00\00:15:57.41 When you started, tell me about your life, I just wanted 00:15:57.44\00:16:00.80 to hold you and weep you know, I just want to say 00:16:00.84\00:16:03.62 I'm sorry for all that. 00:16:03.65\00:16:05.32 But when you walked into a church, and somebody sees 00:16:05.36\00:16:08.35 you, they don't know all that stuff, they don't know 00:16:08.39\00:16:11.34 what you have been through. 00:16:11.38\00:16:12.55 I've actually, I never used to be as confident as I am now. 00:16:12.59\00:16:17.84 I used to, my new parents have helped me a lot on that. 00:16:17.87\00:16:23.09 They helped build myself self esteem and made 00:16:23.12\00:16:28.91 me feel that I was loved. 00:16:28.95\00:16:33.11 I have two parents who loved me, even though sometimes 00:16:33.14\00:16:36.72 they really don't want it, are actually going to help me. 00:16:36.75\00:16:41.48 And they are like being a waitress just won't get you 00:16:41.52\00:16:46.22 through, because like my mom was a waitress. 00:16:46.25\00:16:49.22 That's actually all she did really. 00:16:49.25\00:16:52.13 And we barely made it through or buy anything. 00:16:52.16\00:16:55.93 So I was like we were alive, we had a house, and she 00:16:55.96\00:17:00.38 said, but did you own it? 00:17:00.41\00:17:01.77 No! So I slowly started becoming with my worth ethics 00:17:01.80\00:17:10.35 got better and I could go to a job - so after, as your 00:17:10.38\00:17:13.19 mom was dying then you met Monica and those guys through 00:17:13.22\00:17:18.21 vacation Bible school?. 00:17:18.25\00:17:20.25 I had met them before that - okay - and so my relationship 00:17:20.28\00:17:24.25 with them started getting stronger as mom was dying. 00:17:24.28\00:17:28.79 One night my mom told me that I could choose who I 00:17:28.82\00:17:32.50 wanted to go live with, because she didn't want me to 00:17:32.53\00:17:35.44 live with my daddy either, but it is your choice. 00:17:35.48\00:17:38.29 But what is really interesting to me is when both you 00:17:38.33\00:17:41.28 and your sister had to decide where your going to live 00:17:41.32\00:17:44.23 when your mom dies. 00:17:44.27\00:17:45.53 Both of you had different dads in different states and 00:17:45.56\00:17:48.62 its like you were going to be separated with somebody 00:17:48.65\00:17:51.67 that you didn't even hardly know. 00:17:51.70\00:17:53.17 Yeah, my mom was actually afraid that my dad would fight 00:17:53.20\00:17:57.09 more, well actually that my sister's dad would fight 00:17:57.13\00:18:00.99 more was ending up to be like mine. 00:18:01.02\00:18:03.19 I was like okay lets do whatever and for me my dad was 00:18:03.22\00:18:07.69 all of a sudden, like no she can't, I can have my rights now. 00:18:07.72\00:18:10.56 He even had the gall to tell me when I said, that mom 00:18:10.60\00:18:14.13 passed away, it was like he did even know she was sick. 00:18:14.17\00:18:17.38 I'm like, she called you and told you, I saw her come 00:18:17.42\00:18:20.83 out of the room crying and you're saying you're blaming 00:18:20.86\00:18:24.20 her all of a sudden saying Ah she is not sick that's not right 00:18:24.24\00:18:28.27 He was like getting all mad with me, and I'm like, now I 00:18:28.31\00:18:32.09 really know I don't want to live with you. 00:18:32.13\00:18:33.55 And so one day after my mom told me I could pick who I 00:18:33.59\00:18:39.17 wanted to live with, I got Scott and Monica by themselves. 00:18:39.21\00:18:44.17 I was like really nervous, was like, what am I, how am I 00:18:44.20\00:18:49.13 supposed to ask, I want to live if you - we be my 00:18:49.17\00:18:51.96 parents - we be my parents. 