>> Thank you for joining us on
00:00:42.14\00:00:43.54
It Is Written Canada.
00:00:43.54\00:00:44.91
You will remember last week
00:00:44.91\00:00:46.17
we ended off telling
00:00:46.17\00:00:48.28
Reema Sukumaran's story.
00:00:48.28\00:00:50.15
And let me just recap that story
00:00:50.15\00:00:52.45
for you to remind you of what
00:00:52.45\00:00:54.62
Reema was sharing with us.
00:00:54.62\00:00:57.02
It was such a riveting story of
00:00:57.02\00:00:58.15
how she grew up and she knew
00:00:58.15\00:01:00.12
that Jesus was her close friend
00:01:00.12\00:01:01.52
but she also had a very
00:01:01.52\00:01:02.96
abusive father
00:01:02.96\00:01:04.63
that was not only abusive
00:01:04.63\00:01:05.96
towards her and her brothers
00:01:05.96\00:01:07.03
but also towards her mother.
00:01:07.03\00:01:09.03
And later in her life she had
00:01:09.03\00:01:12.17
an experience where she had
00:01:12.17\00:01:13.67
trusted a spiritual mentor
00:01:13.67\00:01:15.87
and he had taken advantage of
00:01:15.87\00:01:17.54
her and abused her in a
00:01:17.54\00:01:20.54
very hurtful way.
00:01:20.54\00:01:22.44
And she was sharing that story
00:01:22.44\00:01:24.01
last time
00:01:24.01\00:01:25.15
and not only about that
00:01:25.15\00:01:26.45
but how she had come to the
00:01:26.45\00:01:28.05
place twenty-five years later
00:01:28.05\00:01:29.92
she was married
00:01:29.92\00:01:31.05
she had six boys
00:01:31.05\00:01:33.36
and she was looking for
00:01:33.36\00:01:36.29
healing, for an answer from God
00:01:36.29\00:01:38.46
and she just couldn't find that
00:01:38.46\00:01:41.20
and then a spiritual leader came
00:01:41.20\00:01:42.83
to her and said to her
00:01:42.83\00:01:44.47
"I am sorry."
00:01:44.47\00:01:46.67
And that was so much more
00:01:46.67\00:01:48.40
meaningful to her and brought
00:01:48.40\00:01:49.84
healing to her heart.
00:01:49.84\00:01:51.17
And so I want to speak to Reema
00:01:51.17\00:01:53.71
and her husband, Sanj, who are
00:01:53.71\00:01:55.54
here with us today
00:01:55.54\00:01:57.21
and to continue their story and
00:01:57.21\00:02:00.28
how that has been healing for
00:02:00.28\00:02:03.49
not only them, but for others
00:02:03.49\00:02:05.22
and so, Reema, thank you for
00:02:05.22\00:02:07.02
being with us again
00:02:07.02\00:02:08.52
and Sanj, your husband.
00:02:08.52\00:02:11.26
So at that point
00:02:11.26\00:02:13.50
that you had told us about last
00:02:13.50\00:02:15.73
time, you had experienced a
00:02:15.73\00:02:17.97
spiritual leader who came to
00:02:17.97\00:02:19.43
you and he said, "I'm sorry."
00:02:19.43\00:02:22.70
Was he the only one
00:02:22.70\00:02:23.77
who came forward?
00:02:23.77\00:02:24.64
Or were there others who came
00:02:24.64\00:02:25.71
forward and spoke to you?
00:02:25.71\00:02:27.01
>> So he was the first person in
00:02:27.01\00:02:28.51
the church in twenty-five years
00:02:28.51\00:02:29.74
that actually came and
00:02:29.74\00:02:30.78
apologized.
00:02:30.78\00:02:32.08
but the powerful thing was
00:02:32.08\00:02:33.21
his example.
00:02:33.21\00:02:34.55
He set such a powerful example
00:02:34.55\00:02:36.79
to a room full of pastors and
00:02:36.79\00:02:39.29
over the course of the weekend
00:02:39.29\00:02:41.52
about ninety-five percent of
00:02:41.52\00:02:43.36
those pastors came and
00:02:43.36\00:02:44.26
apologized to--
00:02:44.26\00:02:45.49
"On behalf of our church
00:02:45.49\00:02:46.73
I am sorry."
00:02:46.73\00:02:48.00
>> Those weren't the pastors who
00:02:48.00\00:02:48.90
hurt you.
00:02:48.90\00:02:49.73
>> None of them.
00:02:49.73\00:02:50.87
>> No. None of them.
00:02:50.87\00:02:52.70
And, you know, the other
00:02:52.70\00:02:54.50
thing that really stands out to
00:02:54.50\00:02:56.30
me is every time that I speak
00:02:56.30\00:02:58.11
there's always a handful of
00:02:58.11\00:02:59.27
people that come and whisper
00:02:59.27\00:03:00.44
in my ear
00:03:00.44\00:03:01.51
"You're telling my story."
00:03:01.51\00:03:03.04
And that happened in that room
00:03:03.04\00:03:04.41
full of pastors, too.
00:03:04.41\00:03:05.78
We never know where the hurt
00:03:05.78\00:03:07.62
has happened, so...
00:03:07.62\00:03:09.68
>> You know what's so amazing
00:03:09.68\00:03:11.15
for me is that God's timing is
00:03:11.15\00:03:13.52
so perfect.
00:03:13.52\00:03:14.99
You know?
00:03:14.99\00:03:16.59
Like you said
00:03:16.59\00:03:17.76
for twenty-five years
00:03:17.76\00:03:20.10
you know, and then all of a
00:03:20.10\00:03:22.03
sudden His timing, you know
00:03:22.03\00:03:24.67
He leads you to speak.
00:03:24.67\00:03:26.80
And so can you tell us a little
00:03:26.80\00:03:27.77
bit more about that, Sanj
00:03:27.77\00:03:29.40
and how that worked out?
00:03:29.40\00:03:31.04
>> Yeah. It's kind of like that
00:03:31.04\00:03:31.97
wandering in the wilderness
00:03:31.97\00:03:32.94
story, isn't it?
00:03:32.94\00:03:33.91
You know, where you--
00:03:33.91\00:03:34.54
You know, God has a will
00:03:34.54\00:03:35.74
for you, but you're not
00:03:35.74\00:03:36.61
ready for it yet, right?
00:03:36.61\00:03:38.31
And, you know, we would have
00:03:38.31\00:03:39.78
thought, you know, when you're
00:03:39.78\00:03:41.18
young you think, "I'm ready to
00:03:41.18\00:03:42.05
do this." Right?
00:03:42.05\00:03:43.35
"So, Lord, do it now."
00:03:43.35\00:03:44.95
But we weren't ready.
00:03:44.95\00:03:46.32
He was preparing our hearts
00:03:46.32\00:03:47.12
right?
