Stay tuned to meet a
woman who has overcome adversity
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and teaches others to do so too.
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My name is Yvonne Lewis
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and you're
watching Urban Report.
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Hello and
welcome to Urban Report.
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My guest today
is Camille McKenzie,
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Lifestyle Coach and Author of
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"Long Journey to Freedom:
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Seven Steps to
Confidence and Joy. "
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Welcome to Urban Report Camille.
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Thank you Yvonne for
having me, it's a pleasure.
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Oh, it's so great
to have you, you know,
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first I met you at the
event that "True Health TV" had
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which is a wonderful...
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it is an
affiliate of Dare to Dream,
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in Atlanta and
you and your husband
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sat at our table
with Jason and me,
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and you told me
you had written a book
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but then you sent the book to me
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and you sent the
Trailer about the book
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and before we really
get into our interview,
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I really would
like for our Viewers
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to see the Trailer, so
they can kind of have a sense
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of what the book is about
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and then we'll
talk about your journey.
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Let's take a
look at the Trailer.
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Okay, Yvonne.
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Music playing...
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Locked Behind Bars
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Locked Behind Bars
of Mental Imprisonment
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for 27 years.
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But then the Son
came and changed her life.
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She has never been the same!
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The Son took her out of prison.
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By showing her
the way to freedom.
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He can do the same for you.
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Are you locked
behind bars of insecurity,
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self-doubt and shame?
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Are you living the
life of your dreams?
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Or is fear stopping you?
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Do you want
more joy, peace, love
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and confidence in your life?
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The power of choice.
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The power of truth.
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The power of thoughts.
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The power of words.
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The power of gratitude.
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The power of contentment.
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the Power of love.
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Join Camille
Mckenzie on a journey...
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A journey to freedom.
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Long Journey to Freedom.
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She will show you
the way to freedom.
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www. longjourneytofreedom. com
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music
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Available at Amazon. com
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What a lovely Promo...
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Thank you Yvonne.
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Lovely, and I...
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as I read your book,
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and I got a
sense of your journey,
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I thought,
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"Well, this is
so good" this is...
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you have some
very interesting things
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that have happened to you,
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let's talk a little
bit about your journey.
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So, as a child, what
was going on in your life?
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You start... you
talk in the book about
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drinking a poison and how
the poison was... you know...
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your father drank, and
your grandfather drank,
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what poison are
you talking about?
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The terminology of "poison"
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is to really
indicate to the reader that
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what I am about to talk about
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is something
that can cause death,
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it's lethal and the
death that I'm talking
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about is psychological
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but sometimes takes a
form of where it's physical
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and what happened to me
is that from ten years old,
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I started to experience
extreme bullying at school.
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I think the skies of inferiority
had already started to
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wash over me,
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I already started to sense
that within my little young mind
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I think, just growing up
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and looking at other people,
comparing myself to them,
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and just... not
feeling that I was good enough,
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but the poison
ultimately was in school,
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in school I was teased
mercilessly about who I was
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and thinking about that
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and reflecting upon that
each day that it was happening
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just made me feel like
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I was just this
"complete nothing"
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that God had
created an absolute loser,
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and I didn't
deserve to be on earth
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and so, at a young age I
really wanted to take my life,
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I didn't have
the courage to do so,
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but I wanted to,
because the poison was
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"you're not good
enough, how God created you,
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is absolutely wrong,
and you need to know that"
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and so I believed it.
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You know, the whole
situation with bullying
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is so intense, I
think that as adults,
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and if we don't
have young children,
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we can minimize
the impact of bullying,
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but bullying is so
prevalent and it's so damaging
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and it's so impactful,
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it can impact you for
the rest of your life.
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Amen... amen...
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So, how did you
navigate through that,
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Camille, what did you do during
those years to deal with that?
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Great question, I did nothing,
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I internalized it,
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I sat silently each
day as it was happening,
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and I just assumed that
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this was the way
it was supposed to be.