00:18:51.99\00:18:53.75 That's really awkward. 00:18:53.79\00:18:54.90 But I did, it was like my mom gave me a choice and I 00:18:54.93\00:18:58.97 picked you guys, and I don't know - what did they say? 00:18:59.01\00:19:03.37 They were like, we will pray about it, but they were all 00:19:03.41\00:19:07.70 smiles and did not make me doubt that all of a sudden I wasn't. 00:19:07.74\00:19:12.44 But I did, I might just ask them I wonder they don't 00:19:12.47\00:19:18.19 want to, that's embarrassing you know. 00:19:18.23\00:19:19.55 Like I was starting to get afraid, but after that night 00:19:19.58\00:19:24.33 it was, everything started working out very well. 00:19:24.36\00:19:26.75 Do you know what I want to ask you, because I am so 00:19:26.79\00:19:29.15 thrilled that Monica stood in front of you. 00:19:29.18\00:19:31.60 I'm so thrilled that she took it to God and I so love 00:19:31.63\00:19:35.74 God for telling them, yes, are you kidding me, yes. 00:19:35.78\00:19:39.76 I know that your relationship with God, because you 00:19:39.79\00:19:43.20 were acting out one point using stuff a little bit. 00:19:43.24\00:19:47.38 And so for you to come back around where you stand in 00:19:47.42\00:19:51.52 Christ now, how did that happen? 00:19:51.56\00:19:53.55 I started, like said a started going to church because 00:19:53.59\00:19:58.30 umm, Laura got me to come to the VBS because then I 00:19:58.34\00:20:03.01 started going to church. 00:20:03.05\00:20:04.02 I mainly was going to the church though, because there 00:20:04.03\00:20:06.73 was two really cute guys there - yeah ha, ha. 00:20:06.77\00:20:09.54 So listen up two guys, you know, you bring people in the building 00:20:09.58\00:20:13.41 That is one of the reasons I started going, but now, one 00:20:13.45\00:20:16.92 of those guys is my brother. 00:20:16.95\00:20:19.13 How odd is that - it kind of is, I get made fun over that. 00:20:19.17\00:20:26.75 But I started like after I was 12, started getting into 00:20:26.79\00:20:32.95 more of a hate thing, because when I was 11, a that's 00:20:32.98\00:20:39.11 when I finally started maturing. 00:20:39.14\00:20:41.47 I finally told Rick, my mom's boyfriend, - stop doing 00:20:41.51\00:20:49.80 this to me - stop get away from me - right. 00:20:49.84\00:20:52.86 He would still try to make me feel bad and stuff and I 00:20:52.89\00:20:55.80 would just start getting angry and wanting to punch him. 00:20:55.83\00:20:58.59 And other things like that, so I really started getting 00:20:58.63\00:21:01.36 into a bad crowd. 00:21:01.39\00:21:02.38 There was one girl who she lied all the time I have no 00:21:02.42\00:21:06.31 clue what she told me that was even truth from any of it. 00:21:06.34\00:21:10.55 But I hung out with her we would go out to drugs, I 00:21:10.59\00:21:15.44 never got into anything serious, but I got, I did a lot 00:21:15.48\00:21:20.30 of marijuana, cigarettes and did alcohol. 00:21:20.33\00:21:23.38 I did a lot of that what ever I could have I took - 00:21:23.41\00:21:27.21 whatever was in front of you - yeah. 00:21:27.24\00:21:28.91 I knew for a fact that I didn't want to do anything like 00:21:28.95\00:21:32.66 Meth, you know, but if I would have kept on at it I 00:21:32.70\00:21:36.38 probably would have. 00:21:36.42\00:21:37.50 Because I wasn't very strong in what I really wanted. 00:21:37.54\00:21:39.93 At what is really interesting for a lot of people that 00:21:39.97\00:21:42.59 they don't know is that escape that wanting to get away 00:21:42.62\00:21:45.21 from all that pain is very intense. 