00:03:47.12\00:03:47.92
And He was maturing our
00:03:47.92\00:03:49.12
spiritual experience that when
00:03:49.12\00:03:50.96
He did use us
00:03:50.96\00:03:53.03
we were far more equipped
00:03:53.03\00:03:55.06
to do His will.
00:03:55.06\00:03:57.03
And so twenty-five years later
00:03:57.03\00:03:58.37
you know
00:03:58.37\00:03:59.57
when His will was revealed
00:03:59.57\00:04:00.64
it all came at--
00:04:00.64\00:04:02.67
in perfect timing, right?
00:04:02.67\00:04:04.47
Because He is perfect.
00:04:04.47\00:04:06.31
He doesn't make mistakes, right?
00:04:06.31\00:04:08.61
>> So here we are talking about
00:04:08.61\00:04:10.25
a very sensitive topic
00:04:10.25\00:04:12.41
Do you think it's something we
00:04:12.75\00:04:14.75
should be exposing or do you
00:04:14.75\00:04:16.95
think it's something that
00:04:16.95\00:04:18.29
"Hey if I just keep a lid on"
00:04:18.29\00:04:20.22
"this thing, it's just going"
00:04:20.22\00:04:21.59
"to go away."
00:04:21.59\00:04:23.46
Or is it going to make it worse?
00:04:23.46\00:04:25.03
>> Well, I can assure you it
00:04:25.03\00:04:26.26
doesn't go away.
00:04:26.26\00:04:27.76
It's with me every moment
00:04:27.76\00:04:28.96
of every day.
00:04:28.96\00:04:31.27
And, no, I don't believe that we
00:04:31.27\00:04:33.13
should hide from it.
00:04:33.13\00:04:35.00
You know, if we are vocal about
00:04:35.00\00:04:37.04
it, the perpetrators are going
00:04:37.04\00:04:38.24
to have something to fear.
00:04:38.24\00:04:39.47
Maybe think twice about--
00:04:39.47\00:04:41.21
Sanj was talking about the
00:04:41.21\00:04:43.01
perfect timing and when God
00:04:43.01\00:04:45.28
brought this out for me to do
00:04:45.28\00:04:46.95
it's also when...
00:04:46.95\00:04:48.92
the Me Too movement started.
00:04:50.82\00:04:52.95
And that was just so amazing
00:04:52.95\00:04:54.86
because you know what
00:04:54.86\00:04:55.69
happened is I wasn't alone.
00:04:55.69\00:04:57.63
I mean, how many women were
00:04:57.63\00:04:59.36
telling their story and
00:04:59.36\00:05:01.50
you know, Me Too #pastoralabuse
00:05:01.50\00:05:05.00
that was pretty amazing, too.
00:05:05.00\00:05:06.53
How many people have been abused
00:05:06.53\00:05:08.27
by clergy
00:05:08.27\00:05:09.57
in all the churches.
00:05:09.57\00:05:11.31
This isn't about one church.
00:05:11.31\00:05:12.61
And so, you know
00:05:12.61\00:05:15.61
I'm a mom of six boys and
00:05:15.61\00:05:18.05
I share things with my kids
00:05:18.05\00:05:19.65
because if I don't share them
00:05:19.65\00:05:21.08
then someone else is going to.
00:05:21.08\00:05:23.12
>> You know, and so, yes
00:05:23.12\00:05:24.52
education is the key.
00:05:24.52\00:05:25.59
And you know, I'm really proud
00:05:25.59\00:05:26.82
to see churches taking a lead on
00:05:26.82\00:05:28.86
this of standing up and putting
00:05:28.86\00:05:32.59
things into play
00:05:32.59\00:05:33.70
course work, educating.
00:05:33.70\00:05:35.36
You know, I'd like to see the
00:05:35.36\00:05:37.20
"boy's club" is finally
00:05:37.20\00:05:38.03
breaking.
00:05:38.03\00:05:39.10
It's still not broken.
00:05:39.10\00:05:40.84
And when I say "boy's club" I'm
00:05:40.84\00:05:42.10
talking about twenty years ago
00:05:42.10\00:05:43.61
when church officials kind of
00:05:43.61\00:05:46.17
had each other's back.
00:05:46.17\00:05:47.68
But now I think that--
00:05:47.68\00:05:49.54
I've learned that if you love
00:05:49.54\00:05:51.05
somebody and if they're doing
00:05:51.05\00:05:52.55
something wrong you should be
00:05:52.55\00:05:54.48
able to care enough to go
00:05:54.48\00:05:55.78
confront them.
00:05:55.78\00:05:57.02
>> But, you know, you asked
00:05:57.02\00:05:58.09
about this direct approach to
00:05:58.09\00:05:59.75
dealing with these things,
00:05:59.75\00:06:00.96
right?
00:06:00.96\00:06:01.89
Well, in getting to know Reema
00:06:01.89\00:06:03.49
in this little bit of time
00:06:03.49\00:06:04.66
you will understand that she's
00:06:04.66\00:06:05.33
very direct
00:06:05.33\00:06:06.66
and that's a gift God's given
00:06:06.66\00:06:07.86
her, right?
00:06:07.86\00:06:09.13
I mean, she never steers away
00:06:09.13\00:06:10.37
from these things.
00:06:10.37\00:06:11.23
With our boys, she's very direct
00:06:11.23\00:06:12.67
with them.
00:06:12.67\00:06:13.70
We're very open about these
00:06:13.70\00:06:14.67
things and it's her gift
00:06:14.67\00:06:16.20
and this is what God is
00:06:16.20\00:06:17.34
using in her
00:06:17.34\00:06:18.61
where she doesn't shy away from
00:06:18.61\00:06:19.74
telling you her story
00:06:19.74\00:06:21.51
and it's not a weakness that
00:06:21.51\00:06:22.61
she comes from.
00:06:22.61\00:06:23.55
You know, people think
00:06:23.55\00:06:24.41
"Oh, poor you." Right?
00:06:24.41\00:06:25.75
No, not "poor you."
00:06:25.75\00:06:27.25
This is one strong woman
00:06:27.25\00:06:28.95
who God has equipped with what
00:06:28.95\00:06:30.75
she needs to face things
00:06:30.75\00:06:32.15
head on and to encourage others
00:06:32.15\00:06:34.12
to face things head on.
00:06:34.12\00:06:35.69
>> Yeah. And so we have a duty
00:06:35.69\00:06:38.13
really to protect and prevent
00:06:38.13\00:06:41.86
this from happening to those
00:06:41.86\00:06:43.67
who are vulnerable by speaking
00:06:43.67\00:06:45.07
out and saying this has
00:06:45.07\00:06:47.24
happened and we don't want it
00:06:47.24\00:06:48.84
to happen ever again.