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Actually, I deserved
it, you know, I was ugly,
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I didn't look good and
God created me to be a loser
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so why not just accept
what was happening to me,
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so it continued to happen
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because I didn't
do anything about it
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and at the end
of the day, Yvonne,
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I think, one of
the messages that God
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wants to really get through
to those who read the book is
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this, "Bullying
is not a small issue,
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it is a serious
issue because as you said,
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it has an impact that can
last for long years to come. "
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It is that
studies have been done
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in which people
who have been studied,
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they realize until
50-years old or older,
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they are still dealing with
the mental and emotional scars
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of bullying and
physical scars as well,
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because your body starts to
experience different stresses
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because of what
they're experiencing
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so bullying is
not a small issue,
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and I think the two things
I want to highlight about it
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is this... the first
is the psychological death
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that's the poison
that I alluded to earlier,
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the psychological death
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of not feeling
that you're good enough,
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psychological
death of being in a sense
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someone who's
living but really dead,
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I don't want to live my life,
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I'm here but I'm kind of
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taking up space,
that's where I was,
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I'm just going
through life every single day
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doing what it is
that I'm "supposed" to do
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but I don't deserve to be here,
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that was the
mental space that I was in
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and so, the psychological death
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for someone who's
bullied, that is really real,
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you're not living your life,
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the second thing as well is
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that suicide is
often very prevalent
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for those who are bullied,
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the other day I saw
a startling statistic,
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you're talking about,
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it is the fourth leading cause
of death, suicide that is...
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among people who are...
from the ages of ten to fourteen
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and then also,
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it is the third
leading cause of death
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for those who are in the age
group from 15- to 24-years old
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so this is serious,
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God is seeing people who
are precious in His sight,
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created in His image,
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but are not
understanding who they are
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and, therefore, are living
lives that are really "dead. "
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Oh, there are so many things
that I can ask you from that.
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How did your family
deal with this whole thing,
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did they know what was going on
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how did you... was it
being reinforced at home?
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How did you deal
with that at home?
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Good question, I
didn't say anything.
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Is that often the case with
kids that are being bullied?
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Yeah, you're silent and
parents don't know about it
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until...
sometimes it's too late.
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In my case, I hardly
said anything about anything
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much less
bullying, I was very quiet
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and just introverted
and so with the bullying,
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that was no
different, I said nothing
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and the only way
that my parents found out
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about it particularly my mom,
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was she found the
letter that I wrote,
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and she saw in that
letter details in which...
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I indicated that she
wanted to take my life,
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she saw a knife in the
picture, and she realized,
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"Oh my gosh, this is happening"
00:09:04.27\00:09:05.84
she spoke to me about it, I
told her what I was thinking
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and she just assured me
that "Camille, you're beautiful,
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you don't need to
think about ending your life"
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but I still felt the
way that I felt inside,
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the healing wasn't there.
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You know, when you think about
the passages that we go through,
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in childhood,
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going on into
adulthood, and you think about
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all of the natural
feelings of inferiority,
00:09:31.00\00:09:34.87
lack of self-confidence,
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that a teenager kind
of automatically feels,
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and then you compound
that with the bullying,
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that has got to
be it's, as you said,
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it's leading to suicide, Right.
00:09:47.12\00:09:49.25
and often we hear on the
News about this young person
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was bullied
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and they committed suicide
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Right, right,
right, hmmm... hmmm...
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and you wanted...
you know, you think,
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"Wow! is it that
bad, can it be that bad?"
00:10:01.20\00:10:03.73
And obviously it
is, obviously it is...
00:10:03.77\00:10:06.70
day after day after day,
being told that you're nothing
00:10:06.80\00:10:10.91
that has got to be so painful.
00:10:10.94\00:10:14.64
It is Yvonne, you know, the
thing with bullying is this,
00:10:14.68\00:10:18.25
when we think
about what the Bible says
00:10:18.28\00:10:20.48
that death and life is
in the power of the tongue,
00:10:20.52\00:10:22.95
that is a pretty
powerful statement
00:10:22.98\00:10:25.25
we often think with words...
that words are just "words"
00:10:25.29\00:10:27.86
and so when we
think of bullying,
00:10:27.89\00:10:29.66
"Stick and stones
may break my bones
00:10:29.69\00:10:31.29
but words will never hurt me"
00:10:31.33\00:10:32.66
so when we hear about bullying,
00:10:32.69\00:10:34.03
and we say,
"that's a side issue,
00:10:34.10\00:10:35.40
come on now, get over that,
00:10:35.43\00:10:36.77
were talking about that,
it's just a little thing"
00:10:36.80\00:10:39.33
but God doesn't
recognize it as that,
00:10:39.37\00:10:41.60
when He sees the impact that
that is having on young lives
00:10:41.64\00:10:44.94
and that, not just the
lives of a young person
00:10:44.97\00:10:48.78
but ultimately they are going
into adulthood with these issues
00:10:48.81\00:10:51.98
that the dreams and the passion
that He has for their lives,
00:10:52.01\00:10:55.18
the purpose that He
has for their lives,
00:10:55.22\00:10:56.65
that ultimately can be aborted
00:10:56.72\00:10:58.35
because of how
they see themselves,
00:10:58.39\00:10:59.89
God says, "You know what,
I want this to be an issue
00:10:59.92\00:11:03.73
that is recognized as serious"
00:11:03.76\00:11:05.73
and ultimately,
00:11:05.76\00:11:07.10
I believe that part of
the calling of God in life,
00:11:07.13\00:11:09.66
is to take that
particular message to the world,
00:11:09.70\00:11:12.30
it's to say, at
the end of the day
00:11:12.33\00:11:13.90
whether you are a young child,
or whether you are an adult,
00:11:13.94\00:11:18.04
your words have
incredible power,
00:11:18.07\00:11:20.28
you have the power to
be able to speak life...