00:21:45.24\00:21:47.39 It's like whatever is going to help me to get through 00:21:47.43\00:21:50.07 these few years I'm going to take - yeah. 00:21:50.11\00:21:52.69 Not realizing that God is looking after you - yeah. 00:21:52.73\00:21:57.70 I hadn't no clue, I was 13, and I had a 16-year-old 00:21:57.74\00:22:02.67 boyfriend and he was turning 17. 00:22:02.71\00:22:06.66 My mom at first, my real mom before she died she was 00:22:06.70\00:22:10.33 like, I really don't know if you should be dating this 00:22:10.37\00:22:13.24 guy, and I'm like it's fine for not doing anything. 00:22:13.28\00:22:16.12 Because she is your mom is coming back to God 00:22:16.15\00:22:17.98 a little bit there. 00:22:18.01\00:22:18.98 She was totally as I start going to VBS more, going to 00:22:18.99\00:22:22.07 church, she was slowly coming to. 00:22:22.11\00:22:24.39 She always knew of God, and we had a Bible in there, but 00:22:24.42\00:22:27.82 it was like the King James version so I was like, I'm 00:22:27.86\00:22:31.22 not reading this thing. 00:22:31.26\00:22:32.23 Because it was hard to understand - it was very hard. 00:22:32.24\00:22:35.17 I tried at one point like this is interesting I am a 00:22:35.21\00:22:38.11 going to try to read it, and she said good luck. 00:22:38.14\00:22:39.71 So I didn't have very much encouragement on that either. 00:22:39.75\00:22:46.48 but I would hang out with them and I would get messed up. 00:22:46.52\00:22:52.63 I would call my boyfriend on the phone and say, because 00:22:52.66\00:22:57.82 I'm still a virgin, technically, but through my mind, 00:22:57.85\00:23:02.97 because of the molestation, I'm not. 00:23:03.01\00:23:05.57 So, I think of the sexual very often - right because 00:23:05.61\00:23:10.41 that's what that damage does - yeah it haunts me. 00:23:10.45\00:23:14.67 It haunts me my sleeps and everything, in my dreams - 00:23:14.70\00:23:18.83 and you know what. I don't even think that people that 00:23:18.87\00:23:22.97 molest people take advantage of kids realize that you are 00:23:23.01\00:23:26.63 haunted by that, it changes to I am and how I see the 00:23:26.67\00:23:30.22 world until God literally puts His hand on that brings healing. 00:23:30.26\00:23:33.25 Yeah - it's huge - yeah, because even lately everyone 00:23:33.29\00:23:37.93 everyone just started breaking down, you know spilling out 00:23:37.96\00:23:43.45 and all of a sudden, because I hadn't said this to anyone. 00:23:43.49\00:23:48.95 I'm still having dreams of having sex and stuff like that. 00:23:48.99\00:23:53.88 But a lot of the guys that live in my household were 00:23:53.91\00:23:58.08 kind of afraid of me, because they kept getting vibes 00:23:58.12\00:24:01.80 from me, that I don't even realize I'm sending off. 00:24:01.84\00:24:05.45 I wasn't having any thing, it was will people from my past 00:24:05.48\00:24:12.30 A lot of times it was just a dark figure - and you know 00:24:12.33\00:24:15.02 what I want to just say because I'm so glad you're here, 00:24:15.06\00:24:18.84 because I love you. 00:24:18.87\00:24:19.97 I think that you come up to my mind a lot as I go through my 00:24:20.01\00:24:24.89 day as I travel and whatever and you are in my prayers. 00:24:24.93\00:24:27.50 So I'm glad you're here, so I would like to go through 00:24:27.54\00:24:30.09 some of that with you because, as that stuff comes back 00:24:30.13\00:24:32.84 at us and it's in our dreams, is in our thoughts and you 00:24:32.87\00:24:35.55 think, what just happened here? 00:24:35.58\00:24:37.42 Because ours just do this normal thing, trying to pray 00:24:37.46\00:24:39.98 and all of a sudden I had these images. 