00:06:48.84\00:06:49.94
>> No.
00:06:51.41\00:06:52.77
And, you know, as you were
00:06:52.77\00:06:53.98
saying that I was thinking that
00:06:53.98\00:06:55.51
I wanted to add that, you know
00:06:55.51\00:06:57.48
I think that God's not just only
00:06:57.48\00:06:59.01
going to hurt the perpetrator
00:06:59.01\00:07:00.78
accountable, but He's also going
00:07:00.78\00:07:02.25
to hurt the people that--
00:07:02.25\00:07:03.72
Not hurt, sorry, hold them
00:07:03.72\00:07:05.05
accountable--
00:07:05.05\00:07:06.05
the people that knew.
00:07:06.05\00:07:07.76
You know, my perpetrator--
00:07:07.76\00:07:10.06
there were how many people that
00:07:10.06\00:07:10.96
knew what he was doing
00:07:10.96\00:07:12.23
but the success of the school
00:07:12.23\00:07:14.10
or their friendship were more
00:07:14.10\00:07:15.36
important to them
00:07:15.36\00:07:16.53
and I believe God's going to
00:07:16.53\00:07:17.80
hold them accountable, too.
00:07:17.80\00:07:19.07
And so as Christians, if we love
00:07:19.07\00:07:21.30
one another, we need to take
00:07:21.30\00:07:22.67
care of each other.
00:07:22.67\00:07:23.54
We need to have each other's
00:07:23.54\00:07:24.54
back whether it's in prevention
00:07:24.54\00:07:26.27
or in helping someone that
00:07:26.27\00:07:29.31
is suffering with this illness.
00:07:29.31\00:07:31.08
>> The words of Christ come to
00:07:31.08\00:07:32.81
my mind where He says that
00:07:32.81\00:07:34.38
there is nothing that is hidden
00:07:34.38\00:07:36.15
that will not be revealed.
00:07:36.15\00:07:37.02
>> Right.
00:07:37.02\00:07:38.09
>> If there is a person out
00:07:38.09\00:07:39.62
there who has been hurt or
00:07:39.62\00:07:42.19
abused or if there is someone
00:07:42.19\00:07:43.59
out there who has done this
00:07:43.59\00:07:44.83
to others
00:07:44.83\00:07:45.89
whichever side you're on
00:07:45.89\00:07:47.13
you need to come to God
00:07:47.13\00:07:49.40
and you need to get healing
00:07:49.40\00:07:50.57
and you need to get help.
00:07:50.57\00:07:52.83
I know that you have a website
00:07:52.83\00:07:54.94
that talks about that.
00:07:54.94\00:07:56.24
Can you mention that?
00:07:56.24\00:07:57.61
>> My website is reematalks.com
00:07:57.61\00:08:00.18
and in it there are some helpful
00:08:00.18\00:08:02.18
hints of
00:08:02.18\00:08:03.11
if you are being abused or if
00:08:03.11\00:08:04.85
you have been a victim of maybe
00:08:04.85\00:08:06.58
things you can seek out--
00:08:06.58\00:08:07.95
help you can seek out.
00:08:07.95\00:08:09.55
There are--
00:08:09.55\00:08:11.35
I'm leading course work in how
00:08:11.35\00:08:13.02
to help leaders prevent this and
00:08:13.02\00:08:17.83
things that we can implement in
00:08:17.83\00:08:18.69
churches and businesses
00:08:18.69\00:08:19.79
and schools.
00:08:19.79\00:08:21.03
There are ten steps that I talk
00:08:21.03\00:08:22.23
about in identifying a
00:08:22.23\00:08:24.33
perpetrator and the interesting
00:08:24.33\00:08:25.57
thing was my perpetrator did
00:08:25.57\00:08:27.84
every one of those steps in the
00:08:27.84\00:08:29.50
order that he did it with.
00:08:29.50\00:08:31.57
So, yeah...
00:08:31.57\00:08:32.81
>> There's some universality to
00:08:32.81\00:08:34.11
this thing.
00:08:34.11\00:08:34.94
It's not just a uniqueness,
00:08:34.94\00:08:35.78
right?
00:08:35.78\00:08:36.61
To have perpetrators
00:08:36.61\00:08:37.98
take a path.
00:08:37.98\00:08:40.48
>> So he followed from step one
00:08:40.48\00:08:42.78
right through to step ten in the
00:08:42.78\00:08:44.49
exact order.
00:08:44.49\00:08:45.49
>> All the way to the end.
00:08:45.49\00:08:46.45
Yes, yes.
00:08:46.45\00:08:48.36
When I was studying about it
00:08:48.36\00:08:50.03
I came across this website and
00:08:50.03\00:08:52.29
unfortunately I can't remember
00:08:52.29\00:08:53.73
it right now, but a lady was
00:08:53.73\00:08:55.50
talking about it
00:08:55.50\00:08:57.40
telling a story
00:08:57.40\00:08:58.73
and she was actually telling a
00:08:58.73\00:09:00.04
story using the ten steps
00:09:00.04\00:09:01.60
perpetrators take
00:09:01.60\00:09:03.04
and what shocked me was she was
00:09:03.04\00:09:05.24
literally telling my story
00:09:05.24\00:09:06.68
from beginning to end.
00:09:06.68\00:09:08.68
And it startled me, you know?
00:09:08.68\00:09:12.58
But yeah, they seem to have a
00:09:12.58\00:09:14.72
pattern.
00:09:14.72\00:09:15.65
>> And these steps are all
00:09:15.65\00:09:16.79
mentioned on your website.
00:09:16.79\00:09:18.29
>> Yes.
00:09:18.29\00:09:19.12
>> Forgiveness.
00:09:20.39\00:09:22.36
How does that play into
00:09:22.36\00:09:24.73
this whole experience?
00:09:24.73\00:09:26.90
>> So for me, you know
00:09:26.90\00:09:29.30
forgiveness has been a big part
00:09:29.30\00:09:31.07
of my journey whether it's been
00:09:31.07\00:09:32.60
with this pastor or my dad or
00:09:32.60\00:09:34.94
people that have hurt me
00:09:34.94\00:09:36.00
and...
00:09:36.00\00:09:38.74
one of the things I will
00:09:38.74\00:09:39.71
mention is counselling.
00:09:39.71\00:09:42.38
Church actually facilitated
00:09:42.38\00:09:43.85
counselling for me and I've been
00:09:43.85\00:09:45.38
in counselling for over three
00:09:45.38\00:09:46.68
years and it's been incredible
00:09:46.68\00:09:48.85
the journey God is
00:09:48.85\00:09:49.85
taking me on.
00:09:49.85\00:09:51.22
And one of the biggest things--
00:09:51.22\00:09:52.35
I'm just going to grab
00:09:52.35\00:09:52.99
my notes here.