00:11:20.34\00:11:22.98
in the life of other people,
or you have the opportunity
00:11:23.01\00:11:25.55
to also speak
something else which is that,
00:11:25.58\00:11:27.78
God says, "Choose life,
00:11:27.82\00:11:29.25
speak life in
those in whom you meet"
00:11:29.28\00:11:31.39
and the world
will begin to blossom
00:11:31.42\00:11:33.46
into a place in which all of us
00:11:33.52\00:11:34.86
can feel a greater sense
of hope, resiliency and love.
00:11:34.89\00:11:38.49
Come on now, I
love that, I love that,
00:11:38.53\00:11:41.23
you know, as I
listen to you Camille,
00:11:41.26\00:11:45.50
you have taken this
adversity, this pain,
00:11:45.53\00:11:49.70
and God has allowed you to
transform that into a purpose
00:11:49.74\00:11:55.24
from pain to purpose, Amen.
00:11:55.31\00:11:57.88
so now, you are on
fire about delivering
00:11:57.91\00:12:02.38
this message of wholeness
00:12:02.42\00:12:04.69
and is that what
inspired you to write this book?
00:12:04.72\00:12:07.99
How did you get
inspired to write the book?
00:12:08.02\00:12:10.23
Great question,
00:12:10.26\00:12:11.83
the inspiration came from
the One who gives, ultimately...
00:12:11.86\00:12:15.90
inspiration and calling,
00:12:15.93\00:12:17.43
my God and great
Savior, Jesus Christ,
00:12:17.47\00:12:20.34
when I felt the impression
of the Spirit to write the book,
00:12:20.40\00:12:23.91
I'm like, "Oh God, I could write
but not necessarily about me"
00:12:23.97\00:12:27.48
you know, but, I understood,
00:12:27.54\00:12:30.11
when the impression
came to write the book, "why"
00:12:30.15\00:12:32.78
I understood that
lives needed to be saved,
00:12:32.81\00:12:35.62
I understood that calling...
00:12:35.65\00:12:37.45
some people's
lives needed to be lived,
00:12:37.49\00:12:39.79
I understood that
there are many people
00:12:39.82\00:12:42.12
who are going to their graves,
00:12:42.16\00:12:43.53
in a way in
which they are dying,
00:12:43.59\00:12:45.23
and... they are dying empty,
00:12:45.26\00:12:46.96
and some of them are dying full,
00:12:47.03\00:12:48.66
but in the end their
grave is the wealthiest place
00:12:48.70\00:12:51.37
on the planet,
because so many people,
00:12:51.40\00:12:53.27
who found themselves in a place
where they're limited within,
00:12:53.30\00:12:57.04
they do not
know their own power,
00:12:57.07\00:12:59.37
they do not understand the
power which God has given them,
00:12:59.41\00:13:02.71
and so they go through lives
as I said, "dead men walking"
00:13:02.74\00:13:05.95
not living the lives that
God has called them to live,
00:13:05.98\00:13:09.12
so the inspiration
ultimately came from God,
00:13:09.15\00:13:11.65
and from that,
00:13:11.69\00:13:13.02
I decided that I wanted to
see young girls around the world
00:13:13.05\00:13:17.23
rise up and see
themselves as how God sees them.
00:13:17.26\00:13:19.93
Yes, and it's so important
00:13:20.00\00:13:22.00
to have a different
picture of ourselves
00:13:22.03\00:13:25.70
than the one the enemy
tries to plant within our heads,
00:13:25.77\00:13:30.01
Amen. and in this Society,
00:13:30.07\00:13:31.77
there is such an
emphasis on how you look
00:13:31.81\00:13:36.38
and what color you are
and all of these things,
00:13:36.41\00:13:40.38
that should not
play into it but they do
00:13:40.42\00:13:44.75
and we internalize that Right.
00:13:44.79\00:13:47.06
and then we're just kind of
stuck in this morass of pain
00:13:47.12\00:13:52.93
so, the Holy Spirit
inspired you to take your pain
00:13:52.99\00:13:57.77
and make it your purpose,
and that's what you're doing
00:13:57.83\00:14:02.67
how would you...