00:24:40.02\00:24:42.71 Then we feel like we are horrible, the devil I think 00:24:42.75\00:24:45.97 oppresses us, and God says, you know what. I promise you 00:24:46.01\00:24:49.19 that, and I will bring you victory with that. 00:24:49.23\00:24:52.02 It is not you, and it is not your fault, and so you know 00:24:52.05\00:24:55.82 what you and I are hanging out before you leave. 00:24:55.85\00:24:58.06 Alright - okay - just to go through some of that. 00:24:58.09\00:25:00.46 And I wish some times that we could get a whole show. 00:25:00.49\00:25:03.43 Just to go through this because, 1 in 3 girls are 00:25:03.46\00:25:06.69 molested in this country and 1 in 4 or 5 boys are 00:25:06.72\00:25:09.91 molested in this country. 00:25:09.95\00:25:11.16 And so we wonder why we are so twisted sexually. 00:25:11.19\00:25:13.41 I just wanted to say, God never intended that, and you 00:25:13.44\00:25:16.28 know that right - yeah - God never intended - I do know that. 00:25:16.32\00:25:19.12 What I am the strongest with God, I don't have those 00:25:19.15\00:25:24.88 dreams, I feel better, I'm more confident I can stand. 00:25:24.91\00:25:28.27 My dad was teaching me to keep my posture because before 00:25:28.30\00:25:31.12 it was like what's up. 00:25:31.15\00:25:33.01 Now I try to keep my posture, and when I'm closest with 00:25:33.05\00:25:38.06 God, I remember to do this and I feel good about doing it. 00:25:38.09\00:25:42.84 But when I'm not - you can see it in your body - I can 00:25:42.87\00:25:47.44 feel it, I start getting cranky a lot, I don't want 00:25:47.47\00:25:52.00 anyone talking to me, I just want what I want 00:25:52.03\00:25:55.84 that sort of thing. 00:25:55.88\00:25:57.31 My problem is I wanted to make friends with everyone. 00:25:57.35\00:26:03.83 Like we have a whole bunch of cousins that came up for 00:26:03.86\00:26:07.65 Michigan and were with living with us. 00:26:07.69\00:26:08.97 And I was just like - cousins from your new parents. 00:26:09.01\00:26:11.41 New parents, 00:26:11.45\00:26:12.48 Yes, and I was like I want to make friends with these 00:26:12.51\00:26:16.77 guys. But then everything because I was trying to do 00:26:16.80\00:26:20.99 selfish things. I was like really hard time with 00:26:21.03\00:26:23.95 it, because everyone was trying to stay away from me 00:26:23.99\00:26:26.88 because you hit a hiccup. 00:26:26.91\00:26:28.03 Could she know I was in recovery, I don't even know like 00:26:28.07\00:26:31.19 when I first came in the church because I had all that 00:26:31.22\00:26:34.31 stuff that you have the molest and the junk. 00:26:34.34\00:26:37.06 And I like come in and I want to be accepted by 00:26:37.10\00:26:39.74 everybody, but I am so inappropriate, I'm like you who 00:26:39.78\00:26:42.45 my name a Cheri and I try to kill myself when I was 8. 00:26:42.49\00:26:45.70 And they are looking at me like poof, poof and because 00:26:45.74\00:26:48.25 we don't know how to act because we've so damaged. 00:26:48.29\00:26:50.73 We literally almost try to overact, which causes people 00:26:50.76\00:26:54.11 to back up and we see then we don't want that to happen. 00:26:54.14\00:26:57.45 Yeah - it really is just a frantic thing. 00:26:57.49\00:27:00.47 And, I literally Steph, want to have a program just on this. 00:27:00.50\00:27:05.18 Right now I want to pray, we have got to take a break. 00:27:05.22\00:27:09.93 I just want to pray that you know what I'm telling you 00:27:09.96\00:27:13.72 through that, do you know, I'm telling the truth - yeah. 00:27:13.75\00:27:17.09 You know that I got through it? - I can see it - alright. 