00:09:52.99\00:09:53.89
One of the biggest things I've
00:09:53.89\00:09:55.02
learned about forgiveness is
00:09:55.02\00:09:56.66
there's so much--
00:09:56.66\00:09:58.99
there's so much healing
00:09:58.99\00:10:00.53
in forgiving.
00:10:00.53\00:10:02.06
I've been asked numerous times
00:10:02.06\00:10:04.40
you know, have I forgiven him?
00:10:04.40\00:10:06.20
You know what? I have.
00:10:06.20\00:10:07.87
Because it's not about me
00:10:07.87\00:10:09.17
it's about God.
00:10:09.17\00:10:10.31
You know, and if I were him
00:10:10.31\00:10:12.24
I would be petrified.
00:10:12.24\00:10:13.58
You know, when God comes
00:10:13.58\00:10:14.91
He is going to hold all of us
00:10:14.91\00:10:17.48
accountable
00:10:17.48\00:10:18.65
and one of the things that
00:10:18.65\00:10:20.88
I love, I love this quote.
00:10:20.88\00:10:21.98
It says, "It's not an easy"
00:10:21.98\00:10:23.85
"journey to get to the place"
00:10:23.85\00:10:25.92
"where you forgive people"
00:10:25.92\00:10:27.59
"but it is such a powerful"
00:10:27.59\00:10:28.86
"place because it frees you."
00:10:28.86\00:10:31.49
And in the last three years
00:10:31.49\00:10:32.86
I've started finding that
00:10:32.86\00:10:34.13
freedom and today I can say
00:10:34.13\00:10:36.10
that I have forgiven him.
00:10:36.10\00:10:37.57
I hope he seeks help.
00:10:37.57\00:10:39.37
I hope he asks for forgiveness.
00:10:39.37\00:10:40.64
Because, truthfully, I hope
00:10:40.64\00:10:41.60
he's in heaven.
00:10:41.60\00:10:43.97
I found this verse that's
00:10:43.97\00:10:45.17
called--
00:10:45.17\00:10:45.71
>> That's hard for me
00:10:45.71\00:10:46.21
by the way.
00:10:46.21\00:10:46.81
[laughter]
00:10:46.81\00:10:47.84
>> It's hard for most people to
00:10:47.84\00:10:48.58
understand but--
00:10:48.58\00:10:49.71
>> Well, he hurt your wife
00:10:51.65\00:10:53.05
and so you--
00:10:53.05\00:10:54.58
and the forgiveness has to come
00:10:54.58\00:10:55.88
through your heart, too, and--
00:10:55.88\00:10:57.12
>> I've had to!
00:10:57.12\00:10:58.12
I've had this anger, too, right?
00:10:58.12\00:11:00.09
You know, as someone
00:11:00.09\00:11:01.16
who loves Reema
00:11:01.16\00:11:03.29
to know that someone
00:11:03.29\00:11:04.13
hurt her this badly
00:11:04.13\00:11:05.56
and so my heart becomes
00:11:05.56\00:11:06.63
blackened
00:11:06.63\00:11:07.96
and that's hard on our marriage
00:11:07.96\00:11:10.27
when I have those feelings
00:11:10.27\00:11:12.47
right?
00:11:12.47\00:11:13.67
Because it's hard for me to sit
00:11:13.67\00:11:15.20
here and go--
00:11:15.20\00:11:16.00
and know that Reema has
00:11:16.00\00:11:16.81
forgiven him. Right?
00:11:16.81\00:11:19.87
Like, you've forgiven him.
00:11:19.87\00:11:20.91
You want him in heaven.
00:11:20.91\00:11:22.31
And I'm like, "Really?"
00:11:22.31\00:11:24.75
So, you know, that's been hard
00:11:24.75\00:11:26.68
for me, too, so I've also had to
00:11:26.68\00:11:28.78
find my ability to forgive
00:11:28.78\00:11:31.19
someone I've never even met
00:11:31.19\00:11:33.02
because it'll eat me up
00:11:33.02\00:11:34.49
otherwise
00:11:34.49\00:11:35.82
and so my heart has to be
00:11:35.82\00:11:37.09
cleaned.
00:11:37.09\00:11:37.76
>> So let's think about this.
00:11:37.76\00:11:39.06
If he ends up in heaven
00:11:39.06\00:11:40.16
he's going to be
00:11:40.16\00:11:40.86
a different person.
00:11:40.86\00:11:41.80
He's not going to be
00:11:41.80\00:11:42.46
the same person.
00:11:42.46\00:11:43.13
So that's amazing
00:11:43.13\00:11:44.20
that God can
00:11:44.20\00:11:45.87
transform all of us
00:11:45.87\00:11:48.10
and make us new creatures.
00:11:48.10\00:11:49.60
Right?
00:11:49.60\00:11:50.17
>> You know what?
00:11:50.17\00:11:50.84
He took a little girl's dream
00:11:50.84\00:11:52.94
He took my pain
00:11:52.94\00:11:54.11
He took my hopes
00:11:54.11\00:11:55.41
and, you know, He's made it
00:11:55.41\00:11:57.18
into something really, really
00:11:57.18\00:11:58.48
special.
00:11:58.48\00:11:59.25
He's blessed me with this
00:11:59.25\00:12:00.52
incredible family that I have
00:12:00.52\00:12:02.35
a husband that loves me
00:12:02.35\00:12:03.35
and six boys that--
00:12:03.35\00:12:05.25
>> Adore her!
00:12:05.25\00:12:06.76
>> And they would hurt anyone
00:12:06.76\00:12:07.69
that hurt me.
00:12:07.69\00:12:09.02
And so, you know what?
00:12:09.02\00:12:10.49
Like, He has blessed me with
00:12:10.49\00:12:11.69
this amazing family.
00:12:11.69\00:12:13.09
We're not perfect
00:12:13.09\00:12:14.50
but it is my perfect.
00:12:14.50\00:12:16.20
You know, and God knew exactly
00:12:16.20\00:12:17.60
what He was doing and...
00:12:17.60\00:12:19.73
who am I to not forgive?
00:12:21.24\00:12:22.40
>> Yeah.
00:12:22.40\00:12:23.61
>> So your little girl dream
00:12:23.61\00:12:25.17
turned out
00:12:25.17\00:12:26.81
even better in reality than
00:12:26.81\00:12:29.28
what it was--
00:12:29.28\00:12:30.08
>> For sure.
00:12:30.08\00:12:31.28
>> in a dream as a little girl.
00:12:31.28\00:12:32.21
Wow!
00:12:32.21\00:12:33.25
>> But not a Disney show
00:12:33.25\00:12:34.28
right?
00:12:34.28\00:12:34.78
>> No.
00:12:34.78\00:12:35.58
>> Not a Disney dream, right?