00:14:02.74\00:14:04.11
if you were talking to
the "Camille" of fifteen,
00:14:04.14\00:14:09.64
what would you say to her?
00:14:09.68\00:14:12.48
I would have so
much to say to her
00:14:12.51\00:14:14.42
the book ultimately...
is what I would say to "me"
00:14:14.45\00:14:17.72
and that's why,
"Long Journey to Freedom"
00:14:17.75\00:14:20.69
was ultimately written,
00:14:20.76\00:14:22.09
I believe God wanted me to use
the pain that I had experienced,
00:14:22.12\00:14:24.96
to help someone else,
00:14:24.99\00:14:26.33
so if there is one
young girl out there
00:14:26.36\00:14:28.26
that would pick
up that book and say,
00:14:28.30\00:14:30.33
"My gosh, I don't
want to go where she was
00:14:30.37\00:14:33.60
27 years for life,
00:14:33.64\00:14:36.24
I want that shortcut, I'm
going to read that book. "
00:14:36.27\00:14:40.04
Talk to her, talk
to her in that camera,
00:14:40.08\00:14:41.41
"Young lady, young girl,
wherever you are in the world,
00:14:41.48\00:14:44.25
what I say to you is,
00:14:44.28\00:14:45.65
first and foremost
understand who you are,
00:14:45.68\00:14:48.25
that your Creator
has called you beautiful
00:14:48.28\00:14:50.55
that your Creator
has called you blessed
00:14:50.59\00:14:52.99
and that He wants
you to pick up a mirror,
00:14:53.02\00:14:55.42
a mirror that is
not found on earth
00:14:55.46\00:14:57.59
but a mirror that
has been built in heaven
00:14:57.63\00:14:59.63
it's called the 'Word of God,'
00:14:59.66\00:15:01.13
and He wants you
to search it daily
00:15:01.16\00:15:03.20
to understand who you
are and whose you are,
00:15:03.23\00:15:05.97
once you do that
00:15:06.00\00:15:07.34
you'll no longer
struggle with who you are. "
00:15:07.37\00:15:11.77
That is so good, and
if young men and women
00:15:11.81\00:15:16.18
could just internalize
"whose" they are as well,
00:15:16.21\00:15:20.42
that they belong to the Lord
and that God has a plan for them
00:15:20.52\00:15:25.05
often on this Program, Camille,
we talk about Jeremiah 29:11
00:15:25.09\00:15:29.59
that's like my favorite, my
new favorite verse, I think,
00:15:29.62\00:15:34.10
because I allude
to it all the time
00:15:34.20\00:15:36.30
about God's thoughts toward us,
00:15:36.33\00:15:38.43
thoughts of peace and
not of evil to give us...
00:15:38.47\00:15:41.04
in NIV it says,
"a future and a hope"
00:15:41.10\00:15:44.07
and in the King James, it
is, "to give us an expected end"
00:15:44.11\00:15:48.91
and so, that
says, there is a plan
00:15:48.94\00:15:51.75
and no one can
fulfill that plan for you,
00:15:51.78\00:15:58.12
you were created to do
that, and once you find that,
00:15:58.15\00:16:02.82
you have found...
your divine purpose.
00:16:02.86\00:16:05.23
Tell us what it feels like now
as compared to where you were.
00:16:05.26\00:16:10.27
Words can't express it,
00:16:10.30\00:16:13.34
it is the most powerful
place on earth to be in.
00:16:13.37\00:16:17.21
I wish this for every
single person on the planet,
00:16:17.24\00:16:20.58
that whatever it is that
God has called them to do,
00:16:20.61\00:16:23.78
that they would find themselves
00:16:23.85\00:16:25.55
right in the
middle of that purpose
00:16:25.58\00:16:27.82
because once you
live in that purpose,
00:16:27.85\00:16:30.02
there is a peace that
surpasses all understanding,
00:16:30.09\00:16:34.06
there is a joy
that grips your soul,
00:16:34.09\00:16:36.39
that allows you to
live life with passion
00:16:36.42\00:16:39.03
and just with a sense of just...
00:16:39.06\00:16:41.23
"Thank God I am here I
can't wait for the next day"
00:16:41.26\00:16:45.37
I want that for others,
00:16:45.40\00:16:47.30
I want them to dream a
bigger dream for themselves
00:16:47.34\00:16:50.87
because ultimately God
has dreamed it for them.