00:27:17.13\00:27:20.74 So I'm telling you, I promise you God will be faithful, 00:27:20.77\00:27:24.35 and you will get through this. 00:27:24.39\00:27:25.86 And He will teach you to stand in Christ, and it's such 00:27:25.89\00:27:31.36 incredible how the stuff will not plague you. 00:27:31.40\00:27:33.68 And we will hang out before you leave and deal some of 00:27:33.71\00:27:37.03 that, but I just think, I think that you are incredible, 00:27:37.06\00:27:40.34 beautiful women of God. 00:27:40.37\00:27:42.01 I think that what He has done in your life is amazing. 00:27:42.04\00:27:44.80 And I wish that I could somehow take that damage and all 00:27:44.83\00:27:47.55 that and have that off of you. 00:27:47.59\00:27:50.17 But God and you are going to work through that - Amen - 00:27:50.20\00:27:53.70 you know that. 00:27:53.73\00:27:54.70 I'm going to have prayer and we're going to take a break. 00:27:54.71\00:27:56.08 Give me your hand - dear Father in Jesus name I just 00:27:56.12\00:27:58.78 pray for Stephanie. 00:27:58.82\00:27:59.94 I pray that every single person out there that 00:27:59.97\00:28:02.01 understand what she just said, and have been through 00:28:02.04\00:28:05.35 molestation, abuse, and loss and abandonment and all 00:28:05.38\00:28:08.05 those kind of things will stand there and say I don't 00:28:08.09\00:28:10.73 even know how to act sometimes. 00:28:10.76\00:28:12.15 And I'm trying I'm trying standing in Christ, I'm trying 00:28:12.19\00:28:14.94 to fight these images and have these dreams. 00:28:14.98\00:28:17.87 I let go of God in this happens. 00:28:17.90\00:28:19.15 I pray for every single one of us that have gone through 00:28:19.18\00:28:21.62 that and I pray for Stephanie as she goes through that. 00:28:21.66\00:28:24.55 I pray that your Holy Spirit just settle us and I pray 00:28:24.59\00:28:28.44 Father with everyone watching these issues, Stephanie in 00:28:28.48\00:28:32.30 particular, keep Your hand on her and let her know 00:28:32.34\00:28:35.21 beyond a doubt that You are faithful in her recovery and 00:28:35.25\00:28:39.83 You will walk her through this stuff. 00:28:39.87\00:28:41.44 There is going to be a time in her life that she is 00:28:41.47\00:28:43.90 wonder where this stuff is because, she has not 00:28:43.93\00:28:46.33 had the dreams anymore. 00:28:46.36\00:28:47.78 She doesn't have the doubt anymore, she doesn't have to 00:28:47.82\00:28:50.49 wonder whether I have acted right or wrong anymore. 00:28:50.52\00:28:52.12 There's not that frantic stuff because You have so healed her. 00:28:52.16\00:28:56.09 And I just claim that in her life and am just so 00:28:56.12\00:28:58.21 grateful to be her friend and so grateful to be a part 00:28:58.24\00:29:02.15 of who she is and I just pray Father that You keep Your 00:29:02.18\00:29:05.71 hand on her and bless her in recovery, um we are going 00:29:05.75\00:29:09.24 to be taking a break, right now, and I'm just going to beg you 00:29:09.28\00:29:14.29 don't watch this program without praying for us. 00:29:14.32\00:29:16.70 Because you know sometimes I think that people think 00:29:16.74\00:29:19.87 that we have so gone through all this. 00:29:19.90\00:29:22.03 and I am telling you that there are people at every level 00:29:22.06\00:29:26.11 every level of recovery, every level of healing and God 00:29:26.14\00:29:30.15 is faithful so we need your prayers. 00:29:30.19\00:29:31.53 But come back, it's way cool. 00:29:31.56\00:29:33.64