00:12:35.58\00:12:36.35
Because not this
00:12:36.35\00:12:37.05
perfect, perfect ending
00:12:37.05\00:12:38.39
because it's in our imperfection
00:12:38.39\00:12:40.59
that He gives us this, right?
00:12:40.59\00:12:42.86
You know, He uses that.
00:12:42.86\00:12:46.06
It's not gone
00:12:46.06\00:12:48.86
but it's what's so beautiful.
00:12:48.86\00:12:49.96
>> Yeah, there are scars
00:12:49.96\00:12:51.50
yes, but there's healing.
00:12:51.50\00:12:53.20
>> They're beautiful scars.
00:12:53.20\00:12:54.40
>> Wow!
00:12:54.40\00:12:56.37
Do you have a Bible verse
00:12:56.37\00:12:57.67
that would help us?
00:12:57.67\00:12:59.94
>> So I really like this verse.
00:12:59.94\00:13:01.68
It's from Romans 12:17-21
00:13:01.68\00:13:04.28
I can't imagine
00:13:31.34\00:13:34.31
you know, how God is going to
00:13:34.31\00:13:35.34
deal with sin, but I wouldn't
00:13:35.34\00:13:36.85
want to be on the receiving end
00:13:36.85\00:13:37.68
of that.
00:13:37.68\00:13:38.71
>> Yeah, well, I mean
00:13:38.71\00:13:39.95
someone treats you badly
00:13:39.95\00:13:42.38
and you're kind towards them
00:13:42.38\00:13:44.55
you know, that just takes
00:13:44.55\00:13:46.49
everything out of it.
00:13:46.49\00:13:48.02
You know, Jesus was whipped and
00:13:48.02\00:13:50.13
abused and hurt and
00:13:50.13\00:13:51.26
He just kept on
00:13:51.26\00:13:53.33
forgiving, right?
00:13:53.33\00:13:54.93
"Father, forgive them"
00:13:54.93\00:13:55.83
"they don't know"
00:13:55.83\00:13:56.63
"what they're doing."
00:13:56.63\00:13:57.20
It was like He was saying
00:13:57.20\00:13:58.00
"I'm going to keep loving you"
00:13:58.00\00:13:59.87
"no matter--"
00:13:59.87\00:14:00.94
"You can do what you want"
00:14:00.94\00:14:01.87
"to Me, but you can't"
00:14:01.87\00:14:03.04
"stop Me from loving you."
00:14:03.04\00:14:03.71
Right?
00:14:03.71\00:14:04.81
"And showing that love"
00:14:04.81\00:14:06.44
"towards others."
00:14:06.44\00:14:07.11
Now you have a love
00:14:07.11\00:14:08.11
for each other.
00:14:08.11\00:14:09.14
You've got a successful
00:14:09.14\00:14:10.95
marriage.
00:14:10.95\00:14:11.95
How did that happen?
00:14:11.95\00:14:13.31
>> Well, you know what?
00:14:13.31\00:14:14.62
This is again, it comes back to
00:14:14.62\00:14:17.15
that openness, right?
00:14:17.15\00:14:18.99
You know, when you don't hide
00:14:18.99\00:14:20.46
from your issues, when you
00:14:20.46\00:14:21.59
confront them--
00:14:21.59\00:14:22.66
We learned that right early in
00:14:22.66\00:14:23.86
our marriage counselling, right?
00:14:23.86\00:14:25.63
We could have hidden those--
00:14:25.63\00:14:26.59
We talked about the hidden
00:14:26.59\00:14:27.60
stories, right?
00:14:27.60\00:14:28.46
We could have buried
00:14:28.46\00:14:29.73
all those things
00:14:29.73\00:14:31.13
but they would have come out.
00:14:31.13\00:14:32.63
There's no secrets that won't
00:14:32.63\00:14:33.57
reveal themselves, right?
00:14:33.57\00:14:34.97
They would have come up
00:14:34.97\00:14:35.80
eventually.
00:14:35.80\00:14:37.11
And so in our life, you know
00:14:37.11\00:14:38.77
Reema makes me be far more
00:14:38.77\00:14:40.38
open than I would otherwise
00:14:40.38\00:14:41.61
naturally be.
00:14:41.61\00:14:42.81
[laughter]
00:14:42.81\00:14:44.25
Right?
00:14:44.25\00:14:45.35
You know, we talk about that.
00:14:45.35\00:14:46.35
Communication's a big thing
00:14:46.35\00:14:47.02
right?
00:14:47.02\00:14:47.45
But what does that
00:14:47.52\00:14:48.05
communication mean, right?
00:14:48.15\00:14:48.78
It means honesty and openness?
00:14:48.85\00:14:49.72
right?
00:14:49.72\00:14:50.35
Confronting things head on.
00:14:50.35\00:14:51.52
It's not always easy.
00:14:51.52\00:14:53.29
There's always thing that come
00:14:53.29\00:14:54.36
in your way, right?
00:14:54.36\00:14:55.66
But you've just--
00:14:55.66\00:14:57.16
you've got to deal with them
00:14:57.16\00:14:58.13
in real life.
00:14:58.13\00:14:59.23
>> So those are experiences
00:14:59.23\00:15:00.83
you've had in the past
00:15:00.83\00:15:02.90
and if you didn't talk about
00:15:02.90\00:15:04.13
them, you're still thinking
00:15:04.13\00:15:05.27
about them, right?
00:15:05.27\00:15:06.94
And so you brought a lot of
00:15:06.94\00:15:09.27
healing into your family
00:15:09.27\00:15:11.34
through exposing it and
00:15:11.34\00:15:14.48
being aware: "This is what"
00:15:14.48\00:15:16.08
"I'm going through."
00:15:16.08\00:15:17.31
and that you can help
00:15:17.31\00:15:18.38
each other.
00:15:18.38\00:15:19.21
>> Yes.
00:15:19.21\00:15:19.81
>> And move forward with that.
00:15:19.91\00:15:22.32
>> Now and, Sanj, you are a
00:15:22.32\00:15:24.45
professional musician
00:15:24.45\00:15:25.89
and I believe that you did
00:15:25.89\00:15:28.92
something very, very special
00:15:28.92\00:15:31.06
for Reema.
00:15:31.06\00:15:32.63
So, Reema, do you want to tell
00:15:32.63\00:15:33.50
us what he did
00:15:33.50\00:15:34.40
and then you can
00:15:34.40\00:15:36.13
follow through with that.
00:15:36.13\00:15:37.67
>> So for a while now, I'm
00:15:37.67\00:15:40.17
actually working on a book.
00:15:40.17\00:15:41.74
My memoir.
00:15:41.74\00:15:42.67
And, you know, my book is a
00:15:42.67\00:15:43.84
journey
00:15:43.84\00:15:45.94
from being a little girl to this
00:15:45.94\00:15:47.64
point and how God has been so
00:15:47.64\00:15:48.71
faithful and...