00:16:50.91\00:16:53.74
I like the way you
said, "God's dream for us"
00:16:53.78\00:16:56.54
because God has
His own plan for us,
00:16:56.58\00:17:00.25
and Satan has a
plan, and God has a plan,
00:17:00.35\00:17:03.22
Satan's plan is
to take you from here
00:17:03.25\00:17:06.42
and spiral you
downward and destroy you
00:17:06.45\00:17:09.62
but God's plan is to lift us up
00:17:09.66\00:17:12.69
and to give us the abundant
life through Jesus Christ
00:17:12.73\00:17:15.20
and what a difference,
Satan kind of lured you
00:17:15.23\00:17:19.37
with different
things just to bait you,
00:17:19.40\00:17:21.90
get you into the trap
and then... take you down.
00:17:21.94\00:17:25.61
It's amazing,
but God has this way
00:17:25.64\00:17:30.25
of taking the darkest times
00:17:30.28\00:17:32.38
and bringing
something out of that
00:17:32.41\00:17:35.02
and you know... you
know that... first hand
00:17:35.05\00:17:38.29
because you went
through another very dark time
00:17:38.32\00:17:41.49
after the
bullying, tell us about that.
00:17:41.52\00:17:43.26
Yeah, oh yeah,
00:17:43.29\00:17:45.29
wow! two times that I
never would have expected,
00:17:45.33\00:17:47.40
was that, my young
husband at 34-years old,
00:17:47.40\00:17:51.47
one morning got up
00:17:51.53\00:17:52.90
and just started to complain
that he wasn't feeling too well
00:17:52.93\00:17:56.47
that was not normal
so I took that to be
00:17:56.54\00:17:59.11
something very
serious, long story short,
00:17:59.14\00:18:01.74
what ended up happening, Yvonne,
at 7:38 on November 14, 2009,
00:18:01.78\00:18:06.28
I was told that my
husband, at that time, was dead,
00:18:06.31\00:18:10.52
and that was
00:18:10.62\00:18:12.69
one of the most devastating
experiences of my entire life
00:18:12.72\00:18:15.62
because I loved him so much,
00:18:15.66\00:18:17.66
we were college sweethearts
and he meant the world to me
00:18:17.69\00:18:22.36
and I honestly did not believe
that I could live without him,
00:18:22.40\00:18:26.00
I thought that
I would ultimately
00:18:26.07\00:18:28.40
not be able to
survive it, but God...
00:18:28.44\00:18:31.04
Yvonne: But
God... Camille: But God.
00:18:31.07\00:18:33.07
And it just
happened all of a sudden?
00:18:33.11\00:18:35.51
All of a sudden, no
warning... nothing...
00:18:35.54\00:18:37.85
what he died of was
something that is considered
00:18:37.88\00:18:41.18
a silent part of a heart attack
00:18:41.22\00:18:44.35
when you have a
silent coronary disease,
00:18:44.39\00:18:47.19
and it was just...
one time it happened...
00:18:47.26\00:18:49.86
and that was it,
00:18:49.89\00:18:51.23
and the time that it
happened, it took his life.
00:18:51.26\00:18:53.43
Other people may
get other opportunities
00:18:53.50\00:18:56.06
to live through it, he did not,
00:18:56.10\00:18:57.73
and so, my world was
devastated by that completely
00:18:57.77\00:19:02.64
without hope as to how I
was going to get through it,
00:19:02.67\00:19:07.64
but God stepped in,
and reminded me who He was
00:19:07.68\00:19:11.25
and His ability to
help me, and so I remember
00:19:11.28\00:19:14.38
just praying in my
living room and telling God,
00:19:14.42\00:19:18.02
"God, I don't know,
I see nothing around me
00:19:18.05\00:19:21.59
but a complete darkness,
00:19:21.62\00:19:22.96
but, I know that you
can take this broken heart
00:19:22.99\00:19:25.99
and continue, you
can take this broken life
00:19:26.03\00:19:29.03
and you can make
something out of it"
00:19:29.06\00:19:31.63
and He has.
00:19:31.67\00:19:33.27
Amen, amen, so, your
response to the dark time
00:19:33.34\00:19:38.91
was not to draw away from God,
00:19:38.94\00:19:41.48
but it was to
draw closer to Him.
00:19:41.51\00:19:43.95
Did you find comfort
and peace during that time?
00:19:44.05\00:19:49.35
How did it manifest?
