SCHOOL VISION : WoMeN oF iNtEgRiTy
Hope Blooms I'm escaping a lifetime of abuse and poverty, one brushstroke at a time.by Cybele Fluno, as told to Ronna Snyder
. I knew we'd sunk to a new low when my two kids and I spent the day in a Wal-Mart because it was warmer than the RV we shared with my unemployed boyfriend, and the food sample trays were fuller than our shelves. But I was no stranger to poverty and hunger.
The physical abuse I suffered at my boyfriend's hands wasn't new, either. The harsh treatment I grew up with—including inappropriate sexual contact by adult men—formed a perverted sort of comfort zone. Warning signs that would alert a healthy person to steer clear of a relationship served more like street signs keeping me on the same road to ruin.
Growing up, I found no solace in the church my family attended, which mixed Scripture with fear, condemnation, control, and abuse. The group my family was in didn't teach about a God of unconditional love and forgiveness. Yet at age 16, I called out to God from the depths of my battered being. Afterwards, I felt different—as though I'd just met someone whose heart I knew I could trust. Not surprisingly, when I told my mother about this, she and the church authorities scolded me
for more of the story visit this site....http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/2007/002/8.60.html
. I knew we'd sunk to a new low when my two kids and I spent the day in a Wal-Mart because it was warmer than the RV we shared with my unemployed boyfriend, and the food sample trays were fuller than our shelves. But I was no stranger to poverty and hunger.
The physical abuse I suffered at my boyfriend's hands wasn't new, either. The harsh treatment I grew up with—including inappropriate sexual contact by adult men—formed a perverted sort of comfort zone. Warning signs that would alert a healthy person to steer clear of a relationship served more like street signs keeping me on the same road to ruin.
Growing up, I found no solace in the church my family attended, which mixed Scripture with fear, condemnation, control, and abuse. The group my family was in didn't teach about a God of unconditional love and forgiveness. Yet at age 16, I called out to God from the depths of my battered being. Afterwards, I felt different—as though I'd just met someone whose heart I knew I could trust. Not surprisingly, when I told my mother about this, she and the church authorities scolded me
for more of the story visit this site....http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/2007/002/8.60.html
SCHOOL MISSION : We aspire to nurture the total development of our students so that they become God-fearing and discerning women of integrity, possessing a strong sense of Truth, Justice, Freedom and Love.