00:15:48.71\00:15:52.41
Sanj has--
00:15:52.41\00:15:53.82
He just wrote it in
00:15:53.82\00:15:55.35
music for me.
00:15:55.35\00:15:57.12
A beautiful song about God's
00:15:57.12\00:15:58.15
faithfulness.
00:15:58.15\00:15:59.62
>> I don't write songs often.
00:15:59.62\00:16:02.12
You know, I'm not a song-writer
00:16:02.12\00:16:03.59
by any means, right?
00:16:03.59\00:16:05.09
But, you know, I was helping
00:16:05.09\00:16:06.33
Reema edit her book
00:16:06.33\00:16:07.40
doing a first read-through
00:16:07.40\00:16:08.66
and as much as I know her story
00:16:08.66\00:16:10.43
to see it on black and white
00:16:10.43\00:16:12.03
it was hard for me.
00:16:12.03\00:16:13.67
Like, I still get emotional
00:16:13.67\00:16:15.17
hearing her tell her story.
00:16:15.17\00:16:17.61
But what I understood in her
00:16:17.61\00:16:19.71
story was that
00:16:19.71\00:16:21.18
you know, sometimes God doesn't
00:16:21.18\00:16:23.68
take away the thing that's hard
00:16:23.68\00:16:26.88
but He gives you the strength to
00:16:26.88\00:16:28.22
overcome it, right?
00:16:28.22\00:16:30.69
And you're asking for one thing
00:16:30.69\00:16:32.65
but He gives you the thing that
00:16:32.65\00:16:33.86
you really need, right?
00:16:33.86\00:16:35.19
So in the song that I wrote
00:16:35.19\00:16:37.46
it came quite naturally because
00:16:37.46\00:16:38.83
they were really her words
00:16:38.83\00:16:39.66
not mine, right?
00:16:39.66\00:16:41.16
You know, her story the way
00:16:41.16\00:16:42.00
she's told.
00:16:42.00\00:16:43.03
You know, when she's little she
00:16:43.03\00:16:43.83
asked God to take this pain
00:16:43.83\00:16:44.83
away, right?
00:16:44.83\00:16:46.07
And so the song that I wrote was
00:16:46.07\00:16:47.80
talking about that, but then
00:16:47.80\00:16:49.54
talking about how God gave you
00:16:49.54\00:16:51.07
the strength, the courage
00:16:51.07\00:16:52.24
the things you needed to
00:16:52.24\00:16:53.24
overcome.
00:16:53.24\00:16:54.41
So it's that empowerment that
00:16:54.41\00:16:55.38
God gives you.
00:16:55.38\00:16:56.41
There's nothing sad about that
00:16:56.41\00:16:57.31
right?
00:16:57.31\00:16:57.85
You know, in the darkest
00:16:57.85\00:16:59.18
of her days
00:16:59.18\00:17:00.62
when she was raped
00:17:00.62\00:17:03.12
His light couldn't be stopped
00:17:03.12\00:17:04.99
because darkness overcomes
00:17:04.99\00:17:05.99
the light.
00:17:05.99\00:17:07.49
You know, that's the middle part
00:17:07.49\00:17:08.86
of the song.
00:17:08.86\00:17:09.72
And then the last part of the
00:17:09.72\00:17:11.66
song talks about with--
00:17:11.66\00:17:12.89
You know, "I came with"
00:17:12.89\00:17:14.10
"my wants."
00:17:14.10\00:17:15.16
You know, "Lord, I need this."
00:17:15.16\00:17:17.13
"I want this." Right?
00:17:17.13\00:17:18.50
And instead of fulfilling my
00:17:18.50\00:17:19.63
wants, He gave me what I
00:17:19.63\00:17:20.60
actually needed.
00:17:20.60\00:17:22.30
Right?
00:17:22.30\00:17:23.64
And so it was her story--
00:17:23.64\00:17:25.67
The song is her story
00:17:25.67\00:17:27.51
that I wrote so it was really
00:17:27.51\00:17:28.54
her words not mine.
00:17:28.54\00:17:29.84
>> So at first the darkness is
00:17:29.84\00:17:30.81
overcoming the light
00:17:30.81\00:17:32.21
and then the light is
00:17:32.21\00:17:33.08
overcoming the darkness.
00:17:33.08\00:17:34.62
>> Light will always win over
00:17:34.62\00:17:35.62
darkness. Right?
00:17:35.62\00:17:36.89
Well, it's like, you know
00:17:36.89\00:17:37.92
if you're in a dark cave
00:17:37.92\00:17:38.92
you turn on a light.
00:17:38.92\00:17:39.82
How powerful is that light?
00:17:39.82\00:17:40.59
Right? It's--
00:17:40.59\00:17:41.99
The darkness will never prevail
00:17:41.99\00:17:43.06
and that's God.
00:17:43.06\00:17:44.26
>> Yes, yes, yes.
00:17:44.26\00:17:46.06
So you wrote that song.
00:17:46.06\00:17:47.86
How was it for you to hear
00:17:47.86\00:17:49.13
that song?
00:17:49.13\00:17:50.00
[chuckles]
00:17:50.00\00:17:52.27
Every time I hear it I cry.
00:17:52.27\00:17:54.04
>> Oh, really?
00:17:54.04\00:17:55.07
>> Yeah, it's very powerful for
00:17:55.07\00:17:56.17
me and...
00:17:56.17\00:17:57.21
God has never let me down
00:17:59.27\00:18:01.78
ever, and...
00:18:01.78\00:18:03.41
yeah.
00:18:05.21\00:18:06.05
That song just reminds me
00:18:06.05\00:18:07.32
of that and...
00:18:07.32\00:18:09.92
you know, even with the love
00:18:09.92\00:18:11.05
that He's blessed me with
00:18:11.05\00:18:12.52
with my family, with my friends
00:18:12.52\00:18:13.66
I mean, I haven't walked this
00:18:13.66\00:18:15.29
path alone and I am so gifted in
00:18:15.29\00:18:18.36
so many ways and I guess my
00:18:18.36\00:18:19.69
encouragement to anybody out
00:18:19.69\00:18:21.50
there is that
00:18:21.50\00:18:23.77
you're not alone.
00:18:23.77\00:18:25.33
You have an invisible friend
00:18:25.33\00:18:26.90
you know, that you can turn to
00:18:26.90\00:18:28.97
and He's right there.
00:18:28.97\00:18:30.27
And, you know, I still have that
00:18:30.27\00:18:31.57
invisible friend today
00:18:31.57\00:18:33.27
you know, and...
00:18:33.27\00:18:35.04
He's right there with me.
00:18:35.04\00:18:36.01
>> Yeah.