00:19:49.38\00:19:50.92
I certainly did, my
message to people everywhere
00:19:50.99\00:19:54.59
is ultimately this...
that if you are not connected
00:19:54.62\00:19:58.26
to the God of the universe,
00:19:58.29\00:19:59.63
I pray that you will
become connected to Him
00:19:59.66\00:20:02.20
because, if you're not
going through a storm now,
00:20:02.23\00:20:05.43
you ultimately will,
00:20:05.47\00:20:06.80
and there is no way
that you can endure that
00:20:06.84\00:20:09.37
without the power of God,
because He brought me through it
00:20:09.44\00:20:14.14
and He knew ten months later
00:20:14.18\00:20:16.38
I was going to be
dealing with something else,
00:20:16.44\00:20:18.55
and that was the loss of my dad,
00:20:18.61\00:20:20.78
ten months later, my dad
died of Pancreatic Cancer
00:20:20.82\00:20:24.19
and two months prior to
that when I got the diagnosis,
00:20:24.25\00:20:27.56
I was just
completely just not here...
00:20:27.62\00:20:31.19
it was like, "How
is this happening God,
00:20:31.23\00:20:34.76
I lost my
husband, and now my dad?"
00:20:34.83\00:20:36.90
But the reality was
that God stepped in again
00:20:36.93\00:20:40.57
and His ability,
through particularly His words
00:20:40.60\00:20:44.14
to just reassures you
that you can get through this,
00:20:44.17\00:20:47.41
is amazing, so,
at the end of the day
00:20:47.44\00:20:50.61
what I would say
to people is this...
00:20:50.68\00:20:52.01
God makes it clear in His Word
00:20:52.05\00:20:54.28
that "My power is made
perfect in your weakness"
00:20:54.32\00:20:58.32
so I will boast of my weakness
00:20:58.35\00:21:00.36
so that the power
of Christ rests on me.
00:21:00.39\00:21:04.23
Yes, yes, and look at
God, look at how God...
00:21:04.26\00:21:08.90
in spite of the dark
time, and He always does this,
00:21:08.93\00:21:13.07
in the
wilderness period, you know,
00:21:13.10\00:21:15.97
we wouldn't... when
you look back on it,
00:21:16.00\00:21:18.37
you wouldn't trade the
closeness with God for anything,
00:21:18.41\00:21:21.81
you don't want to go through
the wilderness, obviously,
00:21:21.88\00:21:25.48
but when you're there,
once you've gone through it,
00:21:25.51\00:21:28.85
you look back and you
say, "Wow! God held me up,
00:21:28.92\00:21:32.22
He held me up
through that dark time"
00:21:32.25\00:21:35.26
and then you lost your
husband, you lost your dad,
00:21:35.32\00:21:39.09
but when your dad
was being cared for,
00:21:39.13\00:21:42.26
tell us about the young man
who was caring for your dad.
00:21:42.30\00:21:46.43
Oh, God is great, He is good,
00:21:46.47\00:21:50.17
this is ultimately
the story of my life,
00:21:50.24\00:21:52.47
is His greatness, to
bring you through anything
00:21:52.51\00:21:55.11
but also to bring some
powerful, positive great things
00:21:55.14\00:21:58.35
along with it, Yes, yes.
00:21:58.38\00:22:00.32
and so, throughout my experience
with taking care of my dad,
00:22:00.35\00:22:02.92
they talked about bringing
in an Alternative Healer
00:22:02.95\00:22:07.16
to work on him, He
was at this point, Yvonne,
00:22:07.19\00:22:10.06
where literally it
was... there was no hope,
00:22:10.13\00:22:12.96
he was going to die.
00:22:12.99\00:22:14.30
Pancreatic
Cancer is very serious
00:22:14.36\00:22:16.40
and it works very quickly.
00:22:16.43\00:22:18.07
You got it, you
absolutely got it right
00:22:18.10\00:22:20.40
and it did in his case,
so we saw that happening
00:22:20.44\00:22:22.97
but my dad still had hope,
00:22:23.00\00:22:24.61
he was a man of
faith and he said,
00:22:24.64\00:22:25.97
"You know what, I
want to try whatever
00:22:26.01\00:22:27.98
there still is out there"
00:22:28.01\00:22:29.78
so, my parents called around
00:22:29.81\00:22:31.55
and found that there was
this "Alternative Healer"
00:22:31.58\00:22:35.48
that he was a
Medical Missionary,
00:22:35.52\00:22:37.25
I had no idea what that was
00:22:37.29\00:22:38.92
because I wasn't an
Adventist so I was clueless.
00:22:38.95\00:22:41.66
Oh you weren't an
Adventist at this point?