00:18:36.01\00:18:37.08
And He speaks to you through
00:18:37.08\00:18:38.01
those who are present.
00:18:38.01\00:18:39.58
Those who are your family
00:18:39.58\00:18:41.05
and friends.
00:18:41.05\00:18:42.98
So Sanj, we're going to
00:18:42.98\00:18:45.15
listen to you singing that song
00:18:45.15\00:18:46.79
that you wrote for Reema.
00:18:46.79\00:18:50.36
¤¤
00:19:03.77\00:19:22.12
¤When the burdens of life¤
00:19:22.12\00:19:25.03
¤All came crashing down¤
00:19:25.03\00:19:31.57
¤Surrounded by fear¤
00:19:31.57\00:19:35.34
¤There was no way out¤
00:19:35.34\00:19:40.38
¤I cried, "Lord take this away"¤
00:19:40.38\00:19:43.85
¤"I can't make it one more day"¤
00:19:43.85\00:19:46.41
¤You gave me strength¤
00:19:46.41\00:19:48.25
¤You gave me power¤
00:19:48.25\00:19:51.15
¤You gave me comfort¤
00:19:51.15\00:19:53.66
¤gave me peace¤
00:19:53.66\00:19:56.09
¤You were my light¤
00:19:56.09\00:19:58.29
¤lifted me up¤
00:19:58.29\00:20:00.70
¤Made my way clear¤
00:20:00.70\00:20:03.20
¤Covered my grief¤
00:20:03.20\00:20:07.90
¤I stand tall in Your love¤
00:20:07.90\00:20:12.41
¤You gave me strength¤
00:20:12.41\00:20:14.74
¤To overcome¤
00:20:14.74\00:20:17.55
¤I rise up when I'm down¤
00:20:17.55\00:20:23.69
¤You're my solid ground¤
00:20:23.69\00:20:27.29
¤You're the Rock¤
00:20:27.29\00:20:29.26
¤On which I stand¤
00:20:29.26\00:20:31.73
¤You're the peace¤
00:20:31.73\00:20:34.10
¤That passes all¤
00:20:34.10\00:20:36.87
¤I will stand in Your love¤
00:20:36.87\00:20:49.24
¤¤
00:20:49.24\00:20:59.22
¤When life seems so wrong¤
00:20:59.22\00:21:02.72
¤You were my rhyme¤
00:21:02.72\00:21:08.83
¤You opened the door¤
00:21:08.83\00:21:11.40
¤Though I tried with all¤
00:21:11.40\00:21:13.47
¤my mind¤
00:21:13.47\00:21:18.61
¤Darkness, you fail¤
00:21:18.61\00:21:20.64
¤In the presence of His light¤
00:21:20.64\00:21:23.85
¤You gave me strength¤
00:21:23.85\00:21:25.68
¤You gave me power¤
00:21:25.68\00:21:28.22
¤You gave me comfort¤
00:21:28.22\00:21:30.69
¤Gave me peace¤
00:21:30.69\00:21:32.99
¤You were my light¤
00:21:32.99\00:21:35.49
¤lifted me up¤
00:21:35.49\00:21:37.69
¤made my way clear¤
00:21:37.69\00:21:40.26
¤Covered my grief¤
00:21:40.26\00:21:45.07
¤I stand tall in Your love¤
00:21:45.07\00:21:49.60
¤You gave me strength¤
00:21:49.60\00:21:52.17
¤To overcome¤
00:21:52.17\00:21:54.58
¤I rise up when I'm down¤
00:21:54.58\00:22:00.78
¤You're my solid ground¤
00:22:00.78\00:22:04.19
¤You're the Rock¤
00:22:04.19\00:22:06.22
¤On which I stand¤
00:22:06.22\00:22:08.82
¤You're the peace¤
00:22:08.82\00:22:11.33
¤That passes all¤
00:22:11.33\00:22:14.20
¤I will stand in Your love¤
00:22:14.20\00:22:26.51
¤¤
00:22:26.51\00:22:36.25
¤I came with my wants¤
00:22:36.25\00:22:39.79
¤You gave me what I needed¤
00:22:39.79\00:22:46.39
¤Before I could ask¤
00:22:46.39\00:22:49.20
¤You were already there¤
00:22:49.20\00:22:55.70
¤When my road in life¤
00:22:55.70\00:22:57.17
¤was rough¤
00:22:57.17\00:22:58.14
¤My burden was made light¤
00:22:58.14\00:23:00.38
¤You carried me this far¤
00:23:00.38\00:23:02.71
¤When I lost my will to fight¤
00:23:02.71\00:23:08.12
¤You gave me strength¤
00:23:08.12\00:23:10.42
¤You gave me power¤
00:23:10.42\00:23:12.82
¤You gave me comfort¤
00:23:12.82\00:23:15.52
¤Gave me peace¤
00:23:15.52\00:23:17.59
¤You were my light¤
00:23:17.59\00:23:19.96
¤Lifted me up¤
00:23:19.96\00:23:22.56
¤Made my way clear¤
00:23:22.56\00:23:25.07
¤Covered my grief¤
00:23:25.07\00:23:27.24
¤You gave me strength¤
00:23:27.24\00:23:29.50
¤You gave me power¤
00:23:29.50\00:23:32.01
¤You gave me comfort¤
00:23:32.01\00:23:34.51
¤Gave me peace¤
00:23:34.51\00:23:36.95
¤You were my light¤
00:23:36.95\00:23:39.21
¤Lifted me up¤
00:23:39.21\00:23:41.58
¤Made my way clear¤
00:23:41.58\00:23:44.15
¤Covered my grief¤
00:23:44.15\00:23:48.92
¤I stand tall in Your love¤
00:23:48.92\00:23:53.53
¤You gave me strength¤
00:23:53.53\00:23:55.60
¤To overcome¤
00:23:55.60\00:23:58.40
¤I rise up when I'm down¤
00:23:58.40\00:24:04.41
¤You're my solid ground¤
00:24:04.41\00:24:08.04
¤You're the Rock¤
00:24:08.04\00:24:09.91
¤On which I stand¤
00:24:09.91\00:24:12.78
¤You're the peace¤
00:24:12.78\00:24:14.98
¤That passes all¤
00:24:14.98\00:24:17.62
¤I will stand in Your love¤
00:24:17.62\00:24:29.63
¤Stand in Your love¤
00:24:29.63\00:24:34.27
¤Stand in Your love¤
00:24:34.27\00:24:38.91
¤Stand in Your love¤
00:24:38.91\00:24:44.08
¤Your love¤
00:24:44.08\00:24:51.92
>> What a beautiful song.