00:22:41.69\00:22:43.69
No, I was a Methodist at
that point so, I'm just like,
00:22:43.73\00:22:46.53
"Okay, let's see
what this turns out to be"
00:22:46.56\00:22:48.60
very skeptical and ultimately
God did something amazing
00:22:48.63\00:22:53.13
I found myself working with
him and taking care of my dad,
00:22:53.17\00:22:57.61
and starting to feel
feelings... could it be love?
00:22:57.64\00:23:03.58
And so, I started
falling in love with him
00:23:03.65\00:23:06.72
and he was as well, and
ultimately we got married.
00:23:06.75\00:23:09.75
Now, look at God, and
even in the midst of the
00:23:09.78\00:23:13.66
hardest times, He stepped in
00:23:13.69\00:23:16.19
and showed His love for you
00:23:16.26\00:23:18.69
by providing a
"Houseband" for you.
00:23:18.73\00:23:22.23
Yes, yes, He provided
sunshine in the midst of storm
00:23:22.26\00:23:25.87
and I think that's
what I love about God
00:23:25.90\00:23:28.24
is that He is so redemptive,
00:23:28.27\00:23:30.21
He has a power to be able
to take the things of life
00:23:30.27\00:23:33.11
that aren't too pleasant
and make lemonade out of it.
00:23:33.14\00:23:35.91
Yes. So I love Him for that,
00:23:35.94\00:23:37.35
and I love His
ability to bring us through
00:23:37.41\00:23:39.41
to help us to know
that, "You know what,
00:23:39.45\00:23:41.08
there are always
sunny days ahead. "
00:23:41.12\00:23:42.68
Absolutely, and another
thing is so great about God
00:23:42.72\00:23:45.49
since we're just
praising Him right now
00:23:45.52\00:23:48.06
another thing is,
He can make one move
00:23:48.09\00:23:50.59
and accomplish
several things with one move.
00:23:50.63\00:23:53.76
Like your dad... was
getting somewhat better,
00:23:53.80\00:23:56.90
during that time, and then,
00:23:56.93\00:23:59.20
He also... God
brought you a husband,
00:23:59.23\00:24:01.90
He knew what you needed, Yes.
00:24:01.94\00:24:03.81
you know the two
main men in your life,
00:24:03.84\00:24:06.47
had been
removed, and God sent you
00:24:06.51\00:24:09.51
another husband
and what a blessing,
00:24:09.54\00:24:12.48
what a blessing.
00:24:12.51\00:24:14.12
Amen, and you know Yvonne,
00:24:14.15\00:24:16.05
I wouldn't have
chosen that path for myself
00:24:16.08\00:24:18.09
because after my first husband,
I was going to remain a widow,
00:24:18.12\00:24:21.09
I just believed that there
was no other man on the earth
00:24:21.12\00:24:24.06
that could eclipse him...
that could surpass who he was
00:24:24.13\00:24:27.00
but God ended up
proving me wrong.
00:24:27.03\00:24:30.23
Amen. I'm glad He did.
00:24:30.27\00:24:32.10
God is good, so,
let's just get back
00:24:32.13\00:24:36.91
to the seven steps in that
long journey toward freedom.
00:24:36.97\00:24:41.41
What are those seven steps,
just give us a little hint
00:24:41.44\00:24:45.88
of each one and whoa,
our time is running out
00:24:45.91\00:24:48.15
I can't believe it,
our time is running out,
00:24:48.18\00:24:50.35
so just give us a little taste
of what are those seven steps.
00:24:50.39\00:24:53.92
All right, the seven steps
are pretty much proven to work.
00:24:53.96\00:24:57.49
The first is thinking
about the power of choice.
00:24:57.53\00:25:01.03
When we talk about choice,
we often don't realize that
00:25:01.10\00:25:04.47
this is something
that's often taken for granted
00:25:04.50\00:25:07.04
but in every situation in life,
you have the power to choose
00:25:07.07\00:25:10.01
whether or not you
will make that situation
00:25:10.04\00:25:12.14
a great one or whether or
not you're going to deteriorate
00:25:12.17\00:25:14.31
that experience
into a negative one.
00:25:14.34\00:25:16.44
Then there's
the power of thought
00:25:16.48\00:25:18.41
where... how do you think about
00:25:18.45\00:25:20.32
whatever events are
happening in your life,
00:25:20.35\00:25:22.18
is it in a way that
is going to lead to life
00:25:22.22\00:25:24.62
or is it in a way that
is going to lead to death.
00:25:24.65\00:25:26.49
Then you have
the power of words.
00:25:26.52\00:25:28.52
The words in which we
speak, I talk about that...
00:25:28.59\00:25:30.93
obviously my
experience with bullying,
00:25:30.96\00:25:32.93
that that has incredible power,
not only just who you're like
00:25:32.96\00:25:36.26
but the lives of other people,
00:25:36.30\00:25:37.63
and then we have
the power of gratitude.