00:24:58.53\00:25:00.30
He, Jesus, gives us power
00:25:00.30\00:25:02.43
He gives us strength
00:25:02.43\00:25:03.83
He gives us peace to be able to
00:25:03.83\00:25:06.23
face the darkness
00:25:06.23\00:25:08.10
and overcome that darkness
00:25:08.10\00:25:09.90
with His light.
00:25:09.90\00:25:11.44
And so, Sanj, thank you
00:25:11.44\00:25:12.91
very much for sharing
00:25:12.91\00:25:14.28
that song with us.
00:25:14.28\00:25:16.21
Reema, that song was for you.
00:25:16.21\00:25:19.65
Do you have any final closing
00:25:19.65\00:25:21.68
thoughts for us?
00:25:21.68\00:25:24.15
>> Well, first of all, Sanj
00:25:24.15\00:25:25.59
might have written that song for
00:25:25.59\00:25:26.86
me, but I hope it speaks to
00:25:26.86\00:25:28.19
everyone else out there.
00:25:28.19\00:25:29.66
I know I'm not the
00:25:29.66\00:25:30.63
only one hurting.
00:25:30.63\00:25:32.26
And I just challenge you if you
00:25:32.26\00:25:34.36
are one of those people really
00:25:34.36\00:25:35.66
hurting to reach out to
00:25:35.66\00:25:36.93
somebody.
00:25:36.93\00:25:38.13
You don't have to be alone in
00:25:38.13\00:25:38.93
this journey.
00:25:38.93\00:25:40.30
There are websites that
00:25:40.30\00:25:41.20
can help you.
00:25:41.20\00:25:42.30
endingviolencecanada.org is one
00:25:42.30\00:25:44.47
that you can check out.
00:25:44.47\00:25:46.81
I've learned through this
00:25:46.81\00:25:47.61
journey that each
00:25:47.61\00:25:48.38
of us are broken
00:25:48.38\00:25:50.15
but we're beautifully broken.
00:25:50.15\00:25:52.01
>> Nobody's perfect
00:25:52.01\00:25:53.25
but beautifully broken.
00:25:53.25\00:25:54.55
>> God uses your pain.
00:25:54.55\00:25:55.75
>> Wow!
00:25:55.75\00:25:57.15
>> And perfection, I guess
00:25:57.15\00:25:59.45
is to continue to grow
00:25:59.45\00:26:01.69
despite the hurt and the pain
00:26:01.69\00:26:05.09
that you have experienced.
00:26:05.09\00:26:06.76
So thank you so much
00:26:06.76\00:26:08.03
for joining us
00:26:08.03\00:26:10.10
Sanj and Reema, and for
00:26:10.10\00:26:13.13
sharing your story with us.
00:26:13.13\00:26:14.84
>> So Friends, there is
00:26:14.84\00:26:16.77
something divine about
00:26:16.77\00:26:17.64
forgiveness.
00:26:17.64\00:26:18.61
Forgiveness is a conscious
00:26:18.61\00:26:20.98
deliberate act to release those
00:26:20.98\00:26:23.78
feelings of resentment
00:26:23.78\00:26:26.38
those feelings of hurt that you
00:26:26.38\00:26:28.15
feel towards another person
00:26:28.15\00:26:29.58
to actually let them go.
00:26:29.58\00:26:32.02
And that is a divine act.
00:26:32.02\00:26:34.56
That is a miracle that only God
00:26:34.56\00:26:37.36
can give to us because you
00:26:37.36\00:26:39.86
really want to get revenge
00:26:39.86\00:26:41.00
against that person.
00:26:41.00\00:26:42.63
And yet in the heart of the
00:26:42.63\00:26:44.87
Lord's prayer, Jesus asks us
00:26:44.87\00:26:46.74
to forgive.
00:26:46.74\00:26:48.67
Forgive others as we ourselves
00:26:48.67\00:26:51.47
have been forgiven.
00:26:51.47\00:26:52.91
And so I want to just take a
00:26:52.91\00:26:54.04
moment for us to pray
00:26:54.04\00:26:56.21
and to ask God for that
00:26:56.21\00:26:57.91
kind of divine forgiveness
00:26:57.91\00:26:59.31
that He can give to us.
00:26:59.31\00:27:01.12
Let's pray and bow our heads
00:27:01.12\00:27:02.48
right now.
00:27:02.48\00:27:04.55
Father in heaven
00:27:04.55\00:27:06.59
Lord, I thank you
00:27:06.59\00:27:08.59
for Reema's story
00:27:08.59\00:27:10.19
I thank you for Sanj's
00:27:10.19\00:27:12.26
story as well and how you
00:27:12.26\00:27:14.36
brought them together
00:27:14.36\00:27:15.43
how you brought something
00:27:15.43\00:27:17.20
beautiful out of a situation
00:27:17.20\00:27:21.24
that was so hurtful, so painful
00:27:21.24\00:27:24.77
and so broken.
00:27:24.77\00:27:27.08
I thank you for the dreams
00:27:27.08\00:27:28.84
of a little girl that you have
00:27:28.84\00:27:30.98
answered, Lord, and that you
00:27:30.98\00:27:33.01
have answered in such a
00:27:33.01\00:27:34.25
beautiful way.
00:27:34.25\00:27:35.75
I thank you for giving courage
00:27:35.75\00:27:36.99
to Reema to be able to share
00:27:36.99\00:27:38.02
that story with us today
00:27:38.02\00:27:39.89
because there are so many people
00:27:39.89\00:27:42.09
who have experienced a similar
00:27:42.09\00:27:44.49
experience and yet they find it
00:27:44.49\00:27:47.20
so hard to talk about it.
00:27:47.20\00:27:49.43
But, Lord, we know
00:27:49.43\00:27:50.77
that they can talk to You
00:27:50.77\00:27:52.57
that each one of us is heard by
00:27:52.57\00:27:55.27
You and that You are answering
00:27:55.27\00:27:56.91
our prayers.
00:27:56.91\00:27:58.91
I pray, Lord, for anyone who is
00:27:58.91\00:28:01.08
listening to this right now
00:28:01.08\00:28:02.84
that you will bring peace
00:28:02.84\00:28:05.01
and healing and forgiveness
00:28:05.01\00:28:06.75
to their lives.
00:28:06.75\00:28:08.32
We pray this and we thank You.
00:28:08.32\00:28:10.15
In Jesus' name, amen.
00:28:10.15\00:28:13.25
And so friends, I just want to
00:28:13.25\00:28:15.26
remind you again of those words
00:28:15.26\00:28:17.86
from Jesus Himself where He
00:28:17.86\00:28:20.26
said, "It is written, man shall
00:28:20.26\00:28:22.73
not live by bread alone, but by
00:28:22.73\00:28:25.00
every word that proceeds out of
00:28:25.00\00:28:26.84
the mouth of God."
00:28:26.84\00:28:30.14
¤¤
00:28:30.14\00:28:52.16