00:25:37.67\00:25:40.50
Gratitude can cure
a multitude of ills,
00:25:40.54\00:25:43.04
it can make you sing
in times of great darkness
00:25:43.07\00:25:45.94
it is one of the most
powerful forces on the planet
00:25:45.97\00:25:49.24
and there are many others,
I don't know if we have time
00:25:49.28\00:25:52.51
to talk about the others, We do.
00:25:52.55\00:25:54.18
Okay, all right, and in
regards to the other ones,
00:25:54.22\00:25:57.35
the power of contentment,
00:25:57.39\00:25:59.12
being able to
realize at the end of the day
00:25:59.15\00:26:01.72
that what is... is what is...
00:26:01.76\00:26:03.12
I can still soar, I can
still look for other ways
00:26:03.16\00:26:05.69
in which my life can be better,
00:26:05.73\00:26:07.03
but in the meantime,
I can be able to say,
00:26:07.13\00:26:09.03
"God, thank you
for where I am today. "
00:26:09.06\00:26:11.13
So, the power of love,
00:26:11.17\00:26:13.34
that is one of the
powers that is the most purest
00:26:13.37\00:26:16.10
and fondest to my
heart, because I believe that
00:26:16.14\00:26:18.87
as Dionne Warwick said,
00:26:18.91\00:26:20.28
"What the world
needs is love sweet love"
00:26:20.31\00:26:22.21
when we have that love,
00:26:22.24\00:26:23.98
we can be able to
bring people and ourselves
00:26:24.05\00:26:27.12
to a place that is just higher,
00:26:27.15\00:26:28.88
we live life
higher, we're encouraged
00:26:28.95\00:26:31.25
and we are the ones who
bring healing to the world.
00:26:31.29\00:26:33.86
So that is my message,
00:26:33.89\00:26:35.82
my message is that
we have these powers,
00:26:35.86\00:26:38.46
these seven powers,
00:26:38.49\00:26:39.83
that can cure a
multitude of ills.
00:26:39.86\00:26:41.90
Oh, that's incredible,
and you are taking that...
00:26:41.93\00:26:46.27
that message to churches
and wherever you're invited.
00:26:46.30\00:26:50.67
Right, right, right.
00:26:50.71\00:26:52.17
You want people
to invite you to come
00:26:52.21\00:26:53.64
and share this
message with their churches,
00:26:53.68\00:26:56.48
how can they reach you?
00:26:56.51\00:26:57.85
if you want to
reach me, just go to:
00:26:57.88\00:27:00.25
www.
longjourneytofreedom. com or
00:27:00.28\00:27:02.55
info@longjourneytofreedom. com
00:27:02.58\00:27:04.55
and I would love
for you to go there
00:27:04.62\00:27:06.39
because I have a
free offer for you,
00:27:06.42\00:27:08.16
so those of you
00:27:08.19\00:27:09.52
who would like
to be coached by me
00:27:09.56\00:27:10.89
in terms of weight loss
and just mind, body and spirit,
00:27:10.96\00:27:13.73
I would love to work
with you, so contact me.
00:27:13.76\00:27:16.30
Oh great, so
there's a free offer,
00:27:16.33\00:27:18.20
they can consult with you?
00:27:18.23\00:27:21.00
Absolutely, they will have that,
00:27:21.04\00:27:23.54
I would love to have the
privilege of working with them.
00:27:23.61\00:27:25.61
Praise the Lord,
well, thank you so much,
00:27:25.64\00:27:27.64
thank you so much for
sharing your journey with us,
00:27:27.68\00:27:31.18
and for being transparent
and just letting us know
00:27:31.21\00:27:34.68
what God has
brought you through.
00:27:34.72\00:27:36.45
God bless you.
00:27:36.48\00:27:37.82
Thank you, Yvonne. Thank you.
00:27:37.85\00:27:39.19
And thank you so
much for joining us.
00:27:39.22\00:27:41.66
It's really important
that you "Like" us on Facebook
00:27:41.69\00:27:44.76
that you ask the Lord
00:27:44.79\00:27:46.83
just how you can
support this ministry,
00:27:46.90\00:27:49.50
because, we really,
really design Programs
00:27:49.53\00:27:52.13
with you in mind,
00:27:52.17\00:27:53.50
well, we've reached
the end of another Program,
00:27:53.54\00:27:55.60
join us next time,
because you know what?
00:27:55.64\00:27:57.97
It just wouldn't be
the same... without you.
00:27:58.01\00